Professional Documents
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Nir Eyal
Source: runningastartup.tumblr.com
Some prerequisites
1. A vision
2. A moral compass
3. A business model
4. A process
What do we build?
My goal
If your business model requires regular, unprompted user engagement ... ... this is a design patterns to help you form better product hypotheses ... ... to increase odds of success.
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Me
Patterns
NirAndFar.com
OMG businesses
Vitamins or painkillers?
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Selling painkillers
Selling vitamins
- Emotional need, not e"cacy - Makes me feel good knowing... - Unknown market
Vitamins or painkillers?
Habit-forming technology
Pleasure seeking Pain alleviation
Vitamin
Painkiller
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
hab it
/habit/ Noun, Def: An behavior that occurs nearly or completely without cognition.
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
ad dic tion
/dikSHn/ Noun, Def: A persistent, compulsive dependence on a behavior or substance.
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
the hook
/TH hook/ Noun, Def: An experience designed to connect a solution to the users problem with enough frequency to form a habit.
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Hooks
Low engagement High engagement
The Hook
Remember: ATARI
A - A hook has 4 parts: T - Trigger A - Action R - Reward I - Investment
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
In summary
Habits generate unprompted
and frequency. engagement (the itch) and user preference.
Your turn
Does your business model require
habits? Why? engage? solve?
How frequently do you expect users to What problem are they coming to
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Triggers
Triggers
External Alarms Calls-to-action Emails Stores Authority
What to do next is in the trigger
Example: Pharma
External Internal
Instagram triggers
Instagram triggers
External Internal
- FB and Twitter - Fear of loosing - App noti!cations the moment - App icon - Bored, lonesome, fear of missing out
Notice proximity
In summary
Triggers are the !rst step of the hook. The designer informs what to do next
through external triggers. through internal triggers. triggers.
The user informs what to do next Emotions provide frequent internal Get external trigger as close as
possible to the internal trigger.
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Your turn
Refer to the problem (you think) users
are solving with your product.
Build a narrative
Pick the most frequent internal trigger. Who is the user? What are they doing right before
they use your product?
Hypotheses homework
Is your narrative really happening? If not, why? Get out of the building. - Stephen Blank
Actions
mo ti va tion
/mt vSHn/ Noun, Def: The psychological feature that arouses an organism to action.
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Motivators of Behavior
Sensation Anticipation Social Cohesion Seek: Pleasure Hope Acceptance Avoid: Pain Fear Rejection
motivation
a bil i ty
/bilit/ Noun, Def: The capacity to do.
ability
Factors of ability
Time Money Physical effort Brain cycles Social deviance Non-routine
ability
Cross-functional teams
motivation = marketing
ability = product
triggers
ability
Factors of ability
Time Money Physical effort Brain cycles Social deviance Non-routine
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Twitter homepage
2009
Twitter homepage
2010
Twitter homepage
2012
Evolution of Twitter
2009 2010
2012
In summary
Action is the second step of the hook. The action is the simplest behavior the user can do before getting rewarded. To increase behavior:
Ensure a clear trigger is present. Increase ability by making it easier. Align with the right motivator.
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Your turn
Map the steps users take to solve their
problem with your product.
Start with o&-line internal trigger... ... through your interface ... ... to the reward, the point where the
problem is alleviated a bit.
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Am I bored anymore? If not, thats the reward. Reward = see interesting questions
Time, money, physical e&ort, brain cycles (too confusing), social deviance (too outside the norm) or non-routine (too new)
For homework
Does your messaging align with your users motivator? Seek: Pleasure Hope Acceptance Avoid: Pain Fear Rejection
Variable rewards
Compulsion to
Dopamine system
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Variable rewards
the Tribe the Hunt the Self
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
the Self
Rewards decay
As rewards become predictable, they
become less novel
Finite Variability
- Single-player games - Consumption of media - Finishing a race
In!nite Variability
- Multi-player games - Creation of content - Communities - Running for pleasure or competition
Gut check
Does the reward have an in!nitely
variable component? meaningful?
Is the reward authentic and Does it satisfy the internal trigger, the
problem the user came to solve?
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
In summary
Variable reward is the third step of the hook. Levers for variability include:
Reward type (Tribe, Hunt, Self) Frequency (how often) Amplitude (how high or low the valence of emotional response)
Authentic, in!nitely variable, and provides a solution to users problem. NIR EYAL
NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Your turn
Take a look at your user 'ow. Does your reward o&er something that keeps the user looking for more? Brainstorm 3 ways you could add variability to the reward. Consider the search for rewards of the:
Tribe (rewards conferred by others) Hunt (rewards of resources) Self (rewards of personal mastery, control, purpose)
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Investments
Investment
Where user does a bit of work. Pays with something of value: time, money, social capital, e&ort, emotional commitment, personal data ...
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Loading the next trigger Storing value Increase preference Improving the service
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Pinterest (consumer)
T
Facebook, Twitter, WOM
A
Scroll
Boredom, curiosity, mental fatigue
I
Join Objects of desire (Hunt)
VR
Pinterest (curator)
T
Email noti!cation
A
Log-in
Lonesome, seeking connection ...
I
Pin, Re-Pin, Like, Comment
VR
Communication (Tribe)
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Storing value
Data
Storing value
Followers
Storing value
Reputation
Storing value
Content
Increasing preference
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Labor is love
Jesse Schell, Professor of Game Design, NIR EYAL Carnegie Mellon University
NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Preference cycle
Investment: Should I spend on this? Con!rmation: Since I spent on it before, and I am not an idiot, it must be good. Rationalization: Only an idiot would have spent on something not good.
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Acquiring taste
Think of the !rst time you tried spicy food or alcohol. Acquiring taste follows similar patterns of rationalization to avoid cognitive dissonance. Change ourselves as we change our preferences. Im a ____ drinker.
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Creating preference
We overvalue the results of our labor
(endowment e&ect)
In summary
Investment is the fourth step of the hook. Small amounts of work to increase the likelihood of the user returning by:
Loading the next trigger Storing value Increasing preference Improving the service
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Your turn
Take a look at your user 'ow. Is your user asked to invest after or before the reward? Brainstorm 3 ways you could add small investments into the user experience to:
Load the next trigger Store value Increase preference Improve the service with use
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Email
T
Icon on phone Procrastinate, anxiety, thoughts of others.... Open unread messages
I
Write back Tribe, hunt and self
Facebook
T A
the hook
/TH hook/ Noun, Def: An experience designed to connect a solution to the users problem with enough frequency to form a habit.
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Action
3. What does the user have to do to receive the reward? How can it be made simpler?
Investment
5. What makes the user want to come back? Has the user put in a bit of work to increase the odds of returning?
Variable Reward
4. Whats the reward? Does it give the user what she wants? Does it maintain an element of surprise?
NIR EYAL NirAndFar.com @nireyal
Thank you!