Routinely writing about the same topic, category, or concept gets boring fast.
To keep your content fresh and engaging for readers, you need to incorporate content hooks that catch your readers’ attention and reel them in. We can call these “connection hooks”, because they’re ways to connect a concept to something else readers care about.
The next time you’re brainstorming an article idea, try building connections with your concept through one, or more, of these content connection hooks.
To help you see how these hooks work, I’ve included examples of how Be a Freelance Blogger uses them to connect you, the reader, with the concept of blog writing.
1: The Educational Hook
The educational hook connects a concept with the mind.
This is the most widely used content connection hook as many bloggers post and write detailed, educational articles that answer a question, solve a problem, or explain a complicated concept.
These posts are how-to articles, step-by-step guides, and detailed explanations.
Be a Freelance Blogger example: Accounting and Taxes: A Freelance Blogger’s Cheat Sheet
2: The Topical Hook
The topical hook connects a concept with the news.
Don’t confuse topical hooks with news spinning. This isn’t a retelling of a new story; rather it is a way to tie a news story or trend to a concept by showing an interesting relationship between the two.
Readers love these types of posts because it makes the concept feel current and fresh. It is also eye-catching because it ties in attention-grabbing buzzwords and stories.
Be a Freelance Blogger example: Freelance Blogging Insights from the K-Pop Invasion
3: The Fresh Spin Hook
The fresh spin hook connects a concept with a normally unrelated concept.
Fresh spin hooks are a type of metaphor. You can explain concepts by comparing or relating them to another concept. This is great when trying to explain concepts that eople have trouble understanding.
Audiences enjoy fresh spins on concepts because reading about the same topic, in the same way, over and over is redundant and boring. This spin helps show an old idea in a fresh, unique, and interesting way.
Be a Freelance Blogger example: The Jedi’s Guide to Conquering Your Freelance Blogging Fears
4: The Self-Interest Hook
The self-interest hook connects a concept with the reader’s personal identity.
Readers love content they can identify with. One way to help your readers see themselves in a piece of content is by directly speaking to or calling out a certain group or type of person.
These posts are often titled something similar to “Which Type of [Blank] Are You?” or “8 Signs You Are a [Blank].” They are often also the types of posts that readers wants to share because when they read it, they think to themselves, “this is so me.”
Be a Freelance Blogger example: What Your Freelance Blogging Portfolio Says About You: How Clients Decide Who to Hire
5: The True Story Hook
The true story hooks connects concepts with real life anecdotes.
Storytelling is a sure-fire way to connect with readers since audiences love to hear first person perspectives on situations and see real life examples of success… and failures.
The true story hook could be a story about an experience, or an actual case study backed by facts, quotes, statistics, and results.
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6: The Curation Hook
The curation hook connects concepts with a selection of related concepts.
Curation is the act of collecting data or resources and then displaying or housing them in the same place for easy reference.
Curation posts are great because readers will revisit the post over and over to grab the resources that they need.
Be a Freelance Blogger example: 52 Totally Free Resources for Freelance Bloggers
Now that you have a list of ways to connect your concept to something else your readers enjoy, coming up with new ideas for your blog should be easy.
What other “content connection hooks” do you use in your content? Which of them do you use most?
Image: daniel jaeger
The fresh spin hook never fails! I’m sure Sophie knows what I mean
Pop culture hooks are awesome for blogging. If you pick the right cultural references, people know what you mean even if they don’t understand every word you say!
Great post Raubi. I really want to start practicing some of these.
I’m glad you guys are finding these hooks useful! I know when I’m trying to brainstorm, I start by picking a general topic. Then I figure out how one of these hooks can take it a step further. It really helps me and I hope it helps you as well!
Thanks for including my post! Nice to see I’ve got the “hook”!
Then you are a natural Willi!
Super smart post!
Thanks for the comment Jake!
Hi Raubi
These are really great ideas. I have a question about curation posts. How does this work in terms of copyright? Do you need permission of the owner of the resources if you are just publishing a link with a description about it?
Thanks
Carol
Hi Carol, If I am understanding your question correctly, no you don’t need permission from an author or publisher if you want to link to their content.
In fact, it’s a great thing for the author or publisher because the link sends good signals to Google and also helps promote the content and increase its exposure.
Now coping and pasting text (that isn’t quoted in your article), that is a big no-no.
Let me know if that didn’t fully answer your question.
Raubi
Hi Raubi
Thanks for clearing that up. When you are linking to a blog article does it matter is you use the blog post title or your own words?
Thanks
Carol
You can link however you like. There are some best practices for linking. I recommend this post that is full of tips: http://community.copypress.com/how-to-add-value-to-your-content-with-resource-links/
Thanks Raubi. I’II check that out.
As a newbie to freelance writing I really appreciate your informative tips. I will put them to good use.