Blog Post Titles: Creative Copy or Keyword Rich?

do you title with a catchy hook or for SEO purposes?

[DXL]

When writing a newsletter or press release, copywriters would suggest that you craft a title that would make a reader curious, and encourage them to read more (ex: 10 Things you should know before Buying your next Widget).

Should that same strategy be applied to the title of a blog post, or should the emphasis be on writing a keyword-rich title for the benefit of search engine optimization? I'm trying to determine what will benefit a blogger more in terms of traffic in the long run.

[Justin billy]

yes lay more emphasis on title as it draws traffic to your blog , it has to be eye catchy.

[Swanny007]

I think it depends on the topic. If the post is something that people might want to read in a year or two, then go long-term with keyword richness. If it will be irrelevant soon, go for link bait.

[MWpro]

I am actually getting really tired of seeing blog posts that begin with "10 things you should know about ... " or "5 ways to ... ".

I think it's tacky and overdone.

[rocknbil]

^ ^ ^ Reminiscent of the "top 100 anything's." I think the OP was just suggesting it for example.

There are two camps on this, write for your users, write for traffic, the heck with users (kidding. Sorta.)

IMO the first is the prime directive, and the second comes naturally as a product of writing for your users. So yes, make your writing unique and compelling, you'll discover the keywords will just . . . be there.