R — Original Text (Reading)
A news editorial-style headline is one that makes the headline look like an important piece of news. The method has three steps: Step one, establish the news protagonist, which means "attaching yourself to the big shot," aligning with a celebrity region, famous company, or well-known figure; Step two, add immediacy words, such as "today," "2017," "this summer"; Step three, add words commonly used in major news, such as "all-new," "exposed," "breakthrough," "discovered."
— Guan Jianming, Chapter 4, 4.1
I — Methodological Skeleton (Interpretation)
- Core Principle: People naturally have curiosity about and trust in "news." Disguising an advertising headline as news can greatly increase the open rate.
- Three-Step Formula: News protagonist (attach yourself to the big shot) + immediacy words + words commonly used in major news.
- Step One — Establish the News Protagonist: Find the well-known element the product can "attach itself to" — a celebrity region (Silicon Valley, Hollywood), a famous company (Apple, Google), or a well-known figure (an authority in a certain field). The more famous the protagonist, the more weight the headline carries.
- Step Two — Add Immediacy Words: Inject a sense of time urgency, such as "today," "2017," "this summer," "just now." Make readers feel that this is "something happening right now," stimulating immediate curiosity.
- Step Three — Add Words Commonly Used in Major News: Use words such as "all-new," "exposed," "breakthrough," "discovered," "revealed," and so on to imply that this is "big news" worth clicking to learn about.
- Key Point: None of the three elements can be missing. Without a protagonist, there is no sense of authority; without immediacy words, there is no sense of urgency; without news words, there is no "sense of big news."
A1 — Application in the Book (Past Application)
Case 1: Coffee product — "Silicon Valley's 2017 New Invention"
- Problem: The coffee market is highly competitive, and ordinary headlines such as "Mellow Coffee, Limited-Time Special Offer" find it hard to stand out.
- Use of the Methodology:
- News protagonist: Silicon Valley (the global holy land of technological innovation, with a built-in halo of authority)
- Immediacy word: 2017 (a specific year, implying freshness)
- Major news word: new invention (implying a breakthrough result)
- Conclusion: "Silicon Valley's 2017 New Invention" packaged an ordinary cup of coffee as a cutting-edge technology product.
- Result: The headline's click-through rate increased greatly, because the combination of "Silicon Valley + new invention" triggered strong curiosity and trust.
Case 2: NBA sneakers — "All-Star Game On-Court Shoes Exposed"
- Problem: Sports shoe ads are everywhere; how can one pair of sneakers stand out?
- Use of the Methodology:
- News protagonist: NBA All-Star Game (the world's top basketball event)
- Immediacy word: implicit in the timeliness of the event
- Major news word: exposed (implying an exclusive reveal)
- Conclusion: "All-Star Game on-court shoes exposed" makes readers feel this is not an ad, but a piece of sports news.
- Result: Sneaker enthusiasts click in out of curiosity about "what stars are wearing," which converts into purchase intent.
A2 — Trigger Scenario (Future Trigger) ★
In what situations will users need this skill?
- A new product is launching and needs a headline with a news feel to attract the first wave of attention.
- The product has "hardcore" selling points such as technological breakthroughs, patented innovations, or authoritative certifications, which are suitable for presenting in news form.
- The product is associated with a well-known brand/person/region, and this association needs to be amplified to leverage it.
- Competitors' ads all follow conventional formulas, so a headline that "doesn't look like an ad" is needed to break through.
Language Signals
- "How do I write a headline that gets click-through rate?"
- "How do I give the headline a news feel?"
- "How do I write a headline for new product promotion?"
- "How do I write a headline that rides on a big name?"
- "How do I write an ad headline that doesn't seem like an ad?"
Distinction from Adjacent Skills
- Difference from
friend-chat-title: That one takes the "friendly colloquial" route, like chatting with a friend; this skill takes the "authoritative news" route, like media reporting. The two styles are completely different and suit different product tones. - Difference from
practical-tip-title: That one attracts people with "pain point + solution"; this skill attracts people with a "news event" and does not directly point out the pain point. - Difference from
justified-consumption: That one is purchase-reason restructuring, dealing with the problem of "hesitating to place an order"; this skill deals with the problem of "headline attracting clicks."
E — Executable Steps (Execution)
- Find the product's "ride on a big name" element (the news protagonist)
- Completion standard: List all well-known regions, companies, people, and events that the product can be associated with, and choose the most famous and most natural one.
- Choose immediacy words
- Completion standard: Determine a specific time expression (year/season/today/just now) so the headline feels like it is "happening right now."
- Choose words commonly used in major news
- Completion standard: From "all-new/exposed/breakthrough/discovered/revealed/for the first time," choose the word that best fits the product's characteristics.
- Combine the three elements and write the complete headline
- Completion standard: Combine "news protagonist + immediacy word + news word" into a smooth, attractive headline.
- Check whether the headline is "like news and not like an ad"
- Completion standard: Show the headline to 3 people. If they think "this is a piece of news" rather than "this is an ad," it passes.
B — Boundary ★
Do not use this skill in the following situations
- The product itself takes a warm, emotional, friendly route (such as maternal and baby products or handmade pastries); a news-style headline will appear stiff and incongruous.
- Private domain operations (WeChat Moments, communities), where users trust "a real person speaking" more than "news broadcasting."
- The product has no well-known element to "ride on"; forcefully fabricating one will damage brand integrity.
- Platforms with high risk of clickbait (such as regulated channels); excessive news-style framing may result in penalties.
Failure modes the author warns about in the book
- The big name being ridden on has nothing to do with the product; readers click in and find they were "deceived," resulting in an extremely high bounce rate.
- Time-sensitive words expire (e.g., "a new invention of 2017" becomes invalid when viewed in 2024), so titles need to be updated regularly.
- Overuse of news words (everything is an "exposé," everything is a "breakthrough"); after readers grow tired of it, they no longer believe it.
The author's blind spots / limitations of the era
- The 2017 "attach oneself to a wealthy patron" strategy may face compliance risks in the current self-media environment (such as unauthorized use of celebrity/brand names).
- The logic of headlines in the short-video era differs from that of the image-and-text era; news-style headlines may not be "explosive" enough in the information feeds of Douyin/Xiaohongshu.
- Consumers are becoming increasingly wary of "advertisements disguised as news," and some platforms already require ads to be labeled with a "promoted" identifier.
Related skills (populated in phase 3)
- depends-on: copywriting-four-step-system
- contrasts-with: friend-chat-title
- composes-with: none
Audit information
- Verification passed: V1 ✓ / V2 ✓ / V3 ✓
- Test pass rate: to be tested
- Distillation time: 2026-05-02