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All 16 learnings · one per slide
Hooked
Nir Eyal, in bytes
16 key learnings on how products build habits through the Hook Model.
16 learnings · ~40 sec eachSwipe →
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Hooked, in bytes
16 key learnings from Nir Eyal's four-step Hook Model for habit-forming products, and the ethics of using it. Each takes about 40 seconds to read. Swipe, use the arrows, or your keyboard.
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Learning 1 · Introduction
Habits Create Value
The idea
Products used habitually can command more loyalty and pricing power.
Example
People check email or social apps many times a day without thinking.
Takeaway
Habits are a competitive advantage.
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Learning 2
The Hook Model
The idea
Habit-forming products cycle through Trigger, Action, Variable Reward and Investment.
Example
A notification (trigger), opening the app (action), new posts (reward), posting your own (investment).
Takeaway
Repeated cycles build habits.
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Learning 3 · Ch. 1
The Habit Zone
The idea
Behaviours that are frequent and perceived as useful are most likely to become habits.
Example
Google search is used often and seen as very useful.
Takeaway
Frequency plus usefulness.
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Learning 4
External Triggers
The idea
Notifications, emails and ads prompt the first actions.
Example
An email saying a friend tagged you in a photo.
Takeaway
Triggers start the loop.
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Learning 5
Internal Triggers
The idea
Over time, emotions like boredom or loneliness trigger the behaviour.
Spot it
Opening an app whenever you feel bored.
Takeaway
The strongest habits attach to feelings.
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Learning 6 · Ch. 2
Find the Itch
The idea
Understand users' emotional itches, like fear of missing out, to design triggers.
Example
Instagram can relieve the fear of losing a special moment.
Try this
Ask what feeling precedes using your product.
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Learning 7
Make Action Easy
The idea
Drawing on BJ Fogg, behaviour requires motivation, ability and a trigger; simplify the action.
Example
One-click sign-in with an existing account.
Takeaway
Ease beats persuasion.
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Learning 8 · Ch. 3
Six Elements of Simplicity
The idea
Time, money, physical effort, brain cycles, social deviance and non-routine all affect ease.
Example
Cutting the number of steps in a sign-up form.
Takeaway
Remove the biggest barrier.
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Learning 9
Variable Rewards
The idea
Unpredictable rewards, like a social feed, keep people coming back.
Example
Slot machines and endless scroll both deliver unpredictable rewards.
Takeaway
Variability fuels craving.
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Learning 10 · Ch. 4
Rewards of the Tribe, Hunt and Self
The idea
Social rewards, the hunt for resources or information, and mastery all keep people engaged.
Example
Likes, a scrolling feed, completing a game level.
Takeaway
Different rewards satisfy different needs.
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Learning 11
Investment
The idea
Users invest time, data or effort, which makes the product more valuable and loads the next trigger.
Example
Followers and saved content.
Takeaway
Effort makes users value the product more.
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Learning 12 · Ch. 5
Stored Value
The idea
Data, content, followers and reputation make a product harder to leave.
Example
Years of photos and contacts in an app.
Takeaway
Investment increases switching costs.
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Learning 13
The Manipulation Matrix
The idea
Eyal asks makers: would you use the product yourself, and does it improve users' lives?
Example
A maker who uses their fitness app daily and sees it help users.
Takeaway
Build habits that help people.
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Learning 14 · Ch. 6
Facilitators and Dealers
The idea
Eyal contrasts facilitators, who improve lives with products they'd use, with dealers, who exploit users.
Example
Eyal contrasts helpful apps with exploitative gambling-like products.
Takeaway
Be a facilitator.
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Learning 15 · Ch. 7
Bible App Case Study
Example
Eyal studies the YouVersion Bible app, which used triggers and reading plans to build daily habits.
Why it worked
Daily reading plans and timely reminders helped users form a habit.
Takeaway
The model works in many fields.
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Learning 16 · Ch. 8
Habit Testing
The idea
Identify habitual users, codify what they do, and modify the product to encourage that path.
Example
Discovering that users who follow a few people in their first week stay.
Try this
Find your most loyal users and study their path.
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All 16 learnings complete
That’s all 16 learnings.
Habit-forming products shape daily life. Which product has hooked you, and is it serving you?
Abhay Kumar JaiswalFCA · PMP® · Workday Financeabhayjaiswal.com
Summaries in my own words. Read the book for the full stories.
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Summaries are written in my own words for learning. Read Hooked by Nir Eyal (2014) for the full stories. More Books in Bytes