{"id":2552,"date":"2016-11-09T10:08:03","date_gmt":"2016-11-09T15:08:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/?p=2552"},"modified":"2018-12-21T10:43:06","modified_gmt":"2018-12-21T15:43:06","slug":"how-to-write-headlines-like-a-journalist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/how-to-write-headlines-like-a-journalist","title":{"rendered":"How To Write Headlines Like A Journalist"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Your headline is the first and often the last thing that anyone will read in relation to your press release. If your headline isn\u00edt hot, it makes no difference how thrilling or well-written your release is. No one will ever see it because they will have skipped on to the next story headline.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/guides.newswire.com\/guide\/how-to-write-a-press-release\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright\" style=\"margin-left: 20px;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/Guide-Writing-Press-Release.jpg\" alt=\"get-started-newsroom\" width=\"400\" height=\"400\" align=\"right\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>That being the case, it is important to learn how to write headlines like a professional journalist. Here are some of the easiest ways to make your headlines shine.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Grab the attention<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Check out the difference between these two headlines:<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>An amazing new treatment is being used in medicine for some wonderful results<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Johns Hopkins docs discover lung cancer cure<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The first is far too vague. The second gives a lot more information and captures the attention.<\/p>\n<p>Answers the 6Ws but still intrigues the audience to read on<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>The 6Ws of journalist are:<\/em><\/strong><br \/>\n<strong><em>Who<\/em><\/strong><br \/>\n<strong><em>What<\/em><\/strong><br \/>\n<strong><em>Where<\/em><\/strong><br \/>\n<strong><em>When<\/em><\/strong><br \/>\n<strong><em>Why<\/em><\/strong><br \/>\n<strong><em>How<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The first headline above does not answer any of these. The second answers many of them, either directly, or by implication:<\/p>\n<p>Who=docs<br \/>\nWhat=lung cancer cure<br \/>\nWhere=Johns Hopkins<br \/>\nWhen-recently, since it is \u00ebnews\u00ed<br \/>\nWhy=research is always being done about cancer to try to find a cure.<br \/>\nHow=the verb discover implies in a lab, during research, and so on<\/p>\n<p><strong>Write tight<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>All of the above information is conveyed in a 7-word headline. Keep your headlines short, no more than 60 to 80 characters, including spaces.<\/p>\n<p>Use strong verbs<\/p>\n<p>Discover is stronger than find.<\/p>\n<p>Avoid adjectives and adverbs<\/p>\n<p>They are usually found in sales pitches, not press releases. Focus on facts, not fluff.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Surprise and intrigue<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Grab their attention and entice them to read the story by intriguing them and getting them curious. \u00ecMicrosoft buys LinkedIn,\u00ee is interesting, but \u00ecMicrosoft grabs LinkedIn, to top tech companies once more\u00ee seems to indicate there is more to the story, such as a particular strategy driving Microsoft to buy it.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Use numbers<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Numbers grab attention and give an air of fact, not opinion or salesmanship. Numbers can also have power and impact.<\/p>\n<p><em>Family harmed in shooting spree<\/em><br \/>\n<em>3 dead, 2 injured, after family shot by neighbor<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cite statistics<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>Statistics are even stronger than ordinary numbers<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>4\/5s of osteoporosis sufferers are women<\/em><br \/>\n<em>80% with osteoporosis are female<\/em><\/p>\n<p>They are essentially the same facts, but 80% has more impact.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Steer clear of technical terms<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The headline should be clear enough for even a non-expert to understand.<\/p>\n<p><em>7 assets miss RV, reported MIA<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>is military-speak for:<\/em><br \/>\n<em>7 soldiers miss rendezvous, reported missing (in action)<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Write for your niche audience<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If you have done your keyword research, you know what words and phrases will be of most interest to your target audience. Use at least one main keyword in your headline in order to attract the attention of the right journalist and reader.<\/p>\n<p><em>Golf club manufacturer to expand plant and product line<\/em><br \/>\n<em>Callaway announces new line of golf clubs and more new hires<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Anyone who knows anything about golf, and golf clubs, will know the brand Callaway.<\/p>\n<p>Use these 10 tips consistently, and you will soon be writing headlines like a pro.<\/p>\n<h3><strong><span data-sheets-value=\"{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:&quot;Call us today to speak to one of our PR specialists: 1-800-713-7278&quot;}\" data-sheets-userformat=\"{&quot;2&quot;:16897,&quot;3&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:0},&quot;12&quot;:0,&quot;17&quot;:1}\">Call us today to speak to one of our PR specialists: 1-800-713-7278<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Your headline is the first and often the last thing that anyone will read in relation to your press release. &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2553,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[217,928,440],"class_list":["post-2552","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pr-writing-tips","tag-how-to-write-a-good-press-release","tag-how-to-write-a-press-release-like-a-journalist","tag-writing-a-press-release-that-journalists-want"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.7 (Yoast SEO v25.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How To Write Headlines Like A Journalist | Newswire<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Your headline is the first and often the last thing that anyone will read in relation to your press release. If your headline isn\u00edt hot, it makes no\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/how-to-write-headlines-like-a-journalist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How To Write Headlines Like A Journalist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Your headline is the first and often the last thing that anyone will read in relation to your press release. If your headline isn\u00edt hot, it makes no\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/how-to-write-headlines-like-a-journalist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Newswire\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/inewswire\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-11-09T15:08:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2018-12-21T15:43:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/39087286-Typewriter-detailed-macro-closeup-typing-text-Latest-News-large-detail-vintage-press-TV-radio-intern-Stock-Photo.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1300\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"864\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Anthony Santiago\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@inewswire\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@inewswire\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Anthony Santiago\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/how-to-write-headlines-like-a-journalist\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/how-to-write-headlines-like-a-journalist\",\"name\":\"How To Write Headlines Like A Journalist | Newswire\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/how-to-write-headlines-like-a-journalist#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/how-to-write-headlines-like-a-journalist#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/39087286-Typewriter-detailed-macro-closeup-typing-text-Latest-News-large-detail-vintage-press-TV-radio-intern-Stock-Photo.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-11-09T15:08:03+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2018-12-21T15:43:06+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newswire.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/20dd0db7626c09e94272db7977515175\"},\"description\":\"Your headline is the first and often the last thing that anyone will read in relation to your press release. 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