Power Words: 150+ Words to Drive More Clicks and Conversions on Social Media

A single word or phrase can change the trajectory of your social media posts’ performance. Power words can increase your conversions, engagement, and click-through rates.

They aren’t magic pills, but they can convert the same-old social media copy to strong, sticky, and persuasive posts.

In this article, I’ll explain how power words work and how you can sprinkle them into your social media content. I’ve also created and categorized a list of 150+ power words you can use.

What are power words?

Power words are words or phrases that evoke an emotional response in your audience. They make your copywriting more compelling and help hold the reader’s attention.

Knowingly or unknowingly, you’ve seen and been affected by power words. They’re like water, adaptable to every vessel:

• Content marketing (blog headlines, sales pages, newsletter homepage, webinars)
• E-commerce (product descriptions, sale announcement popups, landing pages)
• Email marketing (in email subject lines to improve open rates)

… And so much more.

In this article, we’ll tackle how to use power words on social media to help you grow your following and, if need be, convert your audience to customers.

How do power words work?

Power words are words or phrases designed to grab the reader’s attention. Despite being a few syllables, they can make a huge difference in your content performance.

Most power words play on the psychology of the human brain — that’s why power words are mostly words or phrases that would make your target audience pause and take notice.

But it’s important to remember that power words aren’t the be-all-end-all to get more engagement or clicks. They work in tandem with your expertise, consistency, content quality, and social media algorithms.

It’s not enough to use power words if your goal is to get more eyeballs on your content. Power words are just one part of the whole strategy.

Think of power words as an accessory. Just like a belt can add an extra oomph to a great outfit, power words can push your high-quality content to get more engagement. They aren’t a secret miracle cure, but they’re tiny, helpful nudges.

How to incorporate power words in your social media content

Where do you use power words on social media sites?

The most important place to use power words is in your hooks — whether they’re visual or in the caption. For example, you can use power words in your Instagram caption (the obvious choice), but you can also use them in the transcript of your videos to instantly grab the attention of your target audience.

Apart from hooks, you can sprinkle power words wherever they fit organically. They perk up your audience’s ears, so don’t be afraid to use them generously.

The only caution you should exercise is not stuffing power words in your social media content just because they’re effective. The power of power words relies on their organic fitting — no one should be able to point and say, “oh they’ve used a power word” (unless they’re a copywriter). Power words should fit like a glove wherever they’re placed — unnoticeable and natural.

Plus: Today’s audience is well-versed in PR speak. If you use a ton of power words where they clearly don’t belong, your followers will be able to spot it in a jiffy. And it’ll come across as spammy and untrustworthy.

Not to mention, using too many power words might cause you to overpromise and under-deliver. You want to do the opposite to keep your audience delighted.

If you’re planning to use power words in your social media marketing strategy:

1. First, write a rough draft of your social media copy (the caption and the video/carousel transcript)

2. Then, edit it and monitor where you can use some of the power words or power phrases from the list of power words below

3. Double-check if the power words you’ve mentioned fit naturally and don’t feel forced or salesy

After some practice, it’s likely that using power words will become an unconscious habit. That’s great! But always ensure that you aren’t using power words as clickbait. That can cause you to lose the trust of your audience, and despite its short-term rewards, it can have negative long-term consequences.

Below, I’ve split the 150+ power words into various categories depending on your social media content’s goals. Skip to the most relevant section for you and see the examples of how to use them to ensure you’re using the power words in the right context.

18 power words for when you’re providing customer service on social media

Using social media for customer service is now as commonplace as using Maps on your phone instead of a physical map. While you respond to customer queries, it’s important to disperse power words relevant to customer service to satisfy your customers.

Remember that customers might not always tag you in the queries or complaints they share. Use social listening to stay on top of all customer mentions of your brand on social media.

Psychology principle(s) at play

Customer service power words often play at the reciprocity principle. When you do something kind for your buyers (like helping them politely), they feel compelled to return the favor — maybe by giving you a five-star rating or purchasing from you.

Example

Telecom company Jiocare responded to a customer query using multiple power words in a post on X (formerly Twitter). Many companies also often use the “apologize” power word — a synonym of “sorry” — at the beginning of a customer conversation.

19 power words for leveraging the curiosity gap

The curiosity gap is when you give a sneak peek to your audience on the hook so that they stay for more. Curiosity power words tweak your boring marketing copy to be more interesting. Use the following curiosity power words to turbocharge your copy.

Psychology principle(s) at play

Curiosity gap is a psychological hack in itself. People itch to close the gap between information given and information withheld. Social media posts leveraging the curiosity gap will earn more clicks because your audience would want to know more.

Example

A great example of curiosity gap is an Instagram Reel by French creator and biochemist, Jessie Inchauspé, on why she doesn’t drink juice.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jessie Inchauspé (@glucosegoddess)

The above post uses “controversial” as the power word, but her statement stands on its own, too.

It’s a great example of how you don’t always need power words to follow the principle that power words stand on. “Why I don’t drink juice” would immediately entice a question, “What? Why? I thought it’s good for us!” from the audience — a classic example of curiosity gap in action.

34 power words for stopping the scroll

Stopping the scroll is the most essential aspect of social media. People have millions of posts on their feeds, and the only way to get some eyeballs to your content is to stop the scroll.

The crucial aspect of using these types of power words is to avoid using misleading headings that don’t quench the curiosity of your potential customers.

Psychology principle(s) at play

Many stop-the-scroll power words use the curiosity gap to entice your audience to click. For example, writing “what no one tells you” makes your followers tingle to know more.

Other power words in this category also rely on negativity bias — negative information is more likely to catch people’s attention than positive information. So, when you use words like, “you’re vulnerable to ABC,” your audience immediately pauses and checks what you’re talking about.

Lastly, some scroll-stopping power words use the mere urgency effect and the scarcity principle. Your audience is more tempted to act quickly when there’s a time limit. For example, saying “sale only for 24 hours” makes your audience act fast because there’s a deadline they don’t want to miss. 

Example

Clothing brand Pink LilyThe best performance in this category of power words is when you’re running a sale, offering a free product, or having a limited-time used a couple of power words (“limited edition,” “hurry,” and “selling out fast”) from this category to announce their latest product collection in collaboration with an influencer.

The best performance in this category of power words is when you’re running a sale, offering a free product, or having a limited-time deal. Since these actions require immediate action, they’re likely to get high engagement.

43 power words for emotional resonance

Emotional power words encompass lust power words, greed power words, and fear power words. Anything that strikes an emotional chord with your target audience is bound to create a powerful effect.

However, emotional power words (especially greed power words and fear power words) can often come across as negative or salesy. It’s critical to maintain a balance and use them in the right context — to help your audience, not use their emotions against them. If you choose the clickbaity route, you won’t build trust with your followers.

Psychology principle(s) at play

Emotional power words primarily work because humans love stories. Since these words often call you to share a personal story about yourself, people get intrigued and want to learn more.

Some emotional power words also play on regret aversion and loss aversion: People want to avoid having regrets in the future. If you use emotional words like “regret” or “mistake,” your followers will engage because they want to avoid errors and pain.

Example

Remi Idowu shared a “guilt-free” dessert recipe with her target audience that fits the example of using emotionally charged power words.

You don’t necessarily need to use power words to entice emotions from your target audience, though. Think of the emotion you want to tap into and create content around it.

19 power words for gaining your audience’s trust

Building trust with your audience is arguably the most important factor in converting lingering potential customers to loyal fans. Persuasive words, testimonials, case studies, and other forms of social proof can help you build trust among your followers and ultimately boost conversion rates.

Psychology principle(s) at play

The power words in this category mainly rely on credibility research, social proof, and authority bias.

In all three concepts, the idea is that your audience doesn’t want to do the legwork of trying a product themselves and forming an opinion. It requires too much time, resources, and energy. So, they rely on shortcuts — like reading data-backed evidence that your product works, scanning reviews, or seeing the credibility of your influencer partner.

Example

Carolina Clare has an excellent example of using a “money-back guarantee” in her TikTok video.

She also shares a time-bound discount code that makes the post all the more powerful.

26 power words for helping your audience

Educational content is big on all social media platforms. It’s one of those evergreen types of content that’ll generate traffic for years on end. The use of power words can only enhance the reach of such content and boost conversions. 

Psychology principle(s) at play

Part of “helping your audience power words” is using the reciprocity principle, like you do in customer service. You want your audience to feel compelled to return the favor by liking your post, commenting, or even buying from your store.

But these power words also hinge on the fact that everyone’s a cognitive miser. Everyone in your follower list wants quick, easy, painless, and instant solutions to their problems. When you offer this to them, you appeal to their human tendency and make their life more easy & convenient — thus, they engage with your content. 

Example

A YouTube short by beauty brand Sally Beauty is an excellent example of using the word “how-to” in your social media posts.

Straightforward guides for educational content are best for attracting audiences. Plus: Using power words in these types of posts is relatively easier and more natural.

Pair power words with a wholesome social media strategy

The right words can make an impact. But they need the support of stunning visuals, high-quality content, consistency, and a clear call-to-action (CTAs) to give you the most bang for your buck.

You can’t optimize your copy for maximum conversions just by using power words. If your call to action is unclear, for example, it’s unlikely your post will perform well. Keep power words in your back pocket, but don’t let them be your only strategy for improving your social copy.