The Biggest Headline Mistake Content Creators Aren't Even Aware They're Making

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Make This Simple Tweak To Your Headline (Or The Content Will Be Ignored)

Who here has seen headlines like these?

• “Improve Your Life With These 5 Changes”

• “6 Helpful Tips For Better Business Success”

They aren’t the worst.

There aren’t any grammatical errors and they aren’t necessarily confusing.

But I have no desire to click on them.

Sure, I’d love to “improve my life” and I definitely wouldn’t say no to “better business success”.

But I have zero confidence that those pieces of content would help me achieve either of those goals.

The reason for this is that the headlines lack an ingredient essential for getting a piece of content clicked.

That ingredient is specificity.

A common mistake made by content creators is assuming that vague, mysterious headlines increase curiosity.

But that couldn’t be further from the truth…

Why Do Specific Details Make Headlines More Clickable Than Vague Details?

Let’s take the first example:

“Improve Your Life With These 5 Changes”

And add some specificity:

“Life Coach’s 5 Hacks To Boost Afternoon Productivity By 18%”

We’ve taken it to the extreme here, but you’ll notice how it immediately becomes more clickable.

Now, the audience knows:

• The source of the information (life coach).

• The benefit (afternoon productivity hacks).

• The scale of the benefit (18%).

The content seems more credible and the benefit is more certain.

This makes them more curious and less likely to ignore it.

But here’s the key…

The headline doesn’t give everything away.

There’s a clear “curiosity gap” left by the headline because the audience is still left wondering what the “5 Hacks” are.

So they click to consume the content and close that gap.

Specific Details To Look For And Add To Your Headlines

Here are some specific details you could look for in your content and then add to your headline:

• Numbers and Statistics: Use exact figures to quantify value.

  • E.g., “Increase ___ Efficiency By 24%.”

• Time Frames: Specify exact durations to set expectations.

  • E.g., “3-Day Workout Plan” or “60-Minute Meal Prep Guide…”

• Specific Audience: Tailor the headline by calling out a particular group.

  • E.g., “…For New Moms” or “Freelancers’ Guide....”

• Specific Locations: Add geographical specificity when relevant.

  • E.g., “5 Hidden Beaches in Northern Bali…”

• Names And Titles: Include well-known names or titles.

  • E.g., “Stephen King’s 7 Writing Tips…” or “NASA Engineer’s Take On Asteroid Mining Trend...”

• Specific Problems: Address particular issues or challenges.

  • E.g., “Solving The Tiny House Kitchen Storage Dilemma.”

Your 2-Step Summary:

1. Find Specifics: Take concrete details like numbers, time frames, target groups, or expert names from your content.

2. Embed In Headlines: Use these specifics in your headlines to make the content look more credible and to make the benefit more certain.

Whenever You’re Ready:

There’s a very specific way I can help you.

“Headline Magic”: If you want more views, this course reveals the dead-simple, psychology-driven headline tricks pro content creators use to drive millions of clicks to their content.

🐰 rabbit holes and resources

🍫 Today’s link candy for content creators:

• How veteran creator Thomas Frank accidentally started a 100K/month side hustle [link]

• A data-driven way to triple your online business’ success [link]

• Struggling to pick a killer name for your brand? This brand name expert shows you how [link]