You Don't Want to Read This Blog, But You Probably Will

How many times have you ever said to yourself, "You know, Me, today would be a great day to sit down and find a blog to read." Never. You've never said that to yourself.

Yet here you are. You're reading this blog. (At least, I hope you're reading this blog.) According to Ryan Robinson, a wildly successful blogger and teacher, 77% of internet users report that they regularly read blogs. I'm willing to wager that not even 1% of those people chose to read a blog.

So, What Gives?

If you want people to read your blog, there are two critical components to consider: the headline and the introduction. 

Research has long suggested that 80% of people read headlines, 20% of those who read headlines will read your introduction, and fewer than half of the people who read the introduction will make it through the entire blog.

It's All About the Headline

You didn't want to read this blog when you picked up your phone or sat down in front of your computer, but you're here. Why?

It's because of the headline. Believe it or not, saying, "You Don't Want to Read This Blog" was the most effective way for me to get you to actually read it. When your subconscious mind saw that headline, it said to itself, "Why? Why don't I want to read this blog? What's in there?" You were curious. You had to know. You clicked, and now you're here.

Great blog headlines need to strike a chord with the intended audience's emotions. They can be shocking, daring, funny, heartbreaking, or just plain weird, but they need to immediately trigger the subconscious mind to act.

The Intro Matters, Too

The very first sentence in this post is a question, but it isn't just any question. It's the perfect follow-up to the headline. After I captured your interest, I gained your trust by asking a simple, easy-to-answer question. 

"Yeah! She's right," you thought. I know I'm right. That's why I asked the question. I wanted you to trust me, because the more you trust me, the more you care about what I have to say.

And the more you care about what I have to say, the longer you'll stick around to read this blog post. Clever, isn't it? (See what I did there?)

What You Need to Remember

If you're someone who happened to stumble across this blog post, the key takeaway is this: learn all you can about the tricks that content writers and copywriters use to suck you in. It will almost certainly help you make better decisions about the things you buy and the brands you trust.

If you're a content writer or copywriter, your takeaway is a little different. You have a significant amount of influence. While I urge you to use it to your benefit (or your clients' benefit), I also urge you to use it ethically.

Did I trick you into reading this blog? Maybe. Just a little. Yes.

Hopefully, you got enough out of it that you aren't too terribly upset with me.