Effective article titles are not so easy to come up with and many article marketers have a hard time putting words in perfect order. They just can’t seem to figure out how to do it so their articles record above average views, granted the all initial promotion is taken care of.

Other people however simply overlook this section and don’t put as much effort into it as they should.

This post reveals why your article title is such a crucial piece and for the second part uncovers the exact blueprint  for writing effective article titles for the search engines and visitors, alike.

What’s the big deal with article’s title anyway?

• For every 10 people that read your article title, only 2 people on average will go on and actually read the article. That’s a loss of a potential 80% of your readership, and for respectable content marketers it’s an unacceptable figure.

I presume that this statistical snipped is enough to make you realize the importance titles carry for your article exposure whether your targeting serch engine traffic or referral traffic mostly from article directories.

At this point content’s quality or resource box are irrelevant for the outcome of your article marketing. Titles need special attention at this stage. Without effective copy you won’t get the chance to pitch your bizzopp. or establish you as a reliable content provider

How to make your article stand out in the search engines:

1. The article title should always include your primary keyword, ideally as “precociously” in the title as possible.

Additionally, your title should include a secondary keyword, or a rephrasing of your primary keyword that includes related terminology.

This will really boost your article’s relevancy and standing in the search engine organic listings.

2. Your article title must be as long as possible. This will enable you to target long tail keyword phrases, and get descriptive with the subject line you’re discussing.

This is important for making your article stand out in article directory listings. From a search engine optimization perspective lengthy article titles have their fair share of benefits and down sides. Here’s what I mean: Search Engines show on average the first 65 characters as click-able titles in their SERPs; From a marketing perspective, having incomplete article titles listed in the search results don’t communicate so effectively with the searcher who seeks comprehensive answers for the query.

On the other hand a long article title provides the space for targeting long tail keywords that have good conversion rates in terms of sales. I don’t know about you but I would stick with longer titles.

How to make your article appealing to potential readers

• Your article title should be perfectly on target with your article content. Telling people they will win a free iPod might get you a lot of clicks, but if your article pitches Ipod apps on sales that might get you a free Ipod, you’ve lost the reader.

So make sure your title as directly tied with the actual topic on debate.

• Don’t retain from talking up the benefits in a brief manner. People are obsessed with their person and are forever scanning their immediate environment for opportunities to take advantage of.

So highlight the benefits, use powerful even a little bit hype words such as “unleashed”, “secrets”, “exclusive”, “amazing”, “jaw dropping”, “revealed” to drawn attention and generate that first glance at your content.

• Be controversial and spark controversy. That doesn’t mean you should be offensive, but rather going against convention. People are forever being magnetize by intrigue and unnatural.

“Why everything you read about SEO is dead wrong!” is a pretty good title tag for this category.

• Write from the buyer’s perspective, and know your target audience. Your permanent focus is to create rapport so that people relate to what you’re saying. It should always be about THEM and never about you. As they read your copy they actually speak their mind.

So the horsepower of the new vacuum cleaner you created might be really impressive to a tech expert, but to a homeowner looking to buy a product, they want to know the effectiveness, convenience and price.

Highlight the right points and adjust the angle from each individual lead category.

• Making your articles time sensitive and giving a sense of urgency is a great way to accelerate readership.

“Learn the secret to effective online marketing before you make the next move in promoting your business”, or “Massive and exclusive sale on widgets until the end of January!”

(Of course be sure you don’t find yourself with tens of obsolete title tags since your fixed dead lines have passed .)

• For those that lack inspiration or are chronically robbed of creativity a good place to find inspiration are social bookmarking sites. Just head over to Digg.com and see what titles make head waves for your particular niche.

Find the most talked about, controversial and intriguing elements, and then stress those the most.

• Don’t settle to writing just one title per article. Write multiple variations by applying the different psychological approaches presented above.

Then see what piece performs best (in terms of click-thru rate) by spinning them with an article submission software, along side multiple article versions of the same article.

Just to be sure you have it right:

• Write your title as if it’s a mini-headline.
• Use lists and numbers in your title.
• What’s in it for your reader? State a benefit for the reader.
• Keep it as short as possible.
• Use a keyword in your title if possible.
• Try a negative title (“3 Things Not To Do…”).
• Try rewriting weak titles you run across.

That’s all that I know about how to write an effective article title. How about you? What are your best kept secrets concerning article titles?