I just wanted to write a simple blog post. You won’t believe what happened next!

This post should have been titled…

What is “click baiting”?

Because that’s what I just did you you. And, it is annoying as hell! However, it is very effective for deceptive marketers.

Have you ever seen Facebook posts that say things like, “This guy found a puppy, what happened next was unbelievable”? Or, “All this guy wanted to do was feed the homeless, what happened to him is unreal”?

These posts are are called “click baiting” links.  And they are very effective. Way too effective if you ask us. And, competently worthless to any web surfer.

The problem is, they give you a little snippet of a story and a snippet that leaves you intrigued but unfulfilled once you click the link.

Real stories, good content, and genuine marketing will give you a real world idea of what you are about to get into before you click any link online. For example… as of right now, the #1 headline on news.google.com is “Jack Conger, Gunnar Bentz pulled off flight, ordered to stay in Brazil”. It doesn’t say, “After Jack Conger & Gunner Bentz competed in the Olympics, the wildest thing happened”. The real news headline gave you an idea of what you would read if you click the link. The “click baiting” headline just fed you enough info to make you want to “click” without giving you any idea what the real story is.

Why is this important?

Click baiters are trying to drive traffic to maximize advertising revenue without providing quality content. However, real quality content sells itself. If you have original ideas and/or post original content, then you won’t have to stoop to the level of “click baiting”. If you want to really maximize your online presence, don’t start marketing with “click baiting” techniques. Come up with quality original content and write informational headlines. Not only will your visitors appreciate it, but your site traffic will be higher quality; because they are actually interested in your quality content.