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Headlines, Headlines, Headlines

Written by: Anthony Mora

Article Overview: What makes for a good headline? Anything that will make them read on. You only have about seven or eight words to work with, so it can take some time to come up with the right one.

Headlines, Headlines, Headlines

Make sure to keep your press release tight and concise - no rambling - and remember, think in terms of headlines. There is a reason that USA Today, People magazine and MTV are successful. They give us quick, easy-to-digest stories and programs. Ours is a society that likes the fast-food approach to information. Package it nicely, make it interesting, make it short, don't take a lot of our time and we'll read it, watch it, or listen to it. Be smart, and use that same approach when pitching story ideas to the media.

Don't fool yourself into thinking that because you're only writing a one-page release, you can knock it out in half an hour. A good press release can take quite a bit of time to write. As with all writing, the hardest and most important part is the editing. Your first attempt may be three or four pages long. Don't worry about it. Write your first draft without any concern for space, punctuation, or style. Concentrate on the facts and information. Once you have the basic story down, start editing it, cutting it down. Can you say something in a sentence instead of a paragraph? Do you really need to give all that information? It's not easy. Write in headlines - you are not giving them the story - you are giving them the idea. Don't try to rush it. Take your time. Put it aside for a couple of days, then reevaluate it. Can it be improved? I've spent days on certain one-page releases. Remember, think in terms of headlines. You're looking to grab the reader's attention.

And, speaking of headlines, always make sure to start your release with a headline that is centered. I always bold my headline and make it a larger point size than the rest of the copy. What makes for a good headline? Anything that will make them read on. You only have about seven or eight words to work with, so it can take some time to come up with the right one. Sometimes it's fun to be clever or use alliteration, but be careful, you don't want to be too cute. Be imaginative, not precious. Make it interesting.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2008

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  Make Headlines

Article Tags: alliteration, concentrate, couple of days, eight words, fast food, first draft, food approach, half an hour, headlines, information package, long don, mtv, paragraph, people magazine, press release, punctuation, story ideas, usa today



Related Forum Posts
Re: When is your interest peaked by unsolicited mail? - I rarely ever read the headlines of unsolicited email. I know when it's something I haven't signed up for and delete it right away. I get so much crap it's sickening. I may browse over the headlines as I delete them, but that's it. I haven't really noticed any that have caught my interest. As many have already suggested, I'm so calloused when it comes to headlines because I see them all the time and know what to expect. As a marketer, it makes it easy to sniff out the sales pitches. Headlines such as "can you help me?" usually get my attention, but in the end I know they want me to buy something. At least that's the case for most of the newsletters I get. Case in point, even if it isn't unsolicited, it better have a headline that's going to get me to click on it. Otherwise it'll never get read.
Re: When is your interest peaked by unsolicited mail? - In "The Copywriter's Handbook", author Robert W. Bly emphasizes that effective attention-getting words are ones that offer news. For instance, Bly says "Headlines that give news often use words such as new, discover, introducing, announcing, now, it's here, at last, and just arrived...Free is the most powerful word in the copywriter's vocabulary...Other powerful attention-getting words include how to, why, sale, quick, easy, bargain, last chance, guarantee, results, proven and save" (pg 17 & 18). However, I feel as if all of Bly's keywords are over-used and audiences have learned to ignore them in unsolicited email headlines.


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