3 Headline Mistakes I See Every New Writer Make

These are easy to avoid if you know about them!

Zulie Rane
5 min readOct 17, 2022
author is in a white top and jean skirt standing against a sandstone wall, smiling at the camera. I picked this picture to illustrate the three headline mistakes beginners make because I thought it looked relaxed and breezy, exactly the attitude I want to convey. It’s not hard to avoid them!
Image of author in Seville.

A few months ago, I shared my 9-step formula for writing highly clickable blog headlines. And while I stand behind that formula, I realized writing great titles isn’t just about what to do but also about what not to do.

Here are three headline mistakes I see beginners make all the time (and used to make myself!). Once I started avoiding these headline mistakes, I saw an upsurge in views. Not only that, but I also gained confidence in finding the right words for my headlines.

Let’s dive into these easily avoidable headline mistakes so you can write headlines that get viewers, fit your niche, and make you feel good about your writing.

1. Trying to copy other people’s titles

It’s weird to call this a headline mistake because it can work. But that’s exactly the problem.

Whenever I try to copy other people’s (successful) titles, I’m chasing virality instead of writing content I genuinely care about. It’s also a missed opportunity to inject my own personality into the title, which is super important for building a deeper relationship with readers and making your writing recognizable.

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Zulie Rane

Writer and cat mom. Opinions are my own. This is my just-for-fun profile! My official Medium profile is @Zulie_at_Medium.