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Hey Reader,

Quick note before we get to the newsletter: I'm working on a new project with my course collaborator in crime, Rob Lennon. We're going to teach you how to build momentum for launches, whether you're launching a product, service, cohort, workshop, webinar, podcast, or whatever else. Keep your eyes peeled because it's coming soon! Check the announcement post here. And, let us know if there's anything specific you'd want to see in a product like this? Respond to the post or reply here.

"How'd you do that?"

My Content Sparring 🥊 client paused our session the other day and forced me to explain how I'd just come up with a hook for her.

"Specifically, why did you choose this type of phrasing?" she pressed on.

She's a trained customer researcher and psychotherapist, so I knew she wouldn't let me get by with a simple, "Just came to me!"

I racked my brain to produce an on-the-spot deconstruction.

And came up with this:

I may have left out a few expletives here and there. Here's the audio clip if you're keen to hear the raw footage.

​Hook Explanation Audio

What'd the final hook look like?

Well, she hasn't posted it yet so I can't share the real thing. But a templated version looks like so:

You know what’s worse than a [company/persona] doing [thing everyone knows is stupid]? [Company/persona] who claim to be [doing things the right way], but give their [employees/team] zero [guidance/resources] to help them do [the thing the right way.]

When you break it down, the hook says:

1. [Company/persona] is doing everything wrong
2. But you know what's even worse than the [Company/persona] who does things wrong?
3. The [Company/persona] who claims to do things right, but puts zero effort into following through so it's an empty promise

(You know, like every company who puts up a pride flag for pride month but does nothing to update their policies/actions. It's those vibes.)

There are a million ways to tap into emotions with hooks. The above is just one of them.

My point is:

Tapping into emotions is one of the strongest ways to build resonance with your audience. And the best way to do this is to feel the emotions yourself.

I started my writing career in 2017 as a freelance ghostwriter. The best ghostwriters learn how to take on the voice, tone, style, and POV of the people they're writing for.

But this is not simply a skill ghostwriters need to accumulate.

I'd argue the best writers of all stripes must be empathic active listeners.

You have to deeply understand and connect to:

• What your audience is going through
• Why they feel the way they do
• What got them to this point in their lives/careers
• What they dream of achieving
• What, exactly, would get them closer to this dream
• What pisses them off
• What lights them up
• What's holding them back
• What their inner critic says to them
• What limiting beliefs they have

Then, you need to mirror those emotions back to them in your writing.

Want to see some examples?

Here's a hook I wrote last year that taps into the "Ugh, LinkedIn drives me crazy and I need to complain about it" emotion:

"Just wanna say it’s ok to not love LinkedIn. But ignoring its potential because “people are annoying” or “everyone’s obsessed with themselves” is silly."

Here, I was tapping into emotions like:

• I hate LinkedIn sometimes
• People are the worst
• Egos are bloated
• The things people say are so fake
• I wish I could avoid people like this in the world
• Narcissists drive me insane
• I love building community, but, ugh it's hard
• All of the above makes me want to quit and spend less time here

Now, my motivation for writing about this is twofold:

1. I feel this way a lot of the time, and I see people rant about it often, so it's cathartic to speak about it
2. I don't believe in letting a few bad people or bad vibes ruin something potentially good

So, I carried on my post like so:

It's quite a motivational little thing. 50 words and 284 characters garnered 71 comments.

Some people agreed that the platform is what you make of it. Some expressed how annoyed they are and can't seem to get past it. Some saw this as an opportunity to change their perspective.

Either way, lots of people chimed in because it tapped into emotions while taking a bold stance.

I said, "I hear you, but don't let them win."

Let's look at another example:

Whoa. There's so much tension in this hook. The word YELLED in caps drives that point home.

I need to know what happened here.

When we click in, we see a story unfold. Chris (the author) was sharing a pivotal moment at the beginning of his career. One that clearly changed how he did things from that day forward.

The emotional hook works because it's likely a situation many sales reps or AE's have been in. But really, anyone with a tough manager can relate.

The unspoken theme here is that as much as this guy was acting like an a$$, Chris took the feedback and grew from it, which is powerful lesson for anyone new to a career.

A hook like, "I learned a powerful lesson from some bad feedback early in my career" wouldn't have hit the same way.

If you aren't already, I urge you to practice empathic active listening with your clients, peers, colleagues, and yourself.

Try to tap into the emotions in the room.

Jot them down, then write in a way that mirrors them back.

This is how you become an emotional magnet.

And once you're there, reader's can't help but resonate with your content because they feel themselves in it.

I teach principles like this in my Hooked on Writing Hooks course. The course walks you through the 6 ways you can tap into emotions, how to make sure your writing is specific, the 10 most common content formats and how to write hooks for them, and tons more.

It's also AI-powered, so you can use the bots AI genius Rob Lennon created to help you craft engaging hooks.

Like my new friend, who sent me this message on Friday about how he uses the bots every day at his company to write strong openers for emails, documents, and posts.

Cheers,

Erica

Check out my 3 courses that 1700+ people have taken, loved, and gotten meaningful results from:

1. Long to Short: Turn one long-form piece into a month's worth of posts. A step-by-step system to repurpose, remix, and remaster your best ideas.

2. Hooked on Writing Hooks: Turn your ideas into content that actually gets consumed. Learn to write scroll-stopping hooks on social without resorting to clickbait nonsense that feels inauthentic.

3. Content Editing 101. Kill decision fatigue and build confidence as a writer and editor. A look inside a professional editor's workflow & best practices. Packed with lessons, examples, and a roadmap so you can stop second-guessing your writing & editing decisions.

Each course is AI-powered 🪄

You can go through them manually or use AI to play, get it done faster, and test your new skills in real time. My friend & prompt genius Rob Lennon wrote all the prompts and bots for the courses.

Want to work with me 1:1?

Check out my Content Sparring 🥊 offer: It's for seasoned solopreneurs who feel like they've hit a content plateau and want an experienced editor to ping-pong ideas and content with so you can get back to getting the results you crave.

What'd you think of today's email? Reply and let me know.

Erica Schneider

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