Teaser: How to Write Teasers Correctly and What to Consider

At this point, there should actually be a teaser. But not just any teaser. Rather, a teaser, also known as a lead-in, that encourages further reading on the topic: Teasers. Therefore, here is the call to action: Read on and learn how to write really good teasers, because this teaser was not just mediocre, but abysmal.

Let's start with what a teaser should not do, or better: What an author should avoid in a lead-in. Repetitions have no place there. This applies especially to the text of the headline. The information already in the header should not be repeated in the teaser.

Why? A teaser should be as short and concise as possible. More importantly: Ideally, the editor mentions all relevant information of the text, video, or audio contribution briefly and concisely, while also sprinkling in incentives to definitely read, watch, listen, click, etc.

Different Types of Teasers

But let's take it step by step. Basically, there are 4 different ways to write a teaser: Lead, Cliffhanger, Infomercial, and Point of View.

The Lead answers all important W-questions (who, when, what, where, how) and serves in a way as a summary.

The Cliffhanger follows the structure of the Lead, except in this style, curiosity is piqued by deliberately creating a break or posing a provocative question.

The Point of View jumps directly into the action and describes a nerve-wracking (or the most exciting) episode of the entire story, which of course makes you want more.

Last but not least, the Infomercial is more about offering the reader, listener, viewer, etc., a concrete problem solution, in the spirit of: With these 10 tips on topic XYZ, XYZ will happen.

Characteristics of Good Teaser Texts

Overall, a teaser should be between 250-350 characters long. It can be more, but the golden rule is: The length should never deter the reader. If the consumer does not finish reading, watching, or listening, then all the effort was in vain.

Therefore, the following rules of thumb apply when creating a good teaser:
Sentences should follow a concrete language and avoid convolutions, insertions, or even brackets.
Content should not be repeated. The message of the headline has no place in the teaser.
The author should avoid unnecessary information, which means no details, time, numbers, filler words, etc.
It is important to maintain the unity of headline, image, and teaser: This should make it immediately clear to the reader what to expect.

Motivating Further Reading

How does that work? In one sentence: You need 3 short sentences to arrive at the right teaser.

Sentence 1, aka the Trumpet: Blow out what you have to say to the world. Open up the topic with one sentence and make it vivid.

Sentence 2, aka the Thesis: Explain your message a bit more, contextualize the topic, or provoke with a bold opinion.

Sentence 3, aka the Ramp: Give what you've said additional momentum by creating an incentive for why and for what one should continue reading.

Concrete Example of a (Good) Teaser

Do you want a final example? Alright! This is roughly how the initially chosen teaser would have looked if I had written it correctly, according to the textbook:

When writing a good teaser, it's important to follow a few specific, but concrete rules. Basically, there are 4 different ways to write a lead-in. Regardless, certain writing rules must be observed that clearly define structure, language, and content. Here are the most important tips for writing good teasers.