It is an undeniable truth that headlines have expanded in recent years. Instead of providing a concise introduction, many have become rambling and attention-seeking, like a supporting act that refuses to get off the stage. What’s the story with growing headlines? A Brief History Traditionally the ‘less is more’ approach was recommended for headlines. This advice was still being offered in 2009 by one media analyst who claimed that headlines should be short and information-rich because ‘people don’t read much online.’ He was particularly taken with headlines which managed, in an average of five words, to ‘convey the gist of the story on its own without requiring you to click.’ In 2013 this 22-word clunker from the New York Post about a woman and a chicken sandwich was a portent of things to come: Gospel Singer Suing McDonald's After She Allegedly Bit into Piece of Glass While Eating Chicken Sandwich, Which She Claims Ruined Her Voice Rambling headlines have been around since publishing began, but they have become more common as publishers compete online for clicks and shares. The Digital Revolution According to Outbrain, 8-word headlines perform better than short headlines, and the ideal length is 12-18 words. ‘Performance’ is defined as the number of clicks and shares a post receives. Other studies have confirmed that the CTR (click-through rate) increases when headlines have more characters, with engagement peaking at 15-16 words. To put this in perspective, the headline for this article is 8 words. In 2016 Google increased its title length from 55-60 characters to 70-71 characters before the headline is truncated in search results, providing further incentive for longer headlines. To remain competitive, publishers have increasingly resorted to lengthy titles to arouse readers’ emotions and curiosity while boosting SEO results. With newsfeeds chewing up content so rapidly, it’s imperative to seize people’s attention and hold it long enough for them to click through and read, or at least share a post. This is another reason headlines have become longer and more descriptive; many people don’t bother to read any further. A 2016 study by computer scientists at Columbia University and the French National Institute found that 6 out of 10 people who shared content on Twitter didn’t click through first. These are probably the same people who jump straight from the headline to the comments to express their outrage (be honest, who hasn't been guilty?). It’s clear that headlines have expanded in response to the digital revolution. They may have peaked in length, but inflated headlines seem to be multiplying, and it's not just headlines. Here are some recent titles from HarperCollins and Hachette Books that include a lengthy description of the book in the subtitle, rather than the blurb: In a Cottage in a Wood: The Gripping New Psychological Thriller From the Bestselling Author of The Woman Next Door White American Youth: My Descent into America’s Most Violent Hate Movement and How I Got Out With hundreds of thousands of books flooding the market every year, publishers are under pressure to get noticed. It makes sense that they will adopt these tactics. In his book How to Be a Writer Who Smashes Deadlines, Crushes Editors and Lives In a Solid Gold Hover Craft, John Birmingham writes that 'a subtitle delivers more information about content and also ticks a few boxes for the book's metadata entries later on.' Extended titles and subtitles have become very attractive for those wanting to maximise their presence in search results on bookselling sites like Amazon. Over-sharing headlines will persist while people continue to click, share and buy. If you dislike these rambling attention-seekers and long for the return of the short, pithy title then vote with your fingers and simply refuse to engage with them. Comments are closed.
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