Blogs are here to stay. And as a registered dietitian business owner, blogs are a valuable tool that connects your ideal reader to you and your business…if they’re done right. It starts with a great title.
So, you may be wondering how to write a great blog title that is irresistible to your readers? This post is for you!
Is blogging dead?
Absolutely not. When done well, blogs can be a super boost to your business for several reasons.
Build authority
Blogs are an opportunity for you to demonstrate your expertise. Blogs can improve your website’s traffic and authority (this is SEO) and give more of an opportunity for your potential clients to get to know you, trust you and become clients.
In 2018, businesses that utilized blogs got 67% more leads than those that didn’t (1).
Organic traffic
Blogging is never going to be as sexy as an Instagram reel going viral, but I’ll tell you, blogs help to grow your brand slowly and steadily. With a targeted plan, you can grow your traffic, without having to pay for advertising.
What is the most important sentence in your blog?
The trick is, how do you get your blogs opened and read when there are millions of blogs out there?
The most important sentence in your blog is your title.
8 out of 10 people read a title, only 2 out of 10 will click (1).
Before you start blogging, answer the following questions
Before we can talk about how to write a great blog title, we need to have a great blog topic. First things first, who are you talking to?
Who is your audience?
It is important to know your niche so that you can focus your attention – singularly – on becoming an expert problem solver for them.
As a registered dietitian copywriter, my audience is clear! I help RDs to grow their business.
What is their problem, concern, or pain point?
RDs with a private practice wear many hats and there are only so many hours in the day. And while there is no end to how many ways you can work, successfully, as an entrepreneur, you cannot do everything well.
I help dietitians who don’t have the time, desire, or skills to write effective copy for their website, blogs, or emails.
How is this blog going to help them?
There are a lot of skills that go into a well-written blog. Having an effective title is one important piece of the puzzle.
Five steps to writing a blog title
There are five steps for how to write a great blog title.
Start with a working title
Don’t let imposter syndrome or perfectionism pump the brakes on writing. Start with a first draft and full permission to be shitty.
Sometimes my blogs don’t end up exactly where I imagined when I started writing. That’s okay! Start with a working blog title.
Write your blog post or article
Write your draft, sleep on it and take a peek back. Revise, edit and get a solid working draft.
Revise your title – write new versions
Go back and reread your title. Does it capture what your blog is about?
Use a tool to analyze your title’s strength
Keep reading, I have a few free tools to analyze how strong and captivating your blog title is.
Use a tool to get the capitalization right
I may be a copywriter, but I am not an excellent editor. That is why I rely on Capitalize my Title and my proofreader to ensure that I’m posting blogs free of errors.
7 best headline categories to grab your reader’s attention
There are many types and styles of blog titles. The most important consideration is that the title accurately conveys the value of your blog post to your reader. Clear always wins over clever or cute.
A good blog title is just about explaining what is in the blog; a great blog title leans into your reader’s emotions and makes your content irresistible. If you really want to learn how to write a great blog title, you have to connect with your readers on an emotional level.
Emotional language can touch and connect with your reader and encourage them to read what you wrote. We want to pique their interest without being spammy – this is known as clickbait.
These categories show you how to connect right in the feels.
A solution to a pain point
Solving a problem is a great opportunity to really show how well you know your ideal audience. What is really driving them bananas?
Why your toddler won’t touch the vegetables that she loved last week.
Three best ways to get your teenager to gobble up salads.
Numbered lists
Our brains really love numbers. Somehow saying “the five best ways to…” is so much more appealing than “a few ways to…”
The four best kitchen tools that you need to make salad prep a breeze.
How-to
What do you feel that everyone else seems to get, but you haven’t figured out quite yet? We all have those things. Writing a blog title that solves those unsolved problems is a great post!
How to make salads that will actually keep you full [longer than 12 minutes].
Against the grain
Swim upstream to pique your reader’s interest.
The three reasons this dietitian would choose a burger over salad for lunch.
Myths vs. facts
I think that dietitians could write nothing but myth-buster blog posts and never run out of materials.
Are all salads healthy? Four reasons that isn’t always true.
Share personal experience
Great opportunity to show up as you, truly you, and let your audience get to know you better.
I grew my own lettuce! The best salad I’ve ever eaten.
Ask a question
A question offers your reader the opportunity to read your title and answer “yes” and be more excited to dive into reading your post.
Tired of the same boring salads? Three easy tips to jazz things up.
Tips and tricks to write better blog titles
Ready for a few more ideas of how to write a great blog title? Let’s keep leveling up!
Speak their language
Are you speaking to physicians, who might use a proper diagnosis in their Google searches and writing (ex: diabetes)? Or, are you speaking to college students who would be Googling their symptoms (ex: low blood sugar)?
Know how your ideal audience speaks and match their language.
Add expertise
As a registered dietitian, you have incredible experience and expertise to offer. In your headline, you can add “according to a dietitian” and “as evidenced by science” to demonstrate that.
Add a superlative
Average isn’t very interesting. We are most interested in either the very best or the very worst end of the spectrum.
Positive superlatives – top, best, easiest, funniest, tastiest
Negative superlatives – never, worse, by no means.
Free tools to improve your blog title
I don’t know about you, but I do love free tools. Here are a few of the favorites that I use as I’m writing and tweaking my blog titles.
Portent Content Title Generator
Plug in a few keywords and see what title this comes up with. It is kind of fun to play around with!
Sharethrough Headline Analyzer
Aim to have 70 or higher in this tool. This is not the only tool available, but this is the one that I use.
Once your title is finalized, make sure that the capitalization is perfect.
Key takeaways: how to write a great blog title
Blogs are a powerful tool for registered dietitians to use to grow their business. Learning how to write a great blog title helps you to connect with even more readers. Your title is the most important sentence of the blog.
If you’re looking for support in your business – consider hiring a copywriter. You deserve to delegate! Here is what the process is like.
P.S. What is the second most read sentence of your blog post or email? The P.S.! You may have skimmed over the article, but here you are, reading this sentence!
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