Are the words in your sub-title, the same words as the title headlines? Is this helpful to those who are trying to get some idea of what’s essentially in your blog’s content?

Let me start with a laughable fact:

Our youngest daughter, said the other day, to her eldest sister,” Do you know, I sound like our mother!  I find myself repeating myself. And I even get my children’s names all mixed up!” Well when I heard that, I burst out laughing. I just couldn’t stop laughing. Shuddering with laughter, till the tears flowed! 

You may not think this is funny like I did. But if you’ve been a mother with more than one child, you’ll understand and appreciate why it is so funny. You’re happy to know at last your children have begun to realize what it means to be a mother.

You see, when you’re a child, you wonder why adults repeat themselves? You think the old dears tend to be forever bossy and nag endlessly. Ha-ha! Blar-blar! So What! Not all that old hat again! 

The point is: 

They’ve heard it all before. And no one clicks on your post because the title was repeated in the sub-title. 

• To our prospect readers, it shows the writer hasn’t thoughtfully prepared the blog. Didn’t understand that the subtitle is there to identify, inform and encourage readers to click and read the blog. 
• It also gives you impression that the blog is bound to be bland and uninteresting. So people don’t expect much and move on. (Just like when mother repeated herself! He he!) 

Take note of newspaper & magazine headlines:

Journalists have to be very creative when they write for newspapers, otherwise they are fired. Their headlines have to be very `catchy’ to insure the paper sells well. 

And if we are wise, we can` take a leaf out of their book’. 

So what are newspapers like?

1. First of all, newspaper headlines are short and snappy, on the street placards or on the front page of the paper. 
2. The wording is cleverly direct, yet mystifying enough, so you want to buy the newspaper straight away to find out what’s the latest news is all about.  
3. And in the actual paper, you’ll find the first paragraph has a brief on the story, before continuing with the full detailed story. 

And what Magazines are like:

1. And if you look at magazines, you’ll see on the cover, preliminary sub-titles stimulating you to buy the magazine.  
2. And then once inside the mag, you’ll find the article also has a sub-title or first paragraph that introduces you to the article’s content. 

Conclusion:  Entice people to read your blogs.  

1. Your headlines are there to grab people.  
2. And the sub-title is to encourage people.  
3. And the first paragraph is a brief discussion or dialog that leads people into, what’s going to be in the contents. 
4. And in the contents, don’t disappoint them. Give them more than what they expected. Make it exciting and thrilling to read (hear). 

Years ago someone brought this to my attention:

He said, “Tell a story like a newspaper. Give us headlines first. Don’t go straight into your long-boring drawn-out details of the story of what actually happened. First give us some idea of what the story will be about, so we can then understand and follow the gist of it without any trouble.” 

I’ve never forgotten that. Such wise words! 

But that’s not all:

The headlines and sub-headings need to be dramatic and dynamic to make them `clickable’. 

They can be sensible, way-out, funny, corny, whatever. But they must be eye catching and mind bending.