When you write a headline for your content, you want it to stand as a banner over your text—a critical piece of information that draws attention to your story or article. Because a headline is often considered the most important part of any piece of writing, it will, in many cases, determine if the audience continues on to read the content. A headline also impacts the way the audience will interact with your website. Web users scan pages, and their eyes may be drawn to good headlines that pique their curiosity or make them pause. A good headline can ensure that your article gets at least a quick look.

Where you place a break in your headline is important. If your headline is especially long or you need it formatted to fit over an article of a certain size, the location of the break can add to the readability, clarity, and interest of the message. These instructions show you how to break a headline in a certain spot.

How to Force a Headline to Break in the Spot You Designate

Step 1: Log in to DSS, and create a new page for the type of content you want: library article, news item, blog, FAQ, or any else. Then, provide content for the title and meta description.
 

Step 2: In the Headline field, type the headline you want to use for your article. In the following example, we will use “Forcing a Headline to Break in Just the Spot You Want Because the Headline Is Too Long.” This headline is too long to display as one line across a website page, so not only do you want to create a break, you want to create a natural break where most people would pause when reading it.

Don’t worry if the headline you want is a little too long—we’ll learn how to make it look great | Content Writing Services For Lawyers And podiatrists


If you leave the headline exactly as it’s written, it appears this way on your website:

The automatic break points for a long headline don’t always seem natura | Content Writing Services For Lawyers And podiatristsl

While this might seem fine the way it is, notice that the headline breaks after the word “Because.” This break doesn’t sound natural, as the audience would likely prefer to read this headline with the break after the word “Want.” It’s the spot where there is a slight pause or a brief interruption in the flow of the words.
 

Step 3: To break the long headline and create a more natural sounding pause, in the DSS headline field, type in the following piece of code after the word “Want”:
.
This breaks your long headline into two lines at a more natural spot.

The <br> code forces a break in your headline | Content Writing Services For Lawyers And podiatrists


The headline now appears on your website this way:

Presto! The code makes the headline much more readable | Content Writing Services For Lawyers And podiatrists


You can use the code to break your headline in any desired spot. And you can also make multiple breaks if you need or want a multiple line headline. For example, insert two breaks in your DSS headline field like this:

You can add two or more break codes into your headline | Content Writing Services For Lawyers And podiatrists


To create a headline that appears like this:

Multiple break codes allow you to display complex headlines attractively | Content Writing Services For Lawyers And podiatrists

Are You A Lawyer Or podiatrist Who Wants To Learn How Solid Content Can Earn You More Clients?

If you are seeking a trusted, authoriative partner to help you write content that not only attracts but actually converts into clients, Foster Web Marketing is here to help. Contact us online or call our office directly at 888.866.0939 to schedule your free consultation. We have been helping clients throughout the United States and internationally since 1998 are confident we can help you not only reach, but exceed your goals.  

Tom Foster
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Founder|Owner, Speaker, Creator of DSS, World of Marketing Podcast Host, EOS Implementor