How to Write Headlines That Drive More Clicks — Interview with Derek Hughes
7 hacks to help you stand out in a sea of stories competing for attention.
Here’s the harsh truth…
even if you hate to sell your writing….
Your headline is the face of your content, and it’s what makes it sell.
You read that right!
The highest-paid people in the writing industry are those who write headlines.
Because headlines sell the newspaper or magazine.
No matter how valuable, incredible, or groundbreaking your newsletter or article is, you'll never be able to help people truly, make money, or make a difference in the world if you can't grab attention with a great headline first.
Did you know?
80% of people NEVER read more than the headline.
The headline is all we have. Our readers look at it for a millisecond and decide whether to click on it.
Do you think?
I’m guilty of just wanting to get the story out there rather than crafting an even better headline.
I need to work on my headline to draw more people to read my work!
My headlines are an afterthought, I focus on the body of my
I’ve got you covered!
This week we had our first LIVE inside the Online Writing School.
Our first guest was Derek Hughes aka the headline whizz who helped 12 members make their headlines stronger.
Based on Derek’s feedback, Dr Nia D Thomas started changing all the titles of her Substack publication and here’s what she shared:
Who is title whizz Derek Hughes?
Derek from Manchester struggled to get readers on Medium. He constantly felt not good enough. And nearly gave up.
Within 10 months, Derek transformed his part-time writing business.
He gained more than 5,000 followers on Medium.
He gained more than 1,200 subscribers.
He went from $0 to $800 per month.
How?
He developed super strong headline-writing skills and even created a course about it.
See this headline below?
It received more than 5k claps, 120 comments, and earned $600.
Now Derek is on a mission to make sure you spend more time writing headlines.
Remember: Titles matter. Your headline is the face of your content, and it is what makes it sell.
7 hacks to stand out in a sea of stories competing for attention.
A few days ago I already shared with you
The Rule of 10
The 4Ps
Of course, there are more hacks, such as
The Emotion-Evoking Headline Fuel
The Curiosity Gap
…
There isn’t a single way to write headlines.
In this week’s interview, Derek and I talk about all those fundamental tips and tricks to improve your headline/subject line.
It’s especially interesting if you’re writing on Medium because these tips can help you level up your writing and become one of the top 5% of writers:
✅ VIDEO CHAPTERS
00:00:00 Why Headlines Are Important to Get Clicks
00:01:05 Who is Derek Hughes?
00:02:30 Is Writing a Full-Time Job for Derek?
00:03:15 Biggest Mistake that New Writers Make
00:05:56 How Consistency Has Changed Derek’s Writing
00:07:42 Derek’s Formula for an Irresistible Headline
00:10:36 Derek’s Thoughts on Clickbait and How to Avoid It
00:12:56 How can Writers’ Headlines Stand Out?
00:15:08 The 4P Approach to Headline Writing
00:18:06 Headline Examples from Derek
00:25:08 What is the Rule of 10?
00:28:52 How Derek Infuses Emotions in His Writing
00:32:40 How Derek Fights Procrastination
00:35:02 What is Derek’s Writing Process and Is Repurposing Worth It?
00:42:25 Personal Questions for Derek
Need More Help Writing Your Headlines?
The key is to practice your headline writing skills as much as possible, get feedback from fellow writers and readers, iterate, and repeat.
Pre-tests such as A/B testing are common in copywriting but it’s rarely done when you’re not a full-time writer.
I spent hours *thinking* about this week’s YouTube headline. I felt stuck.
Guess what I did? I sent Derek an email and asked him for advice.
He suggested:
Headline hacks that'll make you better than 93% of writers.
“It's a spin on a Medium headline of mine that has worked well", he shared with me.
YouTube is different than Medium, so I tweaked it a little.
See? I’m also thankful for the headline help.
Wouldn’t it be great to have some headline help in your pocket?
Based on the feedback from my tribe members Danusia Malina-Derben and Derek Pharr we now have a special corner dedicated to “Headline Help”.
This way you can “pre-test” a headline by asking the community for feedback.
At the same time, you can help others with their headlines and grow together.
Derek Hughes is also part of it.
You can also watch the RECORDING of our first LIVE session where Derek shared his headline critique publication by publication and Medium profile by Medium profile.
I'll see you inside our membership experience, friend!
Wait, please, could you do me a favor? 😘Re-stack and/or share this post, so more people can engage!😘 Thanks!
Happy Headline-Writing!
Kristina
I know this is going to be a worthwhile read when the headline convinces me to 😂
How incredibly lucky I found someone that helps with headline advice AND YouTube stuff! I'm trying both out for the first time and I just spent my few hours trying to make a YouTube title and thumbnail (and text) for my video based on my substack article on the same subject. So glad someone can help with both