Hook-Help-Ask LinkedIn DM Formula
Earn the right to ask by targeting well and helping first
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 6
- Confidence
- 98%
The Hook-Help-Ask LinkedIn DM Formula starts before the first message. Choose a target subcommunity and locate prospects by stable attributes, such as role or company, or by recent triggers, such as engaging with a relevant post or attending an event. The discovery method often supplies genuine common ground. For second- or third-degree prospects, use that relevance in a personalized connection note; first-degree prospects can move directly to a message. Hook with the reason for reaching out, then help through useful content, lead magnets, feedback, or invitations. Keep the exchange alive with questions instead of trying to close immediately. Only after building credibility and social currency should the seller make the ask, usually moving a higher-ticket sale to a call or webinar.
Origin
Hala Taha combines her LinkedIn prospecting process with Ryan Serhant's instruction to hook, help, and then make the ask.
Core principles
- 01Relevant targeting makes outreach feel earned
- 02Shared interest creates trust
- 03Help precedes the ask
- 04DMs should continue conversations
- 05High-ticket sales usually close off-platform
How to run it
- 1
Define the target
Choose a narrow group inside the broader market that is specific enough to search and personalize around.
Pro tip Use audience criteria that passed the market test.
- 2
Choose attributes or triggers
Search stable profile traits or recent behaviors. Triggers identify people currently active around the topic.
Pro tip Posts, polls, and events can reveal timely intent.
Watch out Attributes do not prove activity.
- 3
Establish common ground
Identify a truthful shared interest, identity, experience, or recent action that explains why the connection makes sense.
Pro tip The discovery path often supplies the relevance point.
Watch out Do not manufacture familiarity.
- 4
Hook with relevance
Open with the common ground, useful context, novelty, or curiosity and make the reason for reaching out clear.
Pro tip Use tentative language with strangers.
Watch out Overconfident claims invite rejection.
- 5
Help and invite response
Offer genuinely useful content, then ask for feedback or a reaction. Continue helping while trust develops.
Pro tip End with a simple feedback request.
Watch out Do not disguise a pitch as help.
- 6
Make the ask
When credibility exists, invite the prospect to the next commercial step and move high-ticket decisions to a richer setting.
Pro tip Match the ask to the trust built.
Watch out Asking too early resets the exchange to a cold pitch.
In the wild
A seller finds people registered for a relevant LinkedIn event. The invitation mentions the event, the first DM offers a guide and asks for feedback, and a later exchange invites the prospect to a discovery call.
→ Recent behavior supplies an active audience and authentic opening.
A speaker searches Fortune 500 employees for event-planner roles and personalizes outreach around their work instead of sending an untargeted speaking pitch.
→ Attribute targeting creates a searchable prospect list.
Common mistakes
Selling in the first message
An immediate ask arrives before credibility or social currency exists.
Using attributes without activity
A profile match may never see the message when the prospect is inactive.
Closing high-ticket sales in DMs
DMs are better used to sustain engagement and move toward a richer conversation.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for service sellers who can identify prospects and provide useful help before pitching.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal for mass automation that cannot preserve truthful personalization and real help.
From the transcript
“you've got to hook help and then make the ask”
“I noticed that you work at the same company as or we both worked at the same company in the past”
“your goal is not necessarily to close them on the DMS your goal is to keep the conversation going”
From the episode
Crush Your Sales Goals in 2024, Presented by Pipedrive