How to Write a Hook That Stops the Scroll (With Examples for Every Platform)

You can make a genuinely useful post and still have almost nobody see it. Usually the reason is not the post. It is the first line.

People scroll fast. They decide in about a second whether something is worth their attention. That first line of text, or first second of video, is called the hook, and it does more work than everything after it combined.

A hook has one job: make the right person stop and keep going. Not everyone. The right person. A hook that makes everyone curious but attracts nobody who would use your app is not a good hook.

Good hooks usually do one of three things:

• Promise a result the reader wants.
• Show a specific number that is surprising or useful.
• Name a problem the reader recognises as their own.

1. 1

   The result

   Open with the outcome. "This invoice got paid in two days."

2. 2

   The number

   Lead with something specific. "I asked 40 founders why their app failed. 31 said the same thing."

3. 3

   The problem

   Say the pain out loud. "You built the app. Nobody signed up."

4. 4

   The mistake

   Point to something people get wrong. "Most landing pages lose people in the first sentence."

5. 5

   The before and after

   Show the gap. "Six fields at signup. Now one click."

6. 6

   The honest admission

   Share something real. "My first launch got zero users. Here is what I changed."

Notice that none of them start with your product's name. The reader does not care about your product yet. They care about their result or their problem.

The single most useful habit: write ten hooks for every post. The first one you write is almost never the best one. By the seventh or eighth, you start finding sharper words.

1. 1

   Write the post first

   It is easier to find the hook once you know what the post delivers.

2. 2

   Find the most valuable sentence

   Somewhere in your post is the line that matters most. That is often your hook.

3. 3

   Write ten versions

   Try a result, a number, a problem and a mistake version. Mix them up.

4. 4

   Cut every unnecessary word

   Hooks get stronger when they get shorter.

5. 5

   Pick one and post

   Then watch which kinds of hook work best for your audience over time.

Only use a number like that if it is true. Which brings us to the rule that matters most.

Clickbait works once. Then people learn that your posts do not deliver, and they stop stopping. A hook is a promise, and the rest of your post has to keep it.