What Is a Sales Hook?
A sales hook is the same as a sales pitch. It’s a persuasive conversation starter that piques the interest of your prospects and leaves them wanting more.
Basic strategies for all sales hooks:
- Be concise — shorter pitches are more effective
- Use emotions; people respond to feelings
- Highlight how your product benefits the buyer
- Talk value, not price
- Include links to valuable resources like white papers
Tips to Make Great Sales Hooks
Tip #1 - Track Customer Touch Points
Develop your sales hook by understanding customer touchpoints. Consider where your customers spend time and which social media platforms they frequent.
Your hook should:
- Solve your customer’s problem
- Save them money
- Give reassurance that buying is the right choice
If your message is mediocre or derivative, you will just find yourself in the cursed burial ground of lousy email pitches known as the junk folder.
Email automation programs help reach segments across broader geographic areas with targeted messaging.
Tip #2 - Make a Memory with Your Hook
Advertising expert Al Ries identified five memorability techniques applicable to cold calls and email hooks:
- Rhyme — Example: “The best part of waking up is Folger’s in your cup”
- Alliteration — Example: “M&M’s melt in your mouth…not in your hands”
- Repetition — Example: “When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight”
- Reversal — Example: “It takes a tough man to make a tender chicken”
- Double-entendre — Example: “A diamond is forever”
If you have fun with your sales hook, you grab attention and signal you don’t take yourself too seriously.
Tip #3 - Ask Plenty of Questions
Most salespeople are pushing their products or services onto prospects, whereas if you ask great questions, you will let the prospect sell himself.
Five key questions:
- What are your challenges with regards to this issue?
- Can you give me examples of this challenge?
- Ballpark how much does this problem cost you?
- What would it mean if you could solve this challenge?
- What do you want to accomplish?
Questions matching pain points:
- Saving money
- Improving their bottom line
- Locating more customers
- Retaining consumers
Tip #4 - Create an Engaging Email Subject Line
Effective opening lines from HubSpot:
- “Is X a priority for you right now?”
- “I loved your post/tweet/blog on X”
- “Great insights at the Y Summit…”
- “I know you’re an expert in [Topic]. I thought of you when I saw X”
- “How do you know [shared connection]?”
- “I have an idea to address [pain point]”
These openers use questions, engage emotions, suggest commonalities, and add value.
Instead of stating your name and company, pull out your value proposition instead. This makes your email relevant to your prospect from the start.
Tip #5 - Tell a Story
In new relationships, stories are essential. The “Point, Story, Metaphor” formula helps:
- Point — State your lesson
- Story — Show positive or adverse consequences
- Metaphor — Demonstrate the Point from a different angle
Storytelling differentiates you from competition, makes you memorable, offers lessons, and emotionally impacts customers.
Concepts your hook can appeal to: security, advancement, love, friendship, health, beauty, growth, efficiency, power, readiness.
Decision-making statistics:
- 60% rely on word-of-mouth and social media
- 49% rely on customer references
- 47% on analyst reports
- 44% on media articles
According to a Baylor University study, experienced salespeople can expect to spend 7.5 hours of cold calling to get ONE qualified appointment.
Tip #6 - Make a Promise
Create sales hooks that are emotional, promise rewards, and are motivational. Use sweet, simple, whimsical, and punchy messages. A contrarian approach can grab attention by standing out from constant marketing bombardment.
Better Sales Hooks for More Sales
Key takeaways:
- Use questions
- Do your research
- Be concise
- Use emotions
- Trigger curiosity
Well-crafted sales hooks help open doors, build relationships, garner new customers, and close sales. Investing time creates confidence for phone calls, readable emails, and pathways to sales success.
