Keywords placed in headlines improve search engine results
I read “Content Rich, Writing Your Way to Wealth on the Web,” by Jon Wuebben, even though I honestly don’t expect working as a writer anywhere is going to make me rich. But, that’s just me. In his chapter on site content optimization, he discusses keyword placement, where the writer places words intended to be sussed out by Google, Yahoo, Ask.com and all the other search engines.
Not surprisingly, headlines are important places for keywords, more so than in the body text. This tells us two things:
Headlines really matter. Rather than be an afterthought, the words selected can make a big difference in who ends up seeing them. Some writing coaches say the headline should be written first.
Say goodbye to the cryptic headline. All those clever, insider concepts that are only explained when you’ve read the article (e.g., “King’s men reconsidered,” “County post discounts ‘people factor’”, etc.) violate two web copy principles. First, they don’t tell you anything before reading the piece; that stops a large percentage of potential readers right there. Second, they won’t turn up in relevant searches, further depriving the page of readers.
I could have instead titled this post “First words matter most” or “Keywords unlock doors for content creators, audiences,” but that would pretty much negate the point of the post. The headline used, “Keywords placed in headlines improve search engine results,” may lack for creativity, but it gets the job done.