The Hawke Method
Move customers through awareness, nurturing, and trust
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 99%
The Hawke Method organizes marketing around three connected pillars: awareness, nurturing, and trust. Awareness introduces the company to potential customers who did not know it existed. Nurturing covers what happens after that introduction, both before conversion and after purchase, so customers have reasons to buy and return. Trust addresses the buyer's willingness to believe the company, with the required level varying by category. In high-trust fields such as financial services, Huberman points to third-party validation, content, PR, influencer marketing, testimonials, reviews, and strong branding. The mechanism is sequential but mutually reinforcing: generate attention, guide the relationship toward action and repeat action, and remove credibility barriers that would otherwise stop the purchase.
Origin
Huberman says he distilled ten years of marketing work for thousands of brands into modern marketing fundamentals in The Hawke Method.
Core principles
- 01Customers cannot buy from a company they do not know exists
- 02An introduction needs nurturing before it converts
- 03Post-purchase nurturing supports repeat business
- 04Trust requirements vary by category
How to run it
- 1
Build awareness
Identify how the company will reach potential customers who do not yet know it exists. Choose channels that create a genuine first introduction.
Pro tip Describe the first contact from the customer's perspective, not by channel name alone.
Watch out Attention without a follow-up path produces only a temporary bump.
- 2
Design nurturing
Plan what happens between the first introduction and conversion. Continue the relationship after purchase so customers have a reason to return.
Pro tip Map pre-purchase and post-purchase nurturing separately.
Watch out Do not treat the first conversion as the end of marketing.
- 3
Establish trust
Determine how much reassurance the category demands, then supply credible evidence. Use the forms of validation appropriate to the buyer's perceived risk.
Pro tip For high-trust categories, combine owned explanations with third-party proof.
Watch out People do not buy from a company they do not inherently trust.
- 4
Review the whole journey
Check whether awareness, nurturing, and trust support one another rather than operating as isolated activities. Repair the weakest pillar before simply buying more reach.
Pro tip Follow one real customer path from discovery through repeat purchase.
Watch out More awareness cannot compensate for a broken conversion or trust path.
In the wild
When asked about financial services, Huberman says the category requires substantial trust. He recommends building that trust through third-party validation, content, PR, influencer marketing, testimonials, reviews, and good branding, alongside awareness and nurturing work.
→ The marketing plan addresses the credibility barrier instead of relying on brand exposure alone.
Common mistakes
Stopping at awareness
A first introduction does not explain how the prospect will convert or why the customer will return.
Treating trust as universal
Different purchases require different levels and forms of reassurance, so the same proof mix will not fit every category.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for companies that need a complete customer journey rather than a single-channel campaign.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal for diagnosing a narrow execution problem without first understanding the wider journey.
From the transcript
“the hawk method the three pillars of marketing awareness nurturing and trust”
“awareness how do you introduce your company to new potential customer that didn't know you exist”
“people don't buy from a company they don't inherently trust and different companies require different levels of trust”
From the episode
Dominating the Marketing Industry ft. Erik Huberman
Erik Huberman