How to write blog titles people click

What makes a blog title work?

Three things, in this order.

• The search words come first. Someone searching “furnace short cycling” should see those exact words at the start. Our sample post is titled “Furnace Short Cycling: Why It Happens and What to Do.”
• It makes one promise. The part after the colon says what the reader gets, the cause and the fix, and nothing more.
• It fits. Google shows only so much of each title, and long ones end in an ellipsis. We cap titles at 60 characters so the promise stays visible.

Which title formats work for blog posts?

A handful of shapes cover most posts. Match the shape to what the searcher wants.

The first three are real titles from our samples. If you write list posts, our guide to writing a listicle covers how to keep them useful.

Should blog titles use title case or sentence case?

Either works, as long as every title on your blog uses the same one. Title case capitalizes the main words. Sentence case capitalizes only the first word and names.

Which small words stay lowercase depends on the style guide. AP, Chicago and APA each set the line in a different place. Our headline capitalization rules walk through each one with examples.

What should a blog title avoid?

• A promise the post doesn’t keep. A reader who feels tricked leaves fast and doesn’t come back.
• Wordplay that hides the topic. “Hot Air Rising” might be clever, but few people would ever search for it.
• Stacked promises. “The Ultimate, Complete, Step-by-Step Guide” says less than “A Step-by-Step Guide.”
• A different subject from the post. The title, the first lines and the headings should all point at the same search.

A plain title won’t win every click. On crowded searches, a specific number or a sharp angle can help a title stand out. That works as long as the post delivers on it.

How do you test a blog title before you publish?

Four quick checks, each under a minute.

• Read it alone. Picture it in a list of ten results with no picture and no context. Does it still say what the post is?
• Search it. Type the search words into Google. If the top results answer a different question, your title and the search don’t match.
• Count it. Under 60 characters, spaces included.
• Say it out loud. If it sounds like nobody would say it, rewrite it until someone would.

If a title fails the first check, fix that before anything else. A clear title with no spark still gets read. Nobody clicks a clever title they don’t understand.

How Blog Hands writes titles

• Every title starts from the post’s target search, which you approved in your monthly topic plan.
• Titles stay under 60 characters, and every post gets a meta description of 145 to 160 characters.
• The title, the opening answer and the headings all aim at the same search.
• The Blog Grader checks the title length on every post, and you see the score before you approve.
• Want a different title? Ask for a change in your dashboard before you approve.