After hours of slaving away creating the wittiest and most well-researched blog post EVER, it can be disheartening to discover that all of your hard work resulted in a whopping total of one or two clicks. You could write the most clever, interesting and entertaining post of all time but if no one is clicking on your links, sadly all of your efforts have gone to waste. With the rapid supply of information floating around on the Internet, getting any clicks at all can be a difficult thing to accomplish. But if you utilize a few simple strategies, pretty soon readers won’t be able to STOP clicking!

Choose Titles Wisely

When writing a piece of content, people tend to not put much thought into the way the title is written. But this is actually a key factor in how people determine whether or not they want to click and read more. The point of a title is to open up that gap in knowledge and make the reader wonder and want to learn more. Titles must never be too vague or too specific. And for SEO purposes, try to incorporate keywords whenever possible. The writers of Buzzfeed, one of the dominant forces when it comes to viral content, actually make a list of 25 different title ideas for each content piece before voting on the best one. This may seem excessive, but clearly it works!

Don’t Let Your Images Tell the Whole Story

When it comes to selecting thumbnail images to place alongside your title, it is important to peak the interest of the reader without giving away too much information. An image that represents the article topic too literally is predictable and will not entice the reader to click and learn more. For example, if you are writing an article about how vegetables are good for you, readers will move on when they see a static image of fresh vegetables in a bowl. Try thinking outside the box and opt for images that relate to your topic without giving it all away. Also, your title and thumbnail image should always play off each other.

Keep Them Wanting More

When constructing social media posts, never give everything away right then and there. If you are posting a link to your blog post on your Facebook page, do not post a 5-sentence summary of your article within your Facebook post. If you do this, you have already given them a synopsis of what your article is about so they will feel that reading your entire article is not necessary. Instead, try to leave the reader hanging. Build up the excitement and give them a reason to click and read the full story. Give the impression that you have something of value to offer your reader and that the information you provide is worth seeking out.