Ways To Strengthen A Hook

• Measure the size of the claim

o “I AM 61 POUNDS LIGHTER...”
• Measure the speed of the claim
o “FEEL BETTER FAST”
o “IN 2 SECONDS”
• Compare the claim to it’s (unnamed) rival
o “SIX TIMES WHITER WASHES THAN THE LEADING COMPETITOR”
• Metaphorize the claim
o “MELTS AWAY UGLY FAT”
• Sensitize the claim by making the prospect feel, smell, touch, see or heart it
o “THE SKIN YOU LOVE TO TOUCH”
• Demonstrate the claim by showing a prime example
o “AT 60 MILES AN HOUR, THE LOUDEST NOISE IN THIS ROLLS ROYCE IS THE
ELECTRIC CLOCK!”
• Dramatize the claim, or its result
o “THEY LAUGHED WHEN I SAT DOWN AT THE PIANO-BUT WHEN I STARTED TO
PLAY...”
• Remove limitations from the claim
o “SHRINKS HEMORRHOIDS WITHOUT SURGERY!”
• Associate the claim with values/people with whom the prospect wished to be identified
o “9 OUT OF 10 DECORATORS USE WUNDAWEVE CARPETS FOR LONG LIFE AT LOW
COST!”
• Show how much work, in detail, the claim does
o “RELIEVES CONGESTION IN ALL 7 NASAL PASSAGES INSTANTLY”
• State the claim as a question
o “WHO ELSE WANTS A WHITER WASH - WITH NO HARD WORK?”
• Offer information about how to accomplish the claim
 o “HOW TO WIN FRIENDS AND INFLUENCE PEOPLE”
• Tie authority into the claim
o “BOSS MECHANIC SHOWS HOW TO AVOID ENGINE REPAIR BILLS!”
• Before-and-after the claim
o “BEFORE FACEBOOK ADS A BUSINESS HAD TO SPEND THOUSANDS ON
INEFFECTIVE COMMERCIALS. WITH FACEBOOK ADS A BUSINESS CAN GROW IN
THE MATTER OF 5 DAYS”
• Stress the newness of the claim
o “NOW! CHROME PLATE WITHOUT HEAT, ELECTRICITY, MACHINERY!”
• Stress the exclusivity of the claim
o “ONLY GLEEM HAS GL-70 TO KEEP TEETH CLEAN ALL DAY LONG WITH ONE
BRUSHING!”
• Turn the claim into a challenge for the reader
o “WHICH TWIN HAS THE TONI? AND WHICH HAS THE $15 PERMANENT”
• State the claim as a case-history quotation
o “WOULD YOU BELIEVE IT - I HAVE A COLD”
• Condense the claim - interchange your product and the product it replaces
o “NOW! A RING AND PISTON JOB IN A TUBE!”
• Startle the reader by contradicting the way they think the mechanism should work
o “HIT HELL OUT OF THE BALL WITH YOUR RIGHT HAND, SAYS TOMMY ARMOUR!”
• Connect the need and the claim in the headline
o “THERE IS ONLY ONE SOLUTION TO AN ADVERTISING PROBLEM: FIND THE MAN!”
• Offer information in the ad itself
o “WHY MEN CRACK..”
• Give a name to the problem or need
o “WHEN YOU’RE WEARY WITH DAY-TIME FATIGUE, TAKE ALKA-SELTZER.”
• Warn the reader about possible pitfalls if he doesn’t use the product
o “DON’T INVEST ONE CENT OF YOUR HARD-EARNED MONEY UNTIL YOU CHECK
THIS GUIDE!”
• State how easy the claim is to accomplish by imposing universally-overcome limitation
o “IF YOU CAN COUNT TO ELEVEN, YOU CAN INCREASE YOUR SPEED AND SKILL AT
NUMBERS!”
• State the difference in the headline
o “THE DIFFERENCE IN PREMIUM GASOLINES IS RIGHT IN THE ADDITIVES”
• Address the people who can’t buy your product
o “IF YOU’VE ALREADY TAKEN YOUR VACATION, DON’T READ THIS. IT’LL BREAK
YOUR HEART.”
• Address your prospect directly
o “TO THE MAN WHO WILL SETTLE FOR NOTHING LESS THAN THE PRESIDENCY OF
HIS FIRM.”
• Dramatize how hard it was to produce the claim
o “WHEN JENS FINISHED DESIGNING THIS CANDLE HOLDER WE HAD TO INVENT A
WHOLE NEW KIND OF CANDLE”
• Accuse the claim of being too good
o “IS IT IMMORAL TO MAKE MONEY THIS EASILY”
• Challenge the prospect’s present limiting beliefs
o “YOU ARE TWICE AS SMART AS YOU THINK”
• Turn the claim into a question and answer
o “YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT’S UNDER THE HOOD AND YOU COULDN’T CARE LESS
AS LONG AS YOUR CAR RUNS SMOOTHLY. WHO SHOULD YOU SEE IF IT DOESN’T?
... SOMEONE WHO CARES - UNITED DELCO”