Guest Author - Kristin Peoples
Headlines are used to grab your reader’s attention. It has been proven that if the reader’s eyes aren’t drawn to the headlines, they will skip over it and go to something else. That’s a difficult pill to swallow when you have put so much care and work into your newsletter or ezine. Here are a few ways to get your headlines to kick:
Teaser’s
These are similar to the headlines you see on the news like “News at 11” or “Coming up in the next segment.” It’s a small bit of what you are going to cover to get them to take a look. This is certainly not easy to do and you need to be able to do it in just a few words. Think about your upcoming main article. What is in it that you think reader’s can’t live without? It may be something that is newsworthy in your particular niche or it may just be breaking news. Find a way to give a small amount of what’s coming up next in about 10 words or less. Make sure any ezine or newsletter that you have gives a place for you to give a “what’s coming up” on the front page. Be sure to link the teaser to the main article. You do want them to read the entire ezine or newsletter, but if they don’t, at least get them to your main focus page.
Photo(s)
We have become very visual people and a picture is very important within your newsletter or ezine. Make sure the photo is clear and of good quality. A blurry picture can mean that you didn’t take the time to make sure you added a great picture. Be sure to take a look at it before you send it out. It is also important that the picture helps advertise your main points. Don’t add a picture that is cluttered with other things.
Headlines
Headlines are one sentence that sums up the entire ezine or newsletter. It is meant to be short and eye catching. Have you ever opened a link to an article and you were surprised at what was there. Your headline should be accurate but not give away the article. It is meant to give the readers just enough to want more. Be very specific in your headline and make it stand out from the rest of your newsletter. Bold type and larger font is acceptable on your headline and use active words.
It sometimes helps to write the articles for the ezine or newsletter first and then go back and add the article. You can develop writer’s block from time to time when you have the headline or teaser already in your mind before your write the article.
