Creative
Hook
The first 1-3 seconds of a video ad that decides whether the viewer scrolls or watches. 80% of creative performance is determined here.
The hook is the first 1-3 seconds of a video ad. It's the single highest-leverage element of creative: depending on how you split the numbers, 70-80% of creative performance variance is determined inside those first three seconds. Hook fails, nothing else matters.
Hook archetypes that consistently work:
- Pattern interrupt: Visual or auditory surprise in frame 1.
- Specific claim: "I saved $412 last month because of this."
- Named callout: "If you're over 35 and your knees click, you need to see this."
- Problem in action: Show the pain point physically happening in 2 seconds.
- Contrast / before-after: Two frames, one bad, one good.
Creative strategists test 8-15 hooks per week on the same core message, because hook variance dwarfs script variance.
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