Writing a great headline requires magic… or at least that’s what some people believe. Good writing is merely technique mixed with talent. Good writing is a highly sought after skill, and it pays well.

Joe Sugarman is a legend in the world of copywriting. His number one rule is that every single sentence almost forces the reader to read the next sentence. Your headline should promise a benefit to the reader. Your article should support that promise.

Appealing to your reader’s emotions is crucial. You must understand their wants, needs and desires and create emotional and passionate copy. A great heading is punchy and short and quickly conveys your article’s main premise.

You don’t have to be funny or creative. In fact, it’s actually better if you’re not. Your headline should almost never be clever or cute… you’ll rarely pull the reader that way. (One of my funniest was Roasted Penguin Tastes So Good It Would Make Gandhi Slap His Kids! It was cute; it was clever; and it failed miserably.)

You’ll want to spend some time mastering this ability, as it is an art. Not everyone can successfully craft attractive, eye-catching headings. The good news is that by developing this ability, you’ll leave your competition in the dust.

Like a good song — harmony and music working together — your heading should be in-sync with the story you’re trying to tell. Appeal to the readers interests and satisfy them.

Good headlines should be active. Make them short and say only what they need to say to cover the topic. They should convey the number one benefit to the reader. The copy that follows should be plain and simple paragraphs that support that benefit, as well as giving more.

Getting attention is the main objective of a great heading. Think of it like a pickup line in the clubs… if you don’t get slapped it just might get you a few more minutes to tell your story.

Don’t get me wrong. Funny headlines can sometimes work. I’ve used them myself. But they work best offline, like a direct mail piece. Online you want to think about how people use the search engines. I promise you no one is typing in your clever headline, so the chances of it being seen are nil. They’re using keywords… words relevant to what they want. So use the same words to attract them. And you’ll get the added benefit of higher rankings from Google; they’ll see you as more relevant. Good stuff. After all, higher rankings means more traffic… and that’s what you’re trying to get, right?