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Headline test survey template

Pick the headline readers will click, and the one they will trust

Three questions that put two headlines side by side: which one readers would click, which one feels more trustworthy and why. Replace the placeholders with your own headlines, and Usertick reads every written answer for you.

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What this headline test survey tells you

A headline test survey shows readers two versions of a headline and asks them to choose. This template takes under a minute: which headline they would click, which feels more trustworthy, and an open question on why, so you learn whether the catchier version costs you trust.

It is written for a popup on your site, shown to a share of readers on the section front or the home page where the story will run. The same template also runs as a link you send to a reader panel or post in your newsletter, so you can test a headline before the story goes live.

Every reason is read as it arrives and filed under a category from your list, such as content quality, with a type and a sentiment, so a reader who calls a headline misleading stands out. Results draws a split bar for each question, and selecting one headline filters the page to the readers who chose it.

On your websiteAs a linkIn an emailAs a conversation
Questions
3
Time to answer
About a minute
Written for
A popup on the section front, or a link to a reader panel
Plans
Every plan, the free plan included

See it on every channel

The same template on your website, behind a link, in an email and as a conversation.

On your website

Show it as a popup, a side button or inside the page, and choose the pages and the moment it opens: on page load, after a delay, on scroll or as someone is about to leave, on every plan. Event and behavior triggers work on 1 survey on Free and on every survey from Starter.

The 3 questions, one by one

What each question asks, why it is there, what it shows you and what to change.

Question 1 of 3 · This or that

Which headline would you click?

Why ask it
The click is the first test a headline faces, and a forced choice between two versions shows which one pulls readers in.
What you learn
A split bar for the pair, so you see at a glance whether Headline A or Headline B wins the click. Select one side to read why those readers chose it.
Make it yours
Replace Headline A and Headline B with your two versions, and change only one thing between them, such as the number or the verb, so the result tells you what made the difference.
Question 2 of 3 · This or that

Which headline feels more trustworthy?

Why ask it
A headline can win the click and lose the reader's trust. Asking about trust on its own shows whether the catchier version reads as clickbait.
What you learn
A second split bar, for trust. Set it beside the first: a headline that wins clicks and loses on trust is the one to soften.
Make it yours
Use the same two headlines in the same order in both questions, so readers judge the same pair twice.
Question 3 of 3 · Text · Optional

Why?

Why ask it
The short why turns two votes into reasons: the vague word, the missing number, the tone that felt like an ad.
What you learn
Usertick reads each answer as it arrives, gives it a theme and a sentiment, and marks it as praise, an idea or a complaint, so the reasons behind each pick are quick to scan.
Make it yours
Keep it optional and short. One sentence from a reader is enough to explain a pick.

What the answers show

Results turns each question into numbers you can follow week by week.

Every written answer, read for you

Each answer arrives with its category, theme, type and urgency, so the urgent ones reach your team first.

Use this template in four steps

From the template to the first answers.

  1. 1

    Open the template

    Sign up free and pick Headline test in the template gallery. It opens in a matching style, ready to change.

  2. 2

    Make the questions yours

    Reword any question, change the options, and add logic or more questions.

  3. 3

    Choose where it runs

    Show it on your website, send it by email, share its link and QR code, or switch it to a conversation.

  4. 4

    Publish and read the answers

    Answers arrive in Results and the inbox as people send them, each written one read and filed by Usertick.

Tips for this survey

Small choices that keep people answering and the answers useful.

  1. 01

    Test before you publish

    Send the link to a reader panel or post it in your newsletter before the story runs, so the winning headline is the one that goes live.

  2. 02

    Show it to a share of traffic

    From Starter, or on 1 survey on Free, show the popup to a share of visitors on the section front, so a sample of readers votes and the rest browse undisturbed.

  3. 03

    Change one thing at a time

    Keep the two headlines alike except for one choice, such as a question against a statement, so each test teaches one lesson.

  4. 04

    Make a new survey per story

    Duplicate the survey for each new headline pair, so every test has its own Results and old votes don't mix in.

Market research surveysReader surveysWebsite surveysArticles and reading questions

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Questions from the library

Browse the question library
  1. Was this article useful?Yes / No · Articles and reading
  2. How would you rate this article?Stars · Articles and reading
  3. What brought you here?Multiple choice · Articles and reading
  4. What stops you from subscribing?Multiple choice · Subscriptions and paywall
  5. What monthly price feels fair?Slider · Subscriptions and paywall
  6. Rank what would make a subscription worth itRanking · Subscriptions and paywall

Frequently asked questions

Replace Headline A and Headline B with your two versions, then show the survey as a popup on your site or share its link. Results shows which headline won on clicks and which won on trust.

Enough that the split stops moving as new answers arrive. Watch the split bars and wait until they settle before you choose.

Each This or that pair compares two. Add a second pair to a question to test a third version against the leader, or run a new survey with the winner and a new challenger.

Yes. Put your two versions in the survey and share the link with your followers or a reader panel, since the link works anywhere you can post it.

On the section front or the home page, where readers choose what to open. Use page rules to include those pages only, and keep the default show frequency, so each reader sees it until they vote.

Yes. Every template comes with every plan, the free plan included, and the free plan covers 150 responses a month across your surveys.

Yes. The template becomes your own survey, so reword any question, add or remove questions, and change the options and the logic. The gallery stays as it is.

Yes, from Starter. The template is written in US English. Add languages by hand or with AI translation, and each person sees the survey in their browser's language.

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