The hook is the most expensive 3 seconds of your video
If you don't hold the viewer in the first 3 seconds, the next 27 don't matter. The algorithm won't distribute the video anyway. That makes the hook the most expensive 3 seconds.
7 hook formulas
1. **Question:** "Might you have been doing this wrong for years?" 2. **Unexpected action:** product placed upside down, sliding. 3. **Number shock:** "This cream did THIS in 30 seconds." 4. **Counter-argument:** "Forget expensive perfumes, because…" 5. **Before/after teaser:** show a small slice of the final frame. 6. **Close-up texture:** macro zoom on product texture. 7. **Motion blur:** product enters the frame at speed.
Don't break rule #1 with the hook
Most common mistake: hook is catchy but the rest of the video does not deliver. Hook = promise. If the promise mismatches the content, the viewer feels clickbaited and never returns.