The Hook Model
Creating a product that customers become habitually engaged with is the ultimate goal. The Hook Model, developed by Nir Eyal, offers a framework for understanding how to build products that create user habits.
The model consists of four key elements: the trigger, action, reward, and investment. By understanding these elements and how they interact, you can design products that create habits and ultimately increase user engagement and retention.
Use the Hook Model in the following scenarios
- New feature development
- User story development
- When developing your roadmap
- When collaborating with your UI/UX team
Trigger
The trigger is what initiates the behavior. Triggers can be external, such as an email notification, or internal, such as a feeling of boredom. Understanding the triggers that initiate user behavior is crucial for creating products that users will come back to regularly.
Action
The action is the behavior that the user performs in response to the trigger. The action should be simple and easy to perform, otherwise, users will not be motivated to engage with the product.
Reward
The reward is what keeps the user engaged. The reward should be satisfying and provide value to the user, otherwise, they will not continue to engage with the product. The reward should also be variable, so that users are unsure of what they will receive and will keep coming back for more.
Investment
The investment is what keeps the user coming back. The investment can be something as simple as saving a bookmark or something more complex like creating content. The investment should make the product more valuable for the user, so that they will be more likely to return.