hooked-ux

Map your product through the four Hook Model phases: identify the internal emotional trigger, make the core action dead simple, deliver a variable reward across tribe, hunt, or self types, and prompt investment that loads the next trigger. Score each phase to find weak points.

Apply the 5% rule: a habit exists when at least 5% of active users show unprompted, frequent usage. Identify habitual users through cohort analysis, map their Habit Path of key actions, and interview them to find the internal trigger driving use.

External triggers are environmental cues like notifications and emails that tell users what to do. Internal triggers are emotions like boredom, loneliness, or FOMO that prompt unprompted usage. The goal is migrating users from external to internal triggers within about 30 days.

Avoid it when the product does not genuinely improve lives, targets vulnerable populations like children or addiction-prone users, depends on user regret for revenue, or when engagement conflicts with user wellbeing. The Manipulation Matrix flags these as Dealer territory.

Predictable rewards cause dopamine habituation, so engagement drops once novelty fades. Fix this by adding variability across tribe, hunt, and self reward types, and ensure investment loads the next trigger so each cycle strengthens the loop.