How Attention Is Earned: Quirky Headlines, Solid Hooks, and Nailing the First Five Seconds
Journalists make decisions about stories very quickly. In many cases, a press release is judged in seconds, based almost entirely on the subject line or headline. Long before structure, quotes, or data come into play, the headline determines whether a press release or pitch is opened at all.
This has always been true, but it matters more now than at any point in recent memory. Newsrooms are under sustained pressure, editorial resources are tighter, and journalists are expected to process far more information across far more channels than they once did. Against that backdrop, attention is not given lightly. It has to be earned and with increased volume of AI PR pitches causing a cascade of inbox traffic, being considerate makes all the difference.
A strong headline is not a summary and it is not a marketing slogan. It is a signal of newsworthiness. It tells the journalist, immediately, whether the story is relevant, whether something has changed, and whether it is worth their limited time. Too often, press release headlines try to sound impressive rather than useful. They lead with vague claims, bury the actual news, or prioritise brand language over clarity. In doing so, they fail the very people they are written for.
The most effective headlines tend to be simple, direct, and grounded in fact. They make clear what has happened, who is involved, and why it matters now. A journalist should be able to grasp the core of the story without opening the email. If that isn’t possible, the headline is doing too much work elsewhere in the press release and not enough where it matters most.
This is where the “first five seconds” test becomes useful. If a journalist only sees your subject line and headline, can they quickly understand the story? Can they see why it might matter to their readers? If the answer is no, the story is already at a disadvantage, regardless of how strong the rest of the content might be.
Traditionally, headline writing in PR has relied heavily on instinct and experience. Those skills remain invaluable, but the media environment has changed in ways that make instinct alone less reliable. Stories now compete not only with other press releases, but with breaking news alerts, social feeds, AI-generated summaries, and constant digital noise. In that environment, small differences in framing can determine whether a story is picked up, ignored, or misinterpreted.
This is why many modern communications teams are beginning to look at headline performance more deliberately, using media contacts database and press release distribution tracking tools such as Everhaze to understand what actually converts attention into coverage. Rather than guessing which angles resonate, they can see patterns emerge over time: which headlines lead to pickup, which publications respond to certain framing, and how stories evolve once they are published. Used well in conjunction with AI-powered media monitoring, it can sharpen editorial effectiveness significantly.
It is also worth distinguishing between the email subject line and the headline itself. Subject lines exist to earn the open. Headlines exist to earn the read and, ultimately, the coverage. A subject line can be slightly more direct or conversational. A headline should be clean, factual, and close enough to publication-ready that a journalist could lift it with minimal edits. When that happens consistently, it becomes much easier to maintain control over how a story is framed once it enters the public domain.
Attention on its own, however, is fragile. A headline may generate opens or clicks, but without clarity and relevance, it rarely translates into meaningful coverage or lasting impact. For PR agencies, delivering attention underpins client confidence and makes PR agency reporting more credible. For SMEs, it ensures that investment in PR tools pricing and media monitoring pricing delivers real value. For public sector bodies, charities, and regulated organisations, attention must be balanced carefully with trust and accountability. In every case, the principle is the same: attention is not about being louder, it is about being clearer and ensuring editorial effectiveness to generate strong results.
A good headline opens the door. What happens next depends on everything that follows. In the next post in this series, we’ll look at why the opening lines of a release still matter, and why the 5 Ws remain one of the most reliable tools a PR professional has for keeping a journalist engaged.