LinkedIn hook generator

Create compelling opening lines that stop the scroll and make people click "see more" on your LinkedIn posts. A strong hook is the single biggest factor in whether your post gets read or ignored. This free tool analyzes your post content and generates multiple hook variations so you can pick the one that fits your voice and audience best.

Why your hook matters

On LinkedIn, only the first ~210 characters of your post are visible before the "see more" button. This tiny window determines whether someone reads your post or scrolls past it. According to LinkedIn creator data, posts with strong opening lines receive up to 3x more impressions than posts with weak or generic openings.

The math is simple:

• Bad hook = no clicks = no engagement = algorithm buries your post
• Great hook = more clicks = more engagement = algorithm promotes your post

Think of your hook as the headline of a newspaper article. Nobody reads the article unless the headline grabs them first. The same principle applies to every LinkedIn post you publish.

How to use this tool

1. Write your LinkedIn post as you normally would
2. Paste the full post content in the text area above
3. Click "Generate Hooks" to get 5 different opening variations
4. Copy your favorite and use it as the start of your post
5. Test different styles to see what resonates with your audience

The generator creates hooks in various styles -- open loops, contrarian takes, data-driven openers, and more -- so you always have options to choose from.

Hook techniques that work

The Open Loop

Start a story but don't finish it. The reader must click to get closure.

"I lost my biggest client last Tuesday. But it turned out to be the best thing that happened to my business..."

The Contrarian Take

Challenge something people believe. Disagreement creates engagement.

"Unpopular opinion: Working 60-hour weeks won't make you successful. Here's what will..."

The Specific Number

Concrete numbers feel credible and promise actionable content.

"I analyzed 500 LinkedIn posts. Only 3% followed this pattern. Here's what they did differently..."

The Pattern Interrupt

Say something unexpected that breaks the usual LinkedIn noise.

"I turned down a promotion yesterday. My manager thought I was crazy..."

The Direct Problem

Call out a pain point your reader is experiencing right now.

"You're posting consistently but getting 15 likes per post. I was stuck there too..."

Hook performance by type

Not all hook styles perform equally. Based on patterns observed across thousands of high-performing LinkedIn posts, here is how different hook types tend to rank in terms of engagement:

1. Open loops with personal stories -- These consistently outperform other formats. Posts that start with a real, specific moment ("Last Thursday at 2pm, my phone buzzed...") generate the highest click-through rates because people are wired to finish incomplete narratives.
2. Data-driven hooks with specific numbers -- Posts that lead with a concrete statistic or number ("I sent 247 cold emails. Here are the results.") perform well because they signal that the post contains real, actionable insights rather than vague opinions.
3. Contrarian takes -- These are high-risk, high-reward. A well-targeted contrarian hook can generate massive engagement through comments (both agreement and disagreement). However, they can also attract negative attention if the take feels forced or uninformed.
4. Direct problem statements -- Calling out a specific pain point works well when your audience is clearly defined. These hooks perform best in niche communities where readers immediately recognize themselves in the problem.
5. Question-based hooks -- Starting with a question ("Have you ever been in a meeting where nobody speaks?") can work, but they tend to underperform compared to statements. Questions put the reader in a passive position, while statements pull them into the content.

The key takeaway: hooks that feel specific, personal, and unfinished tend to win. Generic or abstract openings lose every time.

Hooks to avoid

Knowing what does not work is just as important as knowing what does. Here are specific hook patterns that consistently underperform on LinkedIn:

• The vague teaser: "Something interesting happened to me today." -- This gives the reader zero reason to care. There is no specificity, no stakes, no tension.
• The humble brag disguised as a lesson: "I just hit 100K followers. Here's what I learned." -- Most readers scroll past this because it feels self-congratulatory rather than useful to them.
• The overused template: "Stop doing X. Start doing Y." -- This format has been copied so many times on LinkedIn that it has become invisible. Readers have pattern-matched it and skip it automatically.
• The all-caps shout: "THIS CHANGED MY LIFE." -- All caps feels desperate and spammy. It signals low-quality content.
• The fake vulnerability: "I was fired. (Just kidding, but here's why that fear drives me.)" -- Bait-and-switch hooks destroy trust. If people feel tricked, they will not engage with your future posts.
• The salesy pitch: "Want to 10X your revenue in 30 days?" -- LinkedIn is not a landing page. Pitchy hooks get ignored or flagged.
• The generic motivational opener: "Success is not a destination, it's a journey." -- Cliches communicate nothing. They tell the reader that what follows will also be generic.

If your hook could apply to anyone writing about anything, it is too vague. The best hooks are so specific that only your target audience would find them interesting.

How hooks affect the LinkedIn algorithm

The LinkedIn algorithm does not just count likes. It measures a concept called "dwell time" -- how long someone spends looking at your post. Here is how your hook directly influences the algorithm's decision to promote or suppress your content:

The first 30-60 minutes are critical. When you publish a post, LinkedIn shows it to a small sample of your network (roughly 5-10% of your followers). The algorithm watches what happens:

• Click-through rate on "see more" -- If a high percentage of people who see your post click to expand it, the algorithm treats this as a strong signal that the content is worth distributing further.
• Dwell time after clicking -- People clicking "see more" and then immediately scrolling away is a negative signal. But if they read the full post, that tells the algorithm the content delivered on the hook's promise.
• Early engagement velocity -- Comments and reactions within the first hour matter more than engagement that comes later. A great hook drives faster engagement because more people actually read the post and feel compelled to respond.

In practical terms, your hook controls the top of this funnel. If nobody clicks "see more," the algorithm never gets a chance to measure dwell time, comments, or shares. Your post simply dies in the first hour.

This is also why clickbait hooks backfire in the long run. If people click but immediately bounce because the content does not match the promise, the algorithm detects the low dwell time and penalizes distribution.

Tips for better hooks

1. Write the hook last: Finish your post first, then craft the perfect opening
2. Test variations: What works for others might not work for your audience
3. Match hook to content: Don't promise something your post doesn't deliver
4. Keep it authentic: The best hooks sound like you, not like marketing copy
5. Read it out loud: If it sounds awkward, rewrite it
6. Study what stops your own scroll: Pay attention to hooks that make you click "see more" on other people's posts and reverse-engineer the technique
7. Save a swipe file: Keep a running list of hooks that caught your attention so you can adapt the structure for your own topics

Related tools

Once you have a great hook, you need the rest of your post to deliver. These tools can help:

• LinkedIn Post Formatter -- Format the rest of your post with bold text, line breaks, and special characters that make your content scannable and professional.
• LinkedIn Post Beautifier -- Turn your best-performing posts into shareable images for repurposing across other platforms.
• LinkedIn Headline Generator -- Optimize your profile headline so that when people click on your name after reading your post, your profile converts them into a follower or connection.