• http://www.steve-olson.com Steve Olson

    John,

    You are correct my freind.

    Great content may go unread because of the title and the first paragraph. Those elements are critical. I’m happy to hear of your successes.

  • http://www.kensavage.com Ken Savage

    A friend of mine who owns a bicycle shop had a similar brick-and-mortar problem.

    No one came into the show room to even look at his bikes. He invited a few local pros to come down and give a 1 hour talk about how to be a better bike handler. Now he advertises the same ads in newspapers and phone book but with the tagline “home for racing pros.”

    he can’t keep up with the bike builds anymore.

  • http://www.pickthebrain.com John Wesley

    You’re absolutely right Ken. Good marketing applies to any business endeavor.

  • http://aridni.com Katie

    Thanks for the perfect model of the power of presentation, John.

    Your point is one I certainly need to develop. I appreciate it!

  • http://www.stevenaitchison.co.uk/blog s

    A great post John and I have experienced the stumble effect as well. It’s definitiely in the packaging and the title sucks the reader in.

  • http://andybeard.eu/2007/02/headline-split-testing-social-news-with-the-same-article-for-massive-traffic.html Headline Split Testing Social News With The Same Article For Massive Traffic : Blog Archive Andy Beard

    [...] The new version of the article has brought him almost 5000 visitors. [...]

  • http://www.stephanmiller.com/2007/02/01/getting-the-social-thumbs-up/ Stephan Miller » Getting the Social Thumbs Up

    [...] the Social Thumbs Up Posted in Uncategorized by Stephan Miller on the February 1st, 2007 Trackback Case Study: How a Headline Made the Difference Between 100 and 5000 Visits – Pick the Brain -Getting Smarter Every Day [...]

  • http://www.sensorpro.co.uk Chris Byrne

    Excellent John.

    There is an interesting free headline analyser tool available that measures the “emotional marketing value” of your headlines here: http://www.aminstitute.com/headline/

    Sadly, when I tried your headlines it said the opposite. However I think Brian Clark over at copyblogger still wins the day.

    Chris

  • http://www.pickthebrain.com John Wesley

    That makes sense. My headline isn’t really very emotional at all. I think it worked because it’s intellectually compelling.

    Interesting tool though, I’ll have to check it out.

  • http://goodnessgraciousness.blogspot.com jennifer

    Great post and fantastic blog! For a real newbie in the world of blogging I totally appreciate the info! Thanks a bunch! Jennifer

  • http://www.copyblogger.com Brian Clark

    Good work John, and I’m glad the article helped. I don’t even think that’s one of the most instructive ones I’ve done on headlines, but it is helpful via “live” demonstration I suppose. I should do more of those. ;)

  • http://www.pickthebrain.com John Wesley

    Thanks for stopping by Brian. I agree, that certainly wasn’t the only article that helped me. I think I read the entire ‘Magnetic Headlines’ series. But that was the one that really prompted me to get serious about writing great headlines. Keep up the great work. I can’t wait to put more of your copywriting ideas into action.

  • http://dmiessler.com/ Daniel

    I’m just happy you’re submitting your own content yourself and not getting flamed for it. The Internet needs more people like you — people who have their own opinions and thoughts and want to share them.

    Congrats.

  • http://www.wahmconnections.com/marketing Tammy

    “Your Own Intelligence” is indeed compelling – you were talking about me!

    Now that’s a way to get people reading what was great to begin with… tell us what we might not know about ourselves.

  • http://www.theprobabilist.com Johan Holmberg

    It gave me a wonder how the topic suddenly changed, but I can see now what you did. Experimenting and testing out different methods is the key to finding optimal solutions. I know. ;)

    This is great advice.

  • http://www.seoshed.com phatz

    Interesting element to these comments and the people leaving them. lemme guess…

  • http://ideasman.wordpress.com/ ggwfung

    digg ain’t the goldmine it once was. Steve Pavlina rode it to immense success, but I don’t think any others can depend on it.

    It’s good thinking to look for alternatives – and reddit and stumbleupon are certainly two options.

    In a way, I think reddit has that exciting vibe that digg had 12 months ago.

    you’ve made immense strides in a month John. Congrats.

    ggw

  • http://makelivingonline.blogspot.com Vikas

    This is a good post. Now its time to learn how to write better headlines.

  • http://blogosquare.com Hans

    Thanks for the tip John.

  • http://www.theprobabilist.com/how-to-blog-8-essential-steps-to-effective-blogging/ How to Blog – 8 Essential Steps to Effective Blogging | The Probabilist . com

    [...] In order to grab attention, your post titles need to be carefully selected. Are you going with wit, clarity, controversy or guidance? Do you aim for people’s emotional or rational attention? Do you want to entertain or provide help? John Wesley provided a great case study over the choice of headlines. Copyblogger presents alternative options of how to rephrase your headlines. And while you’re at it, check the wording of Steve Olson’s headlines in the Most popular posts section in the sidebar. Always experiment and try different methods and analyze the results. [...]

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    [...] If you don’t have a lot of time, just look on the sidebar: Best of Pick The Brain section contains the best informational and motivating articles, such as Learn to understand your own intelligence, Overcoming a loss of motivation, or Case study: How a headline made the difference between 100 and 5000 visits. Although John is a bit sceptical about his blog being remarkable, there are lots of things to learn from the big white bear, so I invite you to read John Wesley’s blog and comment here what was your favourite post and why. Good luck John, and keep on picking the brain. It sure works! You can take your badge and display it on your site. if (typeof window.Delicious == “undefined”) window.Delicious = {}; Delicious.BLOGBADGE_DEFAULT_CLASS = ‘delicious-blogbadge-line’; [...]

  • http://thepriceofrice.blogspot.com Barry Mahfood

    Hey John, a very inspiring post! I pick up new tips just about every day; this one sounds like one of the best yet. Can’t wait to try it out.

  • http://www.blogitandearnit.com/?p=17 Making Money from Blogs » Blog Archive » Catch Your Blog Post Titles, Catch More Website Traffic, and Wear Underwear

    [...] John Wesley had faithfully submitted his posts on social bookmarking websites, but had not seen the results he’d like to see… until he figured out that a provocative headline can make the difference between 100 and 5000 Visits. Which one would you be more likely to click on, “Two Types of Cognition” or “Learn to Understand Your Own Intelligence?” They’re both the same articles, but shows what a difference effective article titles can make for your readership. [...]

  • http://www.dreambuilders.com.au Liara Covert

    You make some great points here John. Your hard work has paid off in great dividends. I’m thankful to you for sharing some of your worldly wisdom. What goes around comes back.

  • http://www.psychic-aus.com TerryG

    I recently read a site became the featured blog site because of the headline Why Do Women Show Their Breasts. Spot on with your headlines article here and there is proof that it does work. Now all I have to do is think of a headline. Great article.

  • http://www.miriguy.com/2007/04/16/headlines-optimization-for-instant-traffic-boost/ Headlines Optimization For Instant Traffic Boost : Dirty little secret, ways to make money online

    [...] And a fellow blogger, John Wesley was kind enough to share his finding about the result of what a different header can do to influence your blog traffic. Even if you didn’t change any single word from the content of your landing page, that doesn’t matter. As long as you have great content of course. For me, I think the sales letter for the gold coins riches is great. But, I will have to do split testing for the header from time to time to ensure I can get better conversion rate. [...]

  • http://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/27-lessons-learned-on-the-way-to-3000-visits-a-day-and-2200-rss-subscribers/ 27 Lessons Learned on the Way to 3000 Visits a Day and 2200 RSS Subscribers

    [...] Write catchy headlines and list posts that will be popular with the social sites. It’s the best way for thousands of readers to discover you. [...]

  • http://smallbusinessemarketing.info/2007/05/29/what-it-takes-to-become-an-a-list-blogger-and-join-e28098the-blogging-elitee28099/ small business marketing » Blog Archive » What It Takes To Become an A-List Blogger and Join ‘The Blogging Elite’

    [...] Learn to craft catchy, linkable headlines for individual posts [...]

  • http://www.money-maker-advice.com Francois du Toit

    Hi John,

    Great case study! Food for thought… Thanks for sharing.

    All the best,
    Francois du Toit
    http://www.money-maker-advice.com

  • http://www.ifuzion.us/95/how-to-get-traffic-from-social-bookmarking-sites/ How to get Traffic from Social Bookmarking sites « iFuzion

    [...] Here is a good blog post that should help you with your headlines. [...]

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  • http://www.EarnWhileSleep.com Marsden

    THanks for sharing your discovery. Guess I will have to relook at my headlines…

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    Having a cachy title is always important. But the content is the king. If your content will fresh and unique, it will automatically attract visitors to your site. So, build more and more relevant content to your site. Content always wins.

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    yo !

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  • meg

    im on a yearbook staff at my high school and honestly my assignment was to come up with headlines. and its 11 pm and thats what im doing …using the advice from others to juice my brain. =D

  • http://createbusinessgrowth.com/blogging/66-ways-to-make-your-blog-post-linkable-%e2%80%93-plus-a-%e2%80%9clinkability%e2%80%9d-test 66 Ways to Make Your Blog Post Linkable – Plus a “Linkability” Test | Create Business Growth Offers…

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  • http://www.positivityblog.com/index.php/2007/09/24/how-to-build-a-somewhat-successful-blog-16-lessons-i-have-learned/ How to Build a Somewhat Successful Blog: 16 Lessons I Have Learned

    [...] The most important part of your article is your headline. A bad or boring headline will not entice a whole lot of people to click and start reading. A good one will. Copyblogger have written some useful articles on how to create better headlines. Have a look at 10 Sure-Fire Headline Formulas That Work and How to Write Magnetic Headlines. John at Pick the Brain did a case-study about the importance of a good headline here. [...]

  • http://www.diggingforgoldnuggets.com Work At Home Internet Marketing Business

    Great case study. I knew that a good headline is very important but never thought it could mean getting 5000 visits instead of only 100. Many thanks for sharing. Time to review my headlines…

  • http://bigdicksplace.blogspot.com Dick

    I got to your sites through a headline, which shows that it is indeed important. Thanks for the info!

  • http://www.pferderennen4u.com Pferderennen

    Very good article, thanks a lot!

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    [...] The title is the offcourse the most important thing when it comes to social bookmarking websites. Here is a excellent article which should help you to frame better [...]

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  • http://www.iprint100.com/?p=15 All About Internet » Some important Topics i came accross

    [...] How a Headline Made the Difference Between 100 and 5000 Visits [...]

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    [...] catchy headlines and list posts that will be popular with the social sites. Its the best way for thousands of [...]

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    This info is really very helpful….I am a newbie,I think after reading this I will definitely be able to achieve the traffic which I thought was not possible for me.

    Thanks
    Nikhil

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  • http://seodeveloping.com/2008/03/21/getting-traffic-from-social-bookmarks/ SEODeveloping.com » Blog Archive » Getting Traffic from Social Bookmarks

    [...] Here is a good blog post that should help you with your headlines. [...]

  • http://gain4us.info/how-to-get-traffic-from-social-bookmarking-sites/133/ gain4us.info » Blog Archive » How to get Traffic from Social Bookmarking sites

    [...] Here is a good blog post that should help you with your headlines. [...]

  • http://myseoplanet.com/my-seo-planet-blog/?p=10 How to get traffic from Social Bookmarking sites | My SEO Planet Blog

    [...] Here is a good blog post that should help you with your headlines. [...]

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    [...] The title is the offcourse the most important thing when it comes to social bookmarking websites. Here is a excellent article which should help you to frame better [...]

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    [...] Here is a good blog post that should help you with your headlines. [...]

  • http://theseogalaxy.com/?p=34 The SEO Galaxy » 10 Tips to get killer traffic from social bookmarking websites.

    [...] The title is the offcourse the most important thing when it comes to social bookmarking websites. Here is a excellent article which should help you to frame better [...]

  • http://theseogalaxy.com/?p=35 The SEO Galaxy » Proven Tricks To Get Traffic from Social Bookmarking Site’s

    [...] [...]

  • http://www.nozio.com Chris f. @ Nozio travel guides

    Great tip to having success on social media sites,
    THINKING OUT OF THE BOX!

  • http://vietcented.com/business/?p=177 Step by Steps » Blog Archive » How to get Traffic from Social Bookmarking sites

    [...] Here is a good blog post that should help you with your headlines. [...]

  • http://magicmarketer.bizmancenter.info George Grimes

    Hey John, what a terrific post, every time I come here I pick up something good, keep up the good work.

  • http://amanda.wordpress.com.cn/2008/09/25/how-to-build-a-somewhat-successful-blog-16-lessons-i-have-learned/ Amanda@@ » Blog Archive » How to Build a Somewhat Successful Blog: 16 Lessons I Have Learned

    [...] The most important part of your article is your headline. A bad or boring headline will not entice a whole lot of people to click and start reading. A good one will. Copyblogger have written some useful articles on how to create better headlines. Have a look at 10 Sure-Fire Headline Formulas That Work and How to Write Magnetic Headlines. John at Pick the Brain did a case-study about the importance of a good headline here. [...]

  • http://backlinkage.com/other/more-visitors-to-your-blog/ How to Get Fifty Times More Visitors to Your Blog Overnight | Backlinkage

    [...] Wesley did a case study over on Pick the Brain where he tested a new headline on an existing article to find out if he could increase the traffic to the post.  His original headline, “The Two [...]

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  • http://www.linkedin.com/pub/9/593/816 Inder P Singh

    Thanks for providing the required push with your post!

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    Hello,

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    Regards,
    Jenni

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    Thanx for your extra-ordinary writing. I was wondering how to get traffic since last 2/3 months, but didn’t get any way. Tried social bookmarking sites, but failed. But I had some good contents to share.
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  • http://keynotesupport.com The Best Tutorials on the Internet — Patricia

    Thanks for a well-written article. It is a challenge, however, to make the titles of software and hardware tutorials catchy without looking schmaltzy!

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    [...] Here is a good blog post that should help you with your headlines. [...]

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    [...] Here is a good blog post that should help you with your headlines. [...]

  • http://www.AnswerRack.com Got Questions We Have Answers

    I would say that just having a good knack for writing seems to work.Looking at blogs and social sites I wonder how people come up with some of these lines.
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  • http://www.followsteph.com/2009/05/31/8-types-of-headlines-that-compel-your-readers-to-action/ FollowSteph.com – 8 Types of Headlines that Compel Your Readers to Action

    [...] To give you a more concrete example of just how powerful a headline can be, John Wesley submitted an article to several social networking sites, including Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon, etc. The headline read “The Two Types of Cognition”. With this headline the article generated about 100 visitors. Nothing spectacular. However a couple days later, and after some work rewriting his headline, John resubmitted it with a new headline. With the new headline it got about 5000 visitors. A very significant difference, 50 times more visitors. What was the difference? Only the headline. The article was exactly the same. The headline went from “The Two Types of Cognition” to “Learn to Understand Your Own Intelligence“. You can find the details of his case study here. [...]

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