How to write a headline: make the promise specific before making it clever
A headline-writing prompt that generates specific options, labels the angle behind each one and refuses claims the supplied page cannot support.
- Works in
- ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini
- You need
- Page type · Audience and job · Evidence for the promise · Brand voice sample
- Written for
- how to write a headline
A good headline is a small contract. It names what follows and creates an expectation the first paragraph can keep. Clever wording is optional; a clear subject is not.
Headline examples by angle
For a study of 400 WordPress sites, compare:
- Direct: “What WordPress SEO plugins fix—and what they leave behind”
- Outcome: “Finish the SEO work your WordPress plugin cannot reach”
- Proof: “We audited 400 WordPress sites. The theme caused the repeat failures”
Each angle can work because each remains attached to the same evidence. “Transform your WordPress SEO” cannot be checked, so it sounds larger while saying less.
If the headline is meant for a search result, write the page headline first and then use the title tag examples prompt to create the shorter search version.
Write 15 headlines for this page. Before writing them, extract four facts:
audience, job, outcome and proof. If one is missing, write MISSING beside it
and do not fill the gap yourself.
Group the headlines into five angles, three per angle:
- direct answer;
- outcome with mechanism;
- problem and resolution;
- concrete proof;
- curiosity without withholding the subject.
Put the page subject in every headline. A reader should understand what the
page is about when the headline appears by itself. Keep each under 70
characters unless clarity needs more. Add the character count and label any
line that requires a missing fact.
Ban these constructions: “unlock”, “ultimate guide”, “game-changing”, “you
won’t believe”, “in today’s fast-paced world”, “everything you need to know”,
and a question whose answer is obviously yes. Do not invent a number. Do not
use a colon merely to attach a vague phrase to the subject.
Finish by selecting three finalists. For each, explain in one sentence what
expectation it creates, then write the opening sentence that pays off that
expectation. Do not declare a winner; the editor chooses.
Page type: [PAGE_TYPE]
Audience and job: [AUDIENCE_JOB]
Facts and proof: [EVIDENCE]
Brand voice sample: [VOICE]What to change
Everything in square brackets is yours to replace. Nothing else needs editing.
[PAGE_TYPE]- Article, service page, product page, email or advertisement. The same headline does a different job in each place.
[AUDIENCE_JOB]- Who is arriving and what they need to decide, learn or do.
[EVIDENCE]- Specific facts the headline may promise: a measured result, tested method, scope, price or constraint.
[VOICE]- Two real sentences from the brand, preferably from the same page type.
How to run it
- 01Write the brief in facts
A weak brief produces adjective swaps. Give the prompt the subject, reader’s job and whatever proof makes this page different.
- 02Compare the expectation, not the cleverness
Read the one-sentence expectation beside each finalist. Choose the promise the page fulfils most completely.
- 03Keep the opening attached
Paste the selected opening under the headline. If it cannot pay off the headline immediately, choose a less ambitious line.
Questions people ask
How do you write a good headline?
Name the subject, choose the reader’s job and make the most specific promise the page can support. Draft several angles, then judge each by the expectation it creates and whether the opening fulfils it.
How long should a headline be?
There is no universal length. Around 70 characters is a useful editing constraint for an article headline, but clarity is more important. A title tag has a separate display constraint and may need its own shorter wording.
Should a headline be a question?
Only when the question reflects a real decision and the page answers it quickly. Questions with an obvious yes, or questions used to hide the subject, add suspense where a reader needs clarity.
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