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2. Headline Intent vs Outcome (4 Marks) 

Choose one headline you created in Part B, Q#1 Part B and answer the following:

 a) What is the primary intent of this headline? (e.g. curiosity, urgency, clarity, relevance, emotional pull) 

b) What action or response is the headline designed to trigger? 

c) Explain why this intent is appropriate for the target audience you selected.

From the three headlines that I created in question one, I have chosen to reference my second headline of “You Won’t Believe What’s Happening In These 33 Perfectly Timed Photos”. This is a headline that has the primary intent of triggering curiosity among potential readers of this article. Curiosity is going to be easily triggered by this headline in particular due to the fact that the words “You Won’t Believe” are used. Basically, what these words do is signal to people potentially looking to slick on this article that the content within it is going to surprise them in an unexpected manner. I think it is also important to note that despite the headline sharing that the content is surprising, it does not actually say any specific details of the content in the article as this could give away what the photos in the article actually are. Just enough information is given to entice people to want to click on the article. Alongside this, the words “What’s Happening” helps to spark curiosity by increasing the amount that potential readers will likely desire to know “What’s Happening” in the actual article’s content. The curiosity that is sparked from this headline is intended to trigger people to take the action of essentially clicking on the article itself and viewing it. But to get even more specific, the curiosity works to create this action among potential viewers by first interrupting their scrolling. This is happening with the use of the odd number (which I kept from the original headline) as this helps people to have more trust in the headlines credibility, therefore reducing any uncertainty which theft might have. From here, once someone fully reads through the headline there will be curiosity triggered due to the wording of the headline as discussed already. From here is where the actual action of clicking opn the article comes into effect as users will feel the need to fill the established curiosity gap by seeing what the unbelievable content of the perfectly timed out photos actually is. 

Going back to who exactly the target audience of Buzzfeed is generally going to be, it is very important to actually explain why this headline aligns perfectly with the intent of their target audience. To first summarize who their target audience is, they are generally going to consist of individuals who are in search of entertainment that is visual, provides the value of humor and is generally considered lighthearted and enjoyable. Therefore, for this audience a headline that is being powered by curiosity is going to be very effective. The reason for this is in the fact that a curiosity driven headline like my own is going to align very well with people who want an article that is entertaining and funny enough to peak their interest immediately after reading through the headline. These people want headlines that stand out and catch their attention enough to trigger their curiosity and make them feel like they urgently need to see what the article content is consisting of. I also think it is important to remember that my headline would be competing with many others that also are looking to have people take action by clicking on their article. Ultimately speaking, by using these tactics to spark curiosity, my headline is much more likely to stand out among many others. Overall, this headline intent is primarily to trigger curiosity which resonates highly with the target audience for Buzzfeed who is generally looking for entertaining content. 

1. Headline Variation (12 marks) 

Using the article from Part A, Question #1, you are to create three (3) different headlines. Each headline must emphasize a different headline element discussed in class. (3X4=12 Marks) 

For each headline:

 a) Include the Headline 

b) Explain your reasoning 

c) Reference specific class concepts

The first headline which I have created is placing a high level of emphasis onto creating clarity for potential readers to click on them. This headline is “33 Perfectly Timed Photos That Turn Everyday Moments Into Accidental Comedy”. To look deeper into this headline and why exactly I created it the way I did, we can start with how I choose to focus on ensuring that I was providing both readers and Google (for SEO purposes) with a high level of clarity. This clarity was given to potential readers by explaining to them immediately what exactly they can expect to see from this article. In this case what my headline informs them of this is the fact that the article will deliver specifically 33 photos that showcase accidentally comedic and funny moments. My headline does not mislead readers at all with clickbait as I did not use any wording that they could perceive as seeming too exaggerated, instead I perfectly described to them what the content would be so they could set their expectations should they choose to click on and read the article accordingly. I also thought that including the words “Everyday Moments” alongside “Accidental Comedy” only helped to further emphasis this element of clarity as it made the subject (humour) of this article much easier to understand quickly. In addition to all of this, I considered that when I wanted to provide the readers with clarity I would need to be considerate of what exactly they would be wondering and thinking about in the first place. To ensure I provided them clarity, I made sure I answered the questions of what the article is (it is photos of comedic everyday moments), how much content they could expect (specifically 33 different moments) and why they should even care about this content in the first place (because despite being everyday mundane moments, they are accidentally funny). By providing this clarity, I am able to ensure that the article seems credible and I also am significantly able to reduce any senses of uncertainty that potential readers might have about what exactly the content is and is about. In addition to this, the headline is also making sure to communicate the value that the article can offer to its readers in a very clearly outlined manner through using the word “Comedy” to convey that this article will provide readers with some humor should they choose to click on and read it. To look further into the SEO efforts that can come from this headline, the way in which I went about phrasing this headline is helping Google to know that my article is providing its users with value. This is very significant for SEO because as we have discussed in ADV437, search engines like Google in 2026 are looking to prioritise the user and content that is written with the user as the priority. Therefore, by providing Google with this level of clarity in regard to what this article’s content is about, I am increasing the chances of this article ranking higher in Google’s SERP for the right users as Google will understand what value it can provide to them. Overall, my first headline of “33 Perfectly Timed Photos That Turn Everyday Moments Into Accidental Comedy” is very effective when it comes to emphasising the element of a good headline which is creating clarity. 

For my second headline, I wanted to shift my focus to the element of triggering the curiosity of potential readers to encourage them to click on the article. The headline I created to fulfill this goal was “You Won’t Believe What’s Happening In These 33 Perfectly Timed Photos”. The justification for the creation of this headline in particular the fact that it intentionally creates a curiosity gap among potential readers that the article’s content can ultimately fulfill. It is telling people very clearly that there were 33 timed photos featured within the article however it does not tell them what exactly happened within each photo but rather it creates a strong sense of suspense and urgency to find out. Urgency, which is one of the 4 U’s, that takes place here is coming from the loss aversion which potential readers will likely experience upon reading this headline as they will wonder what they could potentially be missing out on. This is very beneficial as this helps to lead potential readers to actually open up and view the article to read what exactly it is saying as my headline frames the content featured in the article as being somewhat unbelievable, which suggests to readers that they should be curious about what happened in each of the 33 photos that were timed out so well. These potential readers will likely be left to wonder about what each of the photos are showing and if they are funny, embarrassing, silly or even chaotic. Seeing as how this curiosity gap was even created in the first place, readers will feel the need to take action and click on the article to read through it to fill this gap and release the suspense they feel. Therefore, this all takes into account what we discussed in regard to psychology in advertising as users loss aversion and curiosity gaps are considered. Overall, by having created such a curiosity gap for potential readers, this is an effective headline with its strong focus on suspense and urgency as effective ways of driving viewers to click on the article.

For the third version of this headline that I was able to come up with, I decided that I would try to emphasise matching the actual intent of the user who is searching through Buzzfeed to find an article. The headline I created to do this is “33 Hilariously Timed Photos That Will Instantly Improve Your Mood”. For my reasoning behind creating this headline, I can justify it by referring back to the element of aligning the headline with the user intent on Buzzfeed generally speaking. So, I knew that when creating this headline I really needed to make sure that I understood what the tone and voice that Buzzfeed usually uses are. I understand that the voice is pretty consistently lighthearted and upbeat while the tone shifts depending on the content as in some articles it is more funny and others more relatable. In this headline, I made sure that humour was clearly shown to be an aspect of Buzzfeed’s tone for this specific article. I did this by including the word “Hilariously” to signal that the content is intended to be perceived as funny. More often than not, when someone is going onto Buzzfeed’s website in search of some content they are looking for something that can provide them with entertainment and content to help improve their overall mood. Going back to my headline, I emphasised this specifically through the intentional wording I used to claim that this article “Instantly Improve Your Mood” makes it useful (one of the 4 U’s we discussed in class) to the typical Buzzfeed reader. This aspect of the headline is clearly signalling that the article is aligned with the Typical Buzzfeed user’s intent as it is telling potential readers (and Google for SEO) that this is an article which provides a quick emotional response for readers. My headline here is not trying to be overly serious or complex as I recognize that the average Buzzfeed user is not in search of an article with this intention. Therefore, this headline is one which is clearly matching the intent of users on Buzzfeed overall through aiming to clearly communicate the emotional benefits that reading the article will provide. The headline also is highly in alignment with the typical tone and voice that Buzzfeed uses throughout all of their content as a whole.

3. Click Motivation (8 marks)

 a) Provide a different headline you recently clicked on. 

b) Include the exact headline and a screenshot 

c) Explain why you clicked it, not why you liked it 

d) Tie your reasoning directly to course concepts

Article Link: https://www.buzzfeed.com/angelicaamartinez/actor-awards-celebrity-reactions-2026

Article Screenshot:

For the headline I clicked on for this aspect of this assignment, I chose to use another headline from Buzzfeed of “17 Of The Most Unforgettable Celeb Reactions At The 2026 Actor Awards That You Probably Missed”. The main reason why I clicked on this headline in the first place was because I felt like it was providing me with curiosity and a sense of urgency. The reason for this sense of curiosity and urgency is the fact that the content is creating a gap in my mind that makes me start to question what i missed in regard to celebrity culture and I begin wondering if I am no longer “in the know” of what’s happening with the most popular and prevalent celebrities right now. It’s also important to note here that this is not click bait as its not misleading me in order to “bait” me into clicking but rather its informing me of the fact that I might have missed some things that are prominent in pop culture right now and they can fill me in on it through this article, therefore fulfilling my curiosity gap. This article also stood out among the rest due to its use of specificity through the odd number of “17” being used. This use of the number 17 is highlighting very clearly that when I click on this article the structure of it is going to be 17 different reactions from an award show shown to me which sets my expectations for this content right away. This also led me to click on the article because my uncertainty was reduced as like I said I immediately knew what to expect and that I would be given the amount of content stated. 

In addition to all of this, another reason for me having clicked on this article was the relevance it had in regard to matching my user intent having gone on Buzzfeed in search of an article. Generally speaking, if I go onto Buzzfeed in search of an article I am looking for ones that are mainly going to take on an entertainment or humour related focus as opposed to an overly serious one. When it comes to this article, the headline is clearly telling me before I click that the article content is going to be in regard to “Celeb Reactions At The 2026 Actor Awards” which aligns very clearly with the entertainment content that users like myself would generally have the intention of founding should they choose to go onto Buzzfeed for article. I also thought that this headline was one that was communicating that this article was one that would provide me with some sort of value when it comes to seeing and knowing what’s going on in pop culture moments my peers, friends and family might be referencing. The headline did this by stating that these moments were “Unforgettable” and therefore ones that I should want to know about. This is because this word in particular is implying to me that the reactions that each of these celebrities has were not just small or easy to ignore but rather they were bigger reactions that could have an impact on me emotionally. So, this headline told me that this moment was one that was significant enough to be worth knowing about, therefore proving value to some degree. Alongside this, the headline also considered the loss aversion I would face causing me to click on it. This is because the headline through its deliberate and intentional wording is trying to insinuate that should I not read through this article I would be missing out on knowing what all took place at this award show in regard to the celebrities who attended. Overall, this headline was definitely one which led me to click on it because it accurately promised me that the article would ultimately be relevant to my user intent, would fulfil my curiosity gap it created and provide me a level of value through the knowledge about celebrity culture it highlights.

RESOURCES:

1.Martinez, A. (2026, March 2). 17 of the most unforgettable celeb reactions at the 2026 actor awards that you probably missed. BuzzFeed. https://www.buzzfeed.com/angelicaamartinez/actor-awards-celebrity-reactions-2026

2. Accuracy & Representation (4 marks) 

Was the headline in Question #1 an accurate representation of the article content? 

a) Explain your reasoning clearly 

b) Reference course discussion on misleading vs effective headlines

Now that I have effectively analyzed this article’s headlines and why I felt that it was so effective, I have also looked through the article’s content in full. After having done this, I can confirm that yes, the article;’s headline was in fact an accurate representation of the content being provided. After having read the headline, I believed that the headline was aiming to promise me (the reader) that this would be a very lighthearted and funny article that was in a list format with images showcasing the “dumb pictures”. When I clicked on the article and went through it I immediately was ankle to take notice of the fact that the content was delivering exactly these promises through showcasing a total of 33 different funny images that seemed accidental yet also very well timed out all at the same time. Therefore, I found that the actual content and structure of this article was very much an accurate reflection of what the headline was promising to me. 

I think that this accurate representation of this article through the headline was so important because misleading headlines can have a very negative overall impact on a website/company like Buzzfeed in regard to their credibility among users. When users do not perceive a source as being credible for providing the information/content in which they claim they will provide, that source/company/website will generally see a large decrease in the amount of people actually consuming the content which they produce. What indicates a misleading headline to me is usually going to be it overpromising content that it does not deliver, sparking my curiosity through a curiosity gap but not fulfilling it and just way over exaggerating whatever it is that the content itself is talking about. On the other hand, an effective headline like this one from Buzzfeed is able to accurately signal to readers that this content is funny, lighthearted and easy to read due to its simple list format and bold headings. This headline also reduces any  uncertainty that readers such as myself might have had in regard to whether or not this content is actually worth our time which makes it effective as opposed to misleading and above all this headline truly delivered exactly what it said it would in terms of content. For example, number 17 appeared to be a picture of a fish on a train with the caption “A truly embarrassing moment”, this caption and image is simple, funny and easily readable which displays how this article’s content very clearly fulfils the headline’s promises. Overall, this headline was representative of the article’s actual content in a very effective manner that was not misleading at all.

1. Find one (1) headline you recently encountered that you felt was effective. 

a) Provide the exact headline

 b) Explain why it resonated with you

 c) Tie your explanation directly to specific headline elements discussed in class

Article Link: https://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/funny-pictures-taken-a-the-perfect-time-march-2-2026

Article Screenshot:

For this question, I have sourced my headline from a website that we are consistently referring back to in class for examples of “good headlines”, Buzzfeed. The specific headline which I have chosen to discuss is “33 Unbelievably Dumb Pictures Captured At JUST The Right Moment That Gets Funnier And Funnier No Matter How Many Times I’ve Seen Them”. There are several reasons as to why this headline was effective and resonated with me, the first being one which we have discussed in class a couple times which is the fact that an odd number of “33” is used. This is significant as such a number use is intentional and meant to grab the attention of potential readers and make the content itself within the article seem much more credible and trustworthy while also leveraging the known psychology behind specificity bias. The reason for this is that this number is very specific, it’s not just a word like a “bunch” or an even number like 10, no it feels as though there is a reduction in uncertainty because readers can know exactly how much content they are being given and that there was not just irrelevant content of lesser value to them added to make the number an even one like 10 for example. In addition to this, the odd number of 33 is also just going to stand out among the text, purely because it is more unexpected and visually distinct in comparison to numbers that feel more manufactured to people. To illustrate this further, the Go Braithwaite marketing agency cites that “headlines with odd numbers garnered 20% more clicks than those with even digits”. This is important to know as it proves the point of how 33 is an oddly specific number that makes this headline more effective and also helped it to resonate further with someone such as myself who noticed this article stand out in particular due to the inclusion of this number. 

Another clear reason as to why this was a headline that I felt was so effective and resonated with personally was the fact that it was able to clearly match my user intent on Buzzfeed’s website. Generally speaking, when people are choosing to visit Buzzfeed for some content, they are in search of articles that seem to be more lighthearted and entertaining as opposed to seeming more deep, academic and serious. Therefore, this headline in particular is helping to effectively be able to signal that this article is one that uses humor and will provide some instant gratification to the readers who are likely in search of this through appealing to people’s relevance bias. This was done by using words such as “Dumb” or “Funnier” in the headline itself. This headline also heavily aligns with use intent generally speaking as it matches very well with Buzzfeed’s typical tone and voice as it relates to funny yet relatable content that features headlines that are intended to make the content seem “viral” or very popular. Overall, when a headline like this is so well aligned with user intent, it provides the benefit of reducing the uncertainty that readers might have and it also signals to readers that the article content is relevant to them. So, essentially by being able to match this headline to the typical user intent, Buzzfeed has successfully been able to create headlines that reflect what users generally expect from a Buzzfeed article which increases the likelihood of them choosing to actually read the article.

Alongside all of this, the headline is also incredibly effective and resonated with me because of hope it instantly was able to trigger my curiosity. The way in which Buzzfeed was so easily able to do this was through their usage of this sentence “Unbelievably Dumb Pictures Captured At JUST The Right Moment”. This wording in particular is able to effectively capture my curiosity as it makes people like myself seeing the headline for the first time think about all the questions that we could potentially have in regard to what the content in the article actually is. For example, some questions that I personally had were “what moment?”, “wait what happened?” and “what was just the right moment?”. I wanted to know what the “dumb pictures” the headline mentioned were and I also wanted to understand what the perfect timing of these photos was and how it made them so funny. Therefore this headline was trying to provide me with a curiosity gap that reading the article’s content could fulfil which is one of the many reasons why this headline was so effective and resonated with me as a potential reader. 

RESOURCES:

1.Stopera, D. (2026, March 2). 33 unbelievably dumb pictures captured at just the right moment that get funnier and funnier no matter how many times I’ve seen them. BuzzFeed. https://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/funny-pictures-taken-a-the-perfect-time-march-2-2026

2.Airwin@Gobraithwaite.com. (2022, March 21). The odd thing about odd numbers. Braithwaite Communications. https://gobraithwaite.com/thinking/the-odd-thing-about-odd-numbers/

a. When it comes to the intended goal for this introductory online campaign for my bakery business Ava’s Lil Bakeshoppe, I think it is very crucial to have this very clearly outlined. The primary goal for this campaign itself is to establish brand awareness for Ava’s Lil Bakeshoppe while building trust among consumers to position the Ava’s Lil Bakeshoppe brand as one that is premium within the baking industry. This will be done by informing, persuading and reminding consumers through content and communication. As we are a relatively new and growing business within our industry it is very important that our visitors immediately are able to understand what exactly differentiates our brand from competitors alike. This is because we will likely be bringing them into the awareness phase of the sales funnel at first and then from here into the interest stage where they learn more about what makes us unique and worth choosing. In our case, what differentiates us is the fact that we have a commitment to using real ingredients and high quality technique to create elevated versions of classic and nostalgic desserts within an industry that often chooses mass production and low quality. We truly want to utilize this campaign to establish who we are clearly and what we stand for in order to build trust and credibility among our target audience. This will be done by communicating our brand values clearly in the campaign so that our target audience can feel confident while engaging with our brand whether through social media, inquiries they have or orders from us, all while being reminded of our brand on a consistent basis. Overall, the goal for our campaign is to shape perceptions of our target audience in order to instill trust and awareness in them as potential customers. Ultimately speaking, we intend to see many of these potential consumers convert themselves into actual long lasting customers as they move through the sales funnel. 

b. The target audience for this campaign is very important to outline as we obviously need to be very clear on who we intend to fulfill our goal and reach with content. This being an introductory campaign will be written for quality conscious dessert consumers who have yet to find a business that can fulfil their wants and needs in the Windsor-Essex area. These are primarily young adults and adults within the ages of 18-45 who are active on social media platforms and enjoy supporting local businesses. Furthermore, we can break this intended audience into two segments based primarily on age. These two segments will be individuals 18-30 and individuals 31-45. The reason for this segmentation is because of the differences in content and platforms needed to reach these individuals. For example, two sets of data gathered by Statista have shown that as of 2025 the majority of individuals using Instagram are within the ages of 18-34 and the majority of Facebook users are within ages of 25-34 while the second most prominent group was between 35-44. Taking the averages between both of these data sets has allowed us to understand that these two groups that are both potential consumers of Ava’s Lil Bakeshoppe, will need to be targeted separately to a degree in order for our communications to actually be effective. Obviously with all this being said, there could be some outliers however, we know that what might be just an anomaly doesn’t change the fact that this is likely the most effective approach to outlining our intended audience for our content. Overall, this audience is being targeted by our campaign as they are the most likely individuals to appreciate our emphasis on real ingredients and quality while still enjoying nostalgic flavours. This intended audience will also be the most inclined to engage with our brand on the social media platforms we have chosen to use and ultimately convert ourselves into repeat customers.

c. Obviously it is very important to be able to clearly define what type of experience we aim to create for our visitors. When it comes to this campaign, we intend to create a very welcoming, aspirational and trust building experience for our visitors. The reason for this is because a core aspect of our intended goal for the campaign is to build awareness and credibility among our visitors. This campaign in particular has been designed to make all of our visitors feel welcome to the Ava’s Lil Bakeshoppe brand while still managing to position our brand as being elevated and intentional in comparison to our competitors. Through our voice, tone and visuals across mediums such as our blog and social media accounts, our content is actively encouraging our potential consumers to imagine Ava’s Lil Bakeshoppe’s brand as providing special indulgences that are worth it as opposed to mass produced everyday commodities. Overall, by balancing our goals of providing a premium baked good product with also providing transparency, the experience being created is able to build an emotional connection with consumers while reassuring them that our brand prioritizes quality and indulgence. This is a very important combination for us as it helps to make sure the experience we provide visitors is in alignment with them ultimately fulfilling our goal of our business in general of converting to loyal customers of Ava’s Lil Bakeshoppe.

RESOURCES:

1.  Published by                                Thuy D., & 19, N. (2025, November 19). Instagram: Age distribution of global audiences 2025. Statista. https://www.statista.com/statistics/325587/instagram-global-age-group/?srsltid=AfmBOorbj5lIgdUk_UiAXGADUC_9H6sSCBk4iq0ZXDFEDHvOnGnM510A 

2.  Published by                                Thuy D., & 19, N. (2025b, November 19). U.S. facebook demographics Age 2025. Statista. https://www.statista.com/statistics/187549/facebook-distribution-of-users-age-group-usa/?srsltid=AfmBOorC3jLTAhBgfpFc1IMLlnGIejJI2dBFKaEqa1FF7YCCD48glZAE 

Instagram:

For Instagram I need to adapt this content to work for the more concise, emotional and personality driven aspects of the platform which make it sort of vary from my blog. So I intend to approach this by making the content into a caption (as discussed in question 3 of par a) in order to appeal to the segment I wanna target on Instagram while still conveying the same information as in the blog post. 

Instagram Caption:

Here at Ava’s Lil Bakeshoppe, we believe indulgence is meant to feel “worth it” every time! Because of this, our premium desserts all use real butter, avocado oil, real chocolate and NO SHORTCUTS! 

From classic flavours you love to elevated treats like our gourmet cookies or specialty cinnamon rolls, everything we make is designed to make you feel special and excited to indulge! This is baking done properly. For the people who truly love quality and great flavour! (because you deserve treats that actually live up to the hype)

Visit our website at avaslilbakeshoppe.com to see our latest creations and maybe even treat yourself while you’re at it!

Facebook:

For Facebook we have recognized that our segmented target audience here is likely looking for reassurance, social proof, detail and credibility. Therefore, with this version of my blog post I intend to keep this as a long form but that will build trust, explain my brand clearly and invite users to create conversation or inquire about my business.

Facebook Post:

Here at Ava’s Lil Bakeshoppe, we are an upscale dessert business in Windsor that is crafting high end baked treats for you that are made with real ingredients that make indulging worth it! Every treat is made with real butter, avocado oil and real chocolate making them completely free of palm oil or unnecessary shortcuts.

We are a local bakery specialising in creating gourmet cookies, specialty cinnamon rolls, decadent bars, cakes and limited time treat boxes for you! Our goal is to take all of your favourite classic flavours and turn them into elevated premium desserts that you can truly feel good about indulging in!

If you are about quality, flavour and indulgence that actually feels “worth it”, then Ava’s Lil Bakeshoppe is truly the place for you! Here at the bakeshoppe we pride ourselves on our dedication to providing transparency, craftsmanship and desserts made with intention, never ever mass produced! 

So what are you waiting for? Check out our website at avaslilbakeshoppe.com for more information and ordering with ease!

Pinterest:

For Pinterest, we have chosen to focus on the fact (as mentioned in part of question 3) that users on this platform are typically going to be scrolling with a future intent of inspiration and aspiration. This version of the blog post will be a Pinterest description, but will inspire individuals to think about their desire for our treats while also positioning our products as offering a premium bakery experience that these potential consumers can aspire for and perhaps take action to retrieve our products through Pinterest’s “Visit” button that redirects users to our website.

Pinterest Description:

Premium desserts made properly! At Ava’s Lil Bakeshoppe, we create high quality baked goods using only real ingredients and no shortcuts!

From our gourmet cookies, cakes and specialty cinnamon rolls all the way to our indulgent bars and limited edition treat boxes, our treats combine nostalgia with elevation. 

Perfect for special occasions, gifting or yourself, because indulgences should always feel “worth it”. 

Save our post for later or Visit our website to explore more!