Everybody Writes: Your Go-To Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content

69Writing HeadlinesLearn How to Effortlessly Write an Intoxicatingly Irresistible Headline—and You Won't Believe What Happens Next!

The other day I noticed a blog post on a marketing technology blog with a list of marketing industry public speakers that carried the headline “25 Jaw-Dropping Marketing Speakers.”

You know what's jaw-dropping?

When Felix Baumgartner jumps live from the edge of space and lives to tell about it.

When your nephew kicks the winning goal into the end zone with seconds on the clock.

When your daughter struggles all year with Statistics and then works her tail off to stick an A.

When Santa delivers a brand-new bike on Christmas morning.

You know what's not jaw-dropping? A marketing speech. (Unless perhaps it's delivered naked on stage.)

Sites like BuzzFeed and Upworthy have become among the fastest-growing sites in the history of the Internet in part by mastering the writing of irresistible, weird, curiously grabby headlines that we are collectively too weak to resist—like the one heading up this section.¹ Or like “36 Of The Absolute Worst Things That Could Ever Happen to You” (BuzzFeed). Or “This Beautiful Ham Will Never Make It To Your Dinner Table. The Reason Why Is Just Plain Ridiculous” (Upworthy).

In some respects, I'm grateful for what the likes of BuzzFeed and Upworthy have done for headlines everywhere. They've helped underscore the idea that the best headlines are those that humans (and not just search engines) love, and they've helped propel ...