🌟 HOOKED: How to Build Habit-Forming Products

🎯 Core Idea

Why do some products (Instagram, WhatsApp, YouTube, TikTok) become part of daily life while others are forgotten?
👉 Because they form habits by embedding themselves into users’ routines through psychological design.

🔄 The Hook Model (4 Steps Loop)

1️⃣ Trigger (Spark the Action)

• External Triggers 👉 Notifications, Ads, Emails, Social Media prompts.

• Internal Triggers 👉 Emotions (boredom, loneliness, stress).
  💡 Goal: Link the product to user emotions so they think of it automatically.

🖼 Example: Feeling lonely → Open Instagram.

2️⃣ Action (Simplify the Behavior)

👉 The simplest action taken in anticipation of a reward.

• Must be easy, quick, and intuitive.

• Power of small clicks → Likes, Scrolls, Swipes.

⚡ Formula: Ability + Motivation + Trigger = Action

🖼 Example: One tap to “Like” or “Reels swipe.”

3️⃣ Variable Reward (Keep Them Excited)

👉 Human brain craves unpredictability.

• Rewards of the Tribe → Likes, Comments, Followers (Social validation).

• Rewards of the Hunt → New content, Discounts, Jackpot loot (Searching thrill).

• Rewards of the Self → Level-ups, Badges, Progress (Personal achievement).

💡 Variable = makes it addictive because you don’t know what’s next.

🖼 Example: Scrolling TikTok → Each swipe is a surprise 🎁.

4️⃣ Investment (Make Them Commit)

👉 Users put something into the product → time, data, content, money, social connections.

• The more they invest, the more likely they are to return.

• Creates psychological ownership.

🖼 Example: Uploading photos on Facebook → “My memories live here.”

🎨 Takeaways from HOOKED

✨ Habits = Competitive Moat → Harder for competitors to break.
✨ Emotion > Functionality → Products solve emotional triggers more than technical ones.
✨ Small Wins = Big Habits → Repeated micro-actions lead to daily habits.
✨ Ethical Responsibility → Designers must ask: “Am I creating a healthy habit or an addiction?”

🌍 Real-Life Product Examples

• 📲 Instagram → Trigger: Bored → Action: Scroll → Reward: Random posts → Investment: Upload photo.

• 🎮 Candy Crush → Trigger: Notification → Action: Play one round → Reward: Surprise boosters → Investment: Time spent levels.

• 🛒 Amazon → Trigger: Ad/Email → Action: One-click buy → Reward: Excitement of delivery → Investment: Reviews, Wishlist.

💡 Key Golden Rules from the Book

1. Make Triggers tied to emotions.

2. Lower friction for actions.

3. Use variable rewards to keep engagement high.

4. Get user investment → lock-in loyalty.

5. Design ethically → Don’t exploit vulnerabilities.

⚡ In short:
👉 Hooked = Trigger → Action → Reward → Investment
= Repeat → Habit → Loyalty → Growth 🚀