What’s in a title?

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Photograph by Florian Klauer (unsplash)

This is a short post that hopefully sparks a discussion about what to call a post?

In my previous post, I first published the recipe and called it Oriental Salmon with Stirfried Vegetables but after looking at Google results that grouped so many different Asian salmon dishes together, I  decided that I needed a recipe that mentioned the spring onion and garlic sauce.

We all blog/write for different reasons but if you want your post to be seen what do you do to help it get seen in search engine results?

I certainly don’t have all the answers and am not an internet SEO guru, but I do try hard to get my blog posts as high as possible up the “Google” rankings so as many people as possible can stand a chance of seeing my recipes and writings on the subject of food.

Social Media

I have written about my own experiences before in this post but to cut a long story short I try sharing my posts in as many places as I have time to.  Which leads me to the other conundrum of the balancing act many of us participate in, of creating content versus promoting it.

My Own Balance

These days I am often preparing work for my online cookery courses.  Some of the recipes are videoed and shown in class and others done as a live demonstration.  Some of the videos end up on my YouTube channel others need more work (editing).   Then I still need to fit in time for creating blog posts of my recipes.  When photographing real food it is unforgiving and the time you have to take photos is fleeting.

In the case of my latest recipe, this was an adhoc shoot at the end of making the video used in class that hopefully will be added to my Youtube channel, shortly. In just a brief couple of minutes my wife and I took photos before the  rumbling of our stomachs told us to put our cameras down and eat the salmon for dinner.

I Try Not Not To Beat Myself Up

Sometimes the photoshoots don’t give us good enough still photos that are blog worthy but I try not to beat myself up.  Sometimes we are able to fit in a daytime photo shoot which will always give you better results, but I accept our other commitments don’t always leave us time to do that.

Work Life Balance?

I’m constantly amazed by people who post every day or once every couple of days, how do they do that? I have to be realistic as I get older that I can’t post more that once a month and meet my other commitments. I am happy in my life, and lucky I have a creative and helpful partner in my wife Sophie who helps me keep that balance.

Naming Your Post?

Perhaps for a cookbook review the name of the post writes itself. But I would love to hear from my fellow bloggers how you choose a name and the process you go through. Perhaps if the post involves a wellknown person, coming up with the title is easier?  Or perhaps you want the title to have hook to get readers to pay more than a cursory glance? Let me know what you do,

32 thoughts on “What’s in a title?”

  1. Hi. I’m not sure that I have a process for picking titles for my pieces. Usually I decide upon the titles fairly quickly. I guess I tend to have titles that are punchy and/or punny. And sometimes I choose pretty straightforward titles. It depends. Take care. Neil S.

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  2. When I was writing, which hasn’t been for a while, I’d try to tell the reader what to expect in as few words as possible. One header that comes to mind is, ‘a retrospective perspective.’

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  3. Eu sempre busco a ideia do texto… o título, às vezes, surge de um mero acaso… uma frase do poema… Os posts desse mês teve como inspiração para mim no Era uma vez… e brinquei com as palavras depois da primeira frase. Mas quero falar também de suas fotos que são espetaculares e dão a sensação da comida na boca. São quase tridimensionais, pelo menos para mim. Abraço e boa semana!

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    1. Thanks Elvira as always it is so good to hear from you and I hope you are well?
      I was curious about the title “From the Balcony” you write you blog post from a wonderful balcony as you imagine your passionate stories?

      Tenía curiosidad sobre el título “Desde el balcón”. ¿Escribes tu publicación de blog desde un maravilloso balcón mientras imaginas tus apasionadas historias?
      Best Wishes from Kevin and Sophie 🙂

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      1. Thank’s Kevin for your kindness and support, always.
        I don’t have a balcony, but can imagine one, so glad you like it.
        Best wishes for you and Sophie.
        Nice day!

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  9. While volunteering for the writing company, I discovered that every title has significance. If you want to have a large number of followers and hype, you must create a good title.

    Normally it should summarize in the fewest possible words the content and purpose of the article.

    Have a great week, Kevin!

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  11. A good title is truly a beautiful thing! I often struggle to come up with poem and short story titles and feel it is the same battle we all face when titling everything from recipes to videos!

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  12. I always put a title with a related photo at the beginning of the blog. I enjoy seeing photos on other blogs too. Your food photos are very appealing, Kevin! 🙂 I watched a few of your youtube videos yesterday and found them very engaging and informative. ❤

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    1. Thank you Cheryl for your kind thoughts about my Youtube videos.
      It is really good to hear positive feedback. Many cooking videos are very short but leave a lot of questions, so my approach is to try and give as much information as possible to give people confidence to try my recipes.
      Best Wishes
      Kevin 🙂

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  13. It’s true that finding the right title can make a difference in search engine visibility and attracting readers’ attention. Personally, I believe it’s important to strike a balance between being descriptive and engaging. Incorporating specific elements of the recipe, like the spring onion and garlic sauce in your case, can help differentiate it and increase its visibility in search engine results. Additionally, considering the target audience and their interests can guide you in creating a title that resonates with readers.

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    1. Thank you Finley for taking the time to share your thoughts on choosing a title. It seems we think along similar lines.

      That is not say any one method is better that another but the comments on this post do show a wonderful diversity of thinking how to name a post.

      Best WIshes
      Kevin

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  14. Many of my posts are book or movie reviews. So often, I’ll use a simple title that reflects what I’m reviewing. However, sometimes I see a fun connection with what I’m blogging about and something else, such as real world events connected to the item I’m blogging about, and come up with a clever turn of phrase that I think might grab more attention that the title. If I do, I’ll use it! But I don’t knock myself out trying to think of that all the time. I don’t want the titles to sound forced or trite, either.

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    1. Thanks David for taking the time to respond and share your thoughts on the issue of titles and explain your reasons.

      This post has brought a surprising number of thoughtful comments and enriched the post a lot, for which I am very grateful.

      I has also made me wonder about writing a similar non foodie post about the thorny issue of giving and getting WordPress likes.

      I’d love to hear other people’s opinion on that issue.
      Best Wishes
      Kevin 🙂

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  15. I find it interesting that when I do the final AI critique of a new post on WordPress, it always suggests changing my title. I notice that in general the suggestion seems to guide me to a much more specific, less vague, less creative title. I have yet to listen to AI and change any titles. I suppose the algorithms that AI uses may have a valid point, suggesting titles most likely to attract views. But I have yet to trouble myself with viewership over my own creative process. But, since your aim is to attract the most viewers to your delicious dishes, I can see how that may be more important for your posts.

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    1. Thank you so much for taking the time to explain your process for choosing a title.

      When I first started writing recipes my only thought when choosing a title was to include the main ingredients.

      These days I am a bit more nuanced and may first google different potential titles to see how stiff the competition is for that particular title. I guess this has been come about because of me having a YouTube channel.

      When you see a terrible recipe get 500k views it makes me pay more attention to the tags and titles that I choose.
      Best Wishes
      Kevin 🙂

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