How to Hook Your Readers So They Keep Coming Back for More
How many times have you found yourself scrolling endlessly through Instagram, TikTok, or Pinterest?
How many TV series have you binge-watched on Netflix?
Did you maintain your Duolingo streak today?
All these apps use one simple model to keep you hooked to them, and it’s been an immensely successful model in product design and user experience.
But what if you can apply that to your writing?
What if you can hook your readers so that they want to read your content and keep coming back for more?
If that sounds a little too good to be true, let me tell you: it isn’t.
If it sounds a little tricky and dishonest, well, it isn’t that either.
It all centres around one specific behaviour: habits.
Out of all the content out there…
As an online content writer, you might be struggling with attracting readers, let alone maintaining a constant readership.
Trust me; we’ve all been there.
With the stupendous amount of information available online, readers are bombarded with content every single day.
Their attention span is alarmingly shrinking.
As a result, they are missing out on a lot of valuable information for utterly meaningless but moreish content.
So, you might be thinking:
“Out of all the content out there, what makes people want to read my content?”
And that’s a good question, but you might be asking it for the wrong reasons.
If you’re asking this from an impostor-syndrome way of thinking, this can easily turn into a limiting question. Impostor syndrome describes the feeling we get when we doubt our skills and abilities that bring us success. In other words, it’s the condition of feeling like a “fraud” or an “impostor” when, in fact, you’re not.
In this context, doubting your writing skills, content quality, and ability to attract readers compared to other writers out there would likely hinder you from ever reaching your goals.
So, let’s put this perspective aside for now and look at this question opportunistically.
What is it that would make people want to read your content? What value are you providing? Why are you providing it? And how are you doing that?
For instance, the value I am providing in this article is particular advice on how to improve your connection with your readership and instil a positive pattern. The reason is I want to help you and other writers like you get better at online writing because I believe in collective growth: grow and help others grow with you. And the way I’m providing this value is by applying the exact principles and advice I am sharing with you and doing that consistently.
Once you have defined the value you’re providing and the reason(s) behind it, here’s how you can deliver it in a manner that leverages the science of habits. This can help you establish a robust connection with your readers and hook them to your content.
Hooked: From Product Design to Online Content
Around ten years ago, Nir Eyal, a product-design expert, published a book by the name of “Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products,” which ended up being a Wall Street Journal best seller.
The book is based around what Eyal calls “The Hooked Model,” a process in a person’s product experience that encourages them to form habits of engaging with the product.
Go back to the first lines of this article. Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, Duolingo, Netflix, Gmail, and many other apps and products incorporate the Hooked model into their design and UX. That’s why you tend to keep scrolling, binge-watching, checking emails, etc.
The whole model is based on how we develop habits. Eyal defined this as a four-stage process:
- Trigger
- Action
- Variable Reward
- Continued Investment
While the Hooked model has been widely used in product design to create engaging and habit-forming user experiences, could you apply the same to content writing?
What if you create content that is compelling and inspiring enough that it keeps readers coming back for more?
A win-win scenario, if you like…
Well, let’s dive in and explore how you can apply the Hooked model to your writing to captivate your readers so they always want to read more of it.
1. Trigger
The first step in the Hooked model is the trigger.
In product design, this can be a notification, an email, or a message that prompts the user to take action.
Think of the one or many notifications that have shown up on your phone while you’re reading this article. I just received a Duolingo reminder while writing this. I have to keep my streak alive. You know what? I’ll go do one lesson and come back to finish this…
…ok, I’m back.
In writing, the trigger can be an attention-grabbing headline, a provocative question, or a compelling story that draws the reader in.
You see, readers read. They love to find topics that stimulate their interest and curiosity.
I’d bet you’re reading this because the headline somehow tickled your brain…something in there wants to know how to keep readers coming back for more, right?
While a reader skims through Medium, LinkedIn, Twitter, an online magazine, or maybe a newsletter, the first touchpoint with them is your article headline. It’s what gives the reader the first impression of your content. It enables them to set expectations.
When crafting your headlines, think about what will make your readers stop scrolling and pay attention. Use emotional triggers such as fear, curiosity, or desire to pique their interest and make them want to read more.
You can check out my other article on compelling headlines here, but before you do so, keep reading because it’s going to get interesting.
2. Action
Once you have captured your reader’s attention, the next step is to get them to take action.
As Eyal articulates in his book:
“To initiate action, doing must be easier than thinking. Remember, a habit is a behavior done with little to no conscious thought. The more effort — either physical or mental — required to perform the desired action, the less likely it is to occur.”
Eyal also references the behavioural and social scientist Brian Jeffrey Fogg, who developed a model to perceive the drivers of our actions. Fogg puts forward three factors needed to start an action or behaviour (B):
- A person must have sufficient motivation (M).
- A person must be able (A) to complete the action that is desired of them.
- A trigger (T) must be there to actuate the behaviour.
Fogg portrays all this in a simple equation: B = MAT. All three factors need to be present and sufficient in order for a person — in our case, the reader — to pass over the “Action line.” Otherwise, no action takes place.
In product design, the action may be clicking a button or filling out a form. It could be scrolling for more or watching the next episode in a TV series.
In writing, it can be clicking on your compelling headline to read the article. It can be encouraging your readers to keep reading by creating a sense of urgency, mystery, or guidance.
It can even go further to asking them to take a particular action, such as subscribing for more content, leaving a comment, or sharing the article with their friends.
Use active language and strong verbs to encourage your readers to take action. Tell them what to do next and why it’s important. Make it easy for them to take action by providing clear instructions, a smooth reading flow, and relevant links.
Here’s an example. In the article shared below:
- I trigger the reader with a mysterious headline (Trigger).
- I then take the reader on a reading journey by combining a story about George Orwell with a conversation with the reader, which keeps them wanting to read further (Motivation).
- I also ask the reader at the end to simply share their opinion on whether they agree with me or not by writing a comment. Commenting on Medium is pretty straightforward and does not require much effort (Ability).
Put these together, and you’ll see that several people have chosen to engage (Behaviour) with my article.
In short, “B = MAT” has been achieved.
But that’s not all. We’re only halfway through.
3. Variable Reward
After triggering the reader and prompting them to take action, the third step in the Hooked model is to give a variable reward — and “variable” is a key term here.
As you know, when you’re doing an action, a reward reinforces your motivation for the action itself. But in reality, it’s not the sensation you get from the reward that draws you to act; instead, it’s the need to relieve the craving for that reward that pulls you.
But why ‘variable’? What’s so special about variability?
Our brains develop habits to quickly initiate suitable behaviour as a response to a routine we have already learned before.
This is because brains are energy-conserving systems that try to maintain our attention on important stuff while unconscious habits take care of the rest. In other words, invariable things can become predictable after a period of time, and the focus on them wanes away.
So, variability in rewards is critical to attracting someone’s attention after they’ve taken the desired action repeatedly.
In product design, this can be a surprise discount or a new feature that keeps the user engaged. It can be an endless stream of tweets, Instagram photos, TikTok videos, or Pinterest images. The uncertainty of what someone could find when they click on the app or even when they refresh their feed is the variable reward that intrigues them to do it again.
In writing, the variable reward can be a twist in the story, a surprising fact, or a new perspective that keeps the reader interested and wanting to read more. It can be an insight that they cannot find elsewhere. It can be a promise of new content every day or every week that will scratch the itch they might have about a specific topic.
Use storytelling techniques such as foreshadowing, suspense, and unexpected plot twists to keep your readers engaged. Provide new and valuable insights that are difficult to find anywhere else. Use metaphors and analogies to help them understand complicated ideas.
And by that, you’ve given them a variable reward that alleviates their craving and subliminally tells them that your content can do that every time.
One stage remains to close the habit loop.
4. Continued Investment
You triggered your readers.
You invited them to take an action.
And you rewarded them with a variable perk that scratched their itch and told them there’s more coming up.
The final step in the Hooked model is a continued investment.
Investment in a particular behaviour or action is interconnected with the person’s perception of that behaviour. In fact, studies show that the more time and effort you put into something, the more you value it.
Consider an activity you’ve invested your time in, like reading insightful Medium articles like this one, exercising, or creating a professional profile page on LinkedIn or an awesome playlist of songs on Spotify. Think of how much you value that activity and platform, given the hours and calories you’ve put into it.
This is what we call “stored value.” The more stored value a person puts into a product or medium, the more likely they will revisit and use it again.
In product design, this can be a user’s investment in their profile or their saved content. It could be their investment in gaining more followers and developing a reputation online. It can be the skills they learned while using it, making its usage easier for them next time (e.g., learning how to use Photoshop or Canva).
In writing, it can be a clear value proposition that you deliver to motivate your readers to invest their time and attention in your content.
Provide actionable insights and practical advice your readers can implement in their own lives.
Encourage them to share their thoughts and experiences in the comments section, in an email, in a forum, or on social media.
Respond to their comments and engage with them to build a community around your content.
Once a reader gains a value that they can willingly implement or give an opinion about, they’re quite likely to do that continually.
That’s why you should find creative ways to invite your readers to invest time and effort in your content, from reading it thoroughly to commenting on it, sharing it, building upon it, and following you more closely.
The more they do so, the more they’ll value your content, and the more they’ll come back for more.
Would you apply the Hooked model to your writing?
Do you disagree with my implementation of the Hooked model in content writing?
Have I missed anything that I should’ve covered?
Share your thoughts in the comments section. I’m very intrigued to hear what you think about the Hooked model.
Cheers!
