I have worked in content for my entire adult life. And I have found one thing to be true.

Headlines are everything. Everything.

Let me give you an example. Right now, I am working on the redesign of a financial website. The client would like the website to appeal to a younger demographic

There are many ways to effect this change. First you identify which sector of the audience you cannot live without. In this case, it is graduates who have a background in tech.

Safe, Exciting or Superior

Next, you could figure out how they want to feel when they visit the site. That sounds like a broad question. But in reality there are only three fundamental options. They can feel safe, excited or superior. We could call these the Volvo, BMW or Mercedes Benz options.

It does not take a genius to see that graduates would rather drive an exciting BMW than a safe Volvo.

(Fun game: which of these three values does the brand you work for represent?)

So we start to turn the fonts, colours, photos and sitemap to appeal to these tech graduates. (Of course we also do not want to lose the existing audience.)

(The font that represents “Excitement” is sans serif? “Superior” is serif. And “Safe” – think NHS – is slab, a mixture of the two).

We can add the right colour, the right images all to boost excitement on the site.

But whatever we do, it has to work on mobile. That means this design work must fit into an oblong about three inches by six.

As I am sure you are aware, over time, websites have begun to conform to a series of best practice frameworks. The logo goes top left, the line under the logo goes beneath it. There is a nav bar.

Once you have obeyed the rules of best practice there is really no other design work to do that is going to make a difference on mobile. It’s just headline image text from here on in. Your hands are tied.

There is only one dynamic element that will truly make a difference.

The way you write the headlines.

Everyone reads the headline

Everyone reads the headlines.

Almost everything else on your average website is static. The about page rarely changes. The homepage is always the same. The only bit that moves is the content. Humans are hard-wired to look at the bit that moves.

Eye-tracking surveys reveal that we all look at the headline first. And here is the important bit: it does not matter what we are reading

When you read this article, you read the headline first. When you look at data visualizations you read the headline first. Then you scan the visualization to see if it supports whatever you read in the headline.

Most recruitment consultants will tell you to write a headline on your CV. (Mine says “Creating content that attracts new customers”). The rest of the CV is evidence that supports the headline.

Next time you give a PowerPoint presentation take a look around the room. You will notice that everyone is paying attention at the start of your talk. How long before they start to switch off? A generous assessment might say ten minutes. Two minutes is likely closer to the truth. That’s two slides. That’s why we put the best thing we have got on the opening slide. AKA the headline.

In the days of print, the headline came first and the image a close second. The picture reflected the headline. if a man catches a fish,  man and said fish go in the photo.

But digital has cut off the relationship between headline and image. Sometimes headlines will be all you see of a story before you click on it. That’s why headlines rule the digital world.

The body of the article merely stands up the headline. And reading rates drop off fast. Sixty percent get a third of the way down. Ten per cent read to the end.

Everything else is supporting cast

Do you remember anything about the Tory party conference?  The one held in Manchester before the 2019 election? Nothing? How about the headline “Get Brexit Done”?

Content is the headline and headlines are the content. Everything else is supporting cast.

So how does this look in the real world? Take a look at these two headlines, both taken from the same website.

• As a 22 year-old at JPMorgan I earned $155k & life was not bad
• The art of leaving an investment bank in Hong Kong

Both these headlines come from the same site. One of these is the most popular headline on the site. The other is not. One is emotional, vivid and aimed at younger people. The other is not.

Emotional and vivid

Now imagine taking the tone of one of these headlines and driving it through every story on the website.  The rest of the site could be completely unchanged – same fonts, colours and sitemap. But by tweaking the headlines,  you will have altered the character and appeal of that website forever.

No other piece of content has the power to change our perceptions . No other single piece of content can set the agenda. No other piece of content can change the level and nature of our engagement.

And to be frank, we can’t remember any other piece of content anyway.

Whether the medium is video, live events, website or data visualization. No other single force has the power to change the game. Instantly.

Headlines are everything.

It’s that simple. That is the game.

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About the author

My name is Andy Pemberton. I am an expert in data visualization. I guide global clients such as Lombard Odier, the European Commission and Cisco on the best way to use data visualization and then produce it for them: reports, infographics and motion graphics. If you need your data visualized contact me at andy@furthr.co.uk or call 07963 020 103

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