Two BASIC WAYS to ENSURE PEOPLE WATCH YOUR VIDEO

Two BASIC WAYS to ENSURE PEOPLE WATCH YOUR VIDEO

These days, the hardest thing to do when creating video content is actually getting the viewer to watch the contents of the video. Brands, businesses and creators often find themselves wasting time, money and effort on creating a really cool video, only to see the viewer trip and leave at the first hurdle.

When you post a video, you measure its success by the view count within a very short amount of time.

376 Views.

In your head:
Low Views = Low Interest.

Damn.

We spent all that time making that video, and it flopped.

It must be that the video isn’t good enough.

Wrong.

The one consistent pattern across TikTok, Reels, Shorts and similar platforms is that the videos which perform well all have a strong hook. When someone is scrolling through short-form content platforms, they’re constantly presented with new opportunities to spend their time watching a video. When you're doom-scrolling, you’re switched off. That’s what makes it feel so good. But you're still constantly making a decision in response to one repeated question:

Should I watch this?

And you answer that question within the first three seconds of every video.

To me, those first three seconds are everything. It doesn’t matter what’s in the rest of your video. If your opening isn’t strong, people will be answering “no” to that question, again and again.

But if it is strong, people will choose to spend more of their precious time watching your video.

So, how do I create a good hook?

If you think I’m just going to give you a framework to create hooks, you’re wrong.
Honestly, I wouldn’t even know what to say.

But here are two basic techniques to help you create a great hook:

1. Make a Statement

By this, I mean grabbing the viewer’s attention and making them think:
“Did I just hear or see that?”

People scroll for hours every day, and they see a lot of hooks. Out of 100 videos, they’ll swipe past 90 without a thought. But they’ll stop for those 10 that grab them.

Why? Because something caught their attention.

Say something people don’t hear often.
Do something unexpected.

Make your video stand out from the very first second.

2. Ask a Question

By far my favourite technique: ask a question straight away.

Videos that begin with questions always have an advantage.

Why?

“When individuals become aware of a gap in their knowledge, they experience an emotional response that motivates them to seek out the missing information.”
(Loewenstein, 1994)

I found this piece of research while preparing a university assignment, and it has stuck with me ever since. It actually motivated me to write this blog.

As soon as you ask a question within those first three seconds, the viewer is presented with a dilemma. That question creates a gap in their knowledge. Now, they must either watch the video to find out, or move on and live with that gap forever.

Most people don’t move on.
People don’t like not knowing.

By adding either of the above techniques to the beginning of your content, you can quickly increase the number of people who stick around.

Now you can decide if the day you spent creating that video was worth it.
Don’t let the first 3 seconds ruin the following 30.

James Pearce