The three-second arithmetic
On Facebook or Instagram, people drag with a finger, and each video gets about three seconds.
If nothing happens in those three seconds, the viewer goes. And once they have gone, nobody knows how good the other twelve seconds were.
So the job of an ad needs to be thought of in two parts: the first three seconds are to stop them, the rest is to explain.
Six kinds of hook
| Kind | How it starts | Good for |
| Question | Asks about the viewer's problem | A problem people notice themselves |
| Sudden stop | An unexpected line or scene | A known product that needs something new |
| Unboxing | A packet in the hand, opening begins | New products, gifts, fashion |
| Before and after | Two states side by side | Where the result can be seen |
| Price | Starts with the number | Where the price is the main benefit |
| Proof | How many bought or what result came | Where trust is the main barrier |
When the script is made, several hooks are given together, and you choose which one the video starts with. The rest stays the same.
And after the video is done, you can change just the hook cheaply and make another version, but only in a finished ad with a presenter, and not when it was recorded in your own voice.
This is the most useful side of this system: you can make two versions of the same video and see which start stops more people.
Which hook to choose
Three questions settle it.
Does the customer notice the problem themselves? If so, start with a question. If not, the question will sound empty.
Can the result be seen? If so, before and after. For cleaning things, beauty care and repair work, this is the strongest.
Is the price your main argument? If so, start with the price, and say the number in the first sentence. If you hide it, the viewer leaves.
If you are unsure, start with an unboxing. It works for almost every product, because people like to watch things being opened.
Eight formats
The hook decides the start, the format decides how the whole video moves along.
- UGC: an ordinary person holding it and talking, not like an ad
- Problem and solution: first the pain, then the product
- List of reasons: three reasons why one should take this
- Unboxing: what is inside, step by step
- Before and after: a comparison of two states
- Objection reply: an answer to the reason people do not buy
- Festival: in the setting of Eid or Puja
- Story: a short story of one customer
The objection reply is used least and works most. Because the person who is looking at your post but not buying has one particular barrier in their head: the price, doubt about quality, fear about delivery, or whether the size will fit.
If you answer that barrier by name, the people who had been thinking it over move.
On the festival format
In Bangladesh a big part of sales happens in a few periods, and in those periods the feed fills with the same kind of ads.
You can stand apart by doing two things:
Start earlier. What everyone does one week before Eid, you do three weeks before. Then you also have the delivery time in hand.
Say the occasion truthfully. Writing "Eid offer" and giving a discount, and writing "order by this date if you want delivery confirmed before Eid", are two different things. The second is useful information.
How to tell whether it is working
Three numbers, in this order.
How many got past three seconds. If it is low, the hook is weak. There is no point changing the rest of the video.
How many stayed to the end. If it is low, the middle is loose, or there is too much in one video.
How many tapped the link or sent a message. If it is low, the final request is not clear.
Each number puts a finger on a different problem, so you do not need to guess and rebuild the whole video.
What to do when a video works
This is the step most often left out.
When a video works, most people go on to make something new next time. But making another version of what worked is more profitable: the same message with a new hook, or the same hook in a new scene.
Because when people see the same video again and again, the result falls, but the message is still working. What has to change is the wrapping, not what is inside.
There is a box to note whether the video brought messages, and that answer helps when you choose the hook in the next script.
The whole job is shown step by step in the post on making reels, and what kind of video really works is in the post on UGC ads.
Questions and answers
Is the hook only the first sentence? The first sentence and the first scene, the two together. If the line is a question but nothing happens on the screen, the stopping job is half done. Many people watch without sound, so the first scene should say something too.
How many hooks should I make for one product? Start with two and run them for a week to see which gets more people past three seconds. If you run more than three at once, it becomes hard to tell which one worked and why.
Does starting with the price make it feel cheap? It depends on whether the price is your strength or your weakness. If the price is better than the competitors', it is the most honest hook. If the price is high, start with quality or proof instead of price.
How do I make the objection reply format? First write down why people do not buy. The question that comes most often in the inbox is usually the main objection. Make one video answering that one objection, not all objections in one.
When should I release a festival video? Earliest of all, that is two to three weeks ahead. Right before the festival the feed is crowded and ad costs go up, and you do not have delivery time in hand either.
How long can I run one video? As long as the numbers stay good. When the result starts to fall, it means the same people are seeing it again and again, and then you need another version with a new hook.
Does the story format work for a small shop? It does, if the story is true. What problem one customer had and what happened, that much is enough. A made-up story gets caught, and the damage when it is caught is bigger than the ad.
What do I show in the proof hook? What is true: how many bought, how long you have been selling, or a real word from one customer. Do not make up numbers, because that same number later works against you.
In short
- In the first three seconds the viewer decides to stay or go
- Six hooks: question, sudden stop, unboxing, before and after, price, proof
- The script gives several hooks, you choose, the rest stays the same
- Of the eight formats, the objection reply is used least and works most
- Release a festival video two to three weeks ahead
- Three numbers put a finger on different problems
- Make a new version of what worked, not a new product