5 Proven Hook Formats I Use In My Medium Stories To Grab The Readers’ Attention (Without Clickbait)
Jab Jab Jab Right Hook!
The hook is one of the most crucial parts of your Medium story.
And truth be told if you can’t grab the reader’s attention in the first 15 seconds of opening the story — you’ve lost their attention — Almost always!
This means you only have 15 seconds to grab the reader’s attention. But now you might wonder and ask the most obvious question: “What do you mean by a hook?”Okay, I get it. Let me tell you what it is.
A Hook is the fourth element of your Medium story. It comes after: The headline, subheadline, and feature image. The Hook exists in the Introduction part of your story. And, you can write your hook from one sentence to a few paragraphs — in length.
For more info:
Once the reader clicks on the headline, they first read the hook — the first few sentences or paragraphs of your story. So if you want their attention, it’s your job to grab their attention!
Here are the 5 ways to do it:
1. Ask A Thought-Provoking Question
Asking a question is one of the finest ways to grab the readers’ attention.
When you ask a question to the reader, they not only feel personal but also they actually want to engage with your story. The primary reason? The question makes the story worth reading or moving to the next sentence or paragraph.
Just like you’re doing it right now!
So this is why asking a question works so well as a hook. When you ask a question as a hook, the reader subconsciously answers the question. But make sure that the question you ask is:
- Thought-provoking
- Relatable to the topic
- Interesting and makes sense to the reader
If you ask off-topic questions, or if your question isn’t good enough, you may lose the readers’ attention. Remember this.
Here’s how I use it:
2. Tell An Anecdote Story
Want another way to hook the reader? Tell stories.
Steve Jobs once said:
The most powerful person in the world is the storyteller.
So true, right?
People relate to stories. People trust stories. People take action by reading stories. Stories change people’s lives. Stories are powerful. So why not use them as a hook? Of course, you should!
When you begin writing a Medium story, start by telling a story that can be related to the topic. If you don’t have your own story, find stories of your friends, family, or other people.
You can tell these stories in anything from a few sentences to a few paragraphs long, and try to condense them into less than 200 words.
Remember: Writing a long story as a hook can also bore the reader, especially if the story isn’t good. So try to keep it as short as possible.
The story is a trailer, not a picture!
Here’s how I use it:
3. State A Strong Point
Want to evoke the readers’ emotions?
Here’s what happens: If you state a strong point, the reader immediately thinks of any of them:
- Wow, I didn’t know it!
- Lol, this isn’t true!
- What the f*ck is this!
- This is so true though!
- Let me find out more about it!
You can write your hook stating a strong point in one line or a few sentences, which can evoke the reader’s emotion and make them feel either of them:
- Angry
- Annoying
- “A-ha” moment
Point to be noted: Make sure the strong point you state is related to the topic you’re writing about. You can’t just say “Science has just cured the cancer” and talk about cryptocurrency throughout your story.
Makes no sense, right?
So it has to be relatable to the topic you’re writing.
Here’s how I use it:
4. Show Statistics And Data
According to U.S. census data:
Over 70 million men, over 50 million women, and almost 20 million children snore!
The above data can be pretty interesting to someone who’s going through some sort of sleep disorder. Why? Because they’d think that they’re not alone. And it makes them feel good about themselves.
This is why showing statistics and data works.
So doesn’t matter which topic you write about, do your due diligence and find some interesting facts, stats, and data related to the topic you write about. You can use these data as a one-liner hook or in a few sentences.
Here’s how I use it:
5. Use Quotes And Lines
People love quotes and lines.
It truly becomes powerful if the quote is from a famous individual. The reason? People find the quote interesting not because of the quote itself but because of the person who said it.
And for this reason, you can’t just put any quote and expect it to grab the reader’s attention. So be selective when choosing quotes as a hook. It has to be good, unique, and powerful.
Quotes from Steve Jobs, Winston Churchill, Elon Musk (and other smart people) can always hook readers and make them curious to read more.
Here’s how I use it:
These are the 5 proven hook formats I use in my stories to grab the readers’ attention. Feel free to steal it so you can also hook your reader’s attention.
This story is sponsored by Medium Masterclass.
