When a reader helps you write a social headline
Ever struggled to find a concise way to tweet or share a story on Facebook? Here’s a tip: use the power of the audience.
Search for the URL in Twitter and see how other people have shared the story.
Here’s an example of a search for the latest article by WSJ Middle East columnist Yaroslav Trofimov.
WSJ has a handy bookmarklet to speed up such searches. But you can simply copy and paste a URL into a Twitter to run a search. This also allows you to see the conversation taking place around a particular story.
A reader may also write a strong headline when he or she shares on Reddit. When this story about a new Audi bike was getting lots of traffic from Reddit I searched to find out what headline was being used. (site:reddit.com wsj.com)
WSJ’s headline: Audi unveils ultralight bicycle with a car’s price tag
Reddit headline: Audi’s new $20,000 carbon fiber bike weighs just 12 pounds
WSJ headline: Nvidia teaches cars to ‘see’
Reddit headline:
Which informed how I shared it on Facebook. Thanks joeyoungblood.
