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Creator Hooks

I've asked some of the best creators on YouTube, “How do you write such great titles?”

And they've all said the same thing: “I just model what works.”

So this email has 5 videos worth modeling to help you write great titles and save time on research.

P.S. Many people have requested that all of the videos from Creator Hooks be compiled in one place.

I’m happy to announce that I’ll finally be launching a database with all of the videos in it soon! Be on the lookout for it in the next week or two.

Stuck In A Pickle

(be sure to download images to see the thumbnails)

Title: 3 Common Mistakes Made by Recreational Pickleball Players (& most players 4.0 and below)

Formula: 3 Common Mistakes Made by [Specific Subset of Audience] (& most [General Audience])

Hook score*: +341

Why this works:

List - Lists make it easy to understand what the video is about and builds curiosity.

Negativity - Nobody wants to make mistakes, so they watch this video to avoid them. Plus, the thumbnail includes a warning.

Curiosity - The thumbnail builds curiosity by opening a loop.

Specific Audience - If you’re a recreational pickleball player, you feel like this video was made just for you. This makes you more likely to watch it.

How you can use this hook: Tell your audience about the 3 common mistakes they’re likely to make, and encourage them to click by specifically calling out who the video is for.

Examples of this hook in action:

• 3 Common Mistakes Made by Beginner Guitar Players

• 3 Common Mistakes Made by Backyard Gardeners

Sir Mix A Lot

Title: 10 Mixing Tips That Changed My Life

Formula: 10 (Industry) Tips That Changed My Life

Hook score: +445

Why this works:

List - Lists make it easy to understand what the video is about and builds curiosity.

Desire - “Changed my life” is a strong desire that many people have.

How you can use this hook: Tell your audience about the industry-specific tips that changed your life.

Examples of this hook in action:

• 10 Money-Making Tips That Changed My Life

• 10 Baking Tips That Changed My Life

P.S. This newsletter will help you write great titles, but if you want to know what topics your videos should be about, check out TubeBuddy for free.

(Affiliate)

The Perfect Foundation

Title: HOW TO APPLY FOUNDATION FOR BEGINNERS | NINA UBHI

Formula: How To (Common Task) For Beginners

Hook score: +643

Why this works:

Beginner Tips - Beginners are the biggest, hungriest subset of any audience.

Desire - A big portion of this creator’s audience wants to learn how to apply foundation perfectly.

How you can use this hook: Tell your audience how to do a basic skill that many of them want to do, and let beginners know this video was made specifically for them.

Examples of this hook in action:

• How To Invest In Crypto For Beginners

• How To Water Your Lawn For Beginners

Excelent Video

Title: I no longer VLOOKUP(), I use this other function instead…

Formula: I no longer (Common Action), I use this other (Action) instead…

Hook score: +886

Why this works:

Negativity - This video is about stopping using a common function.

Curiosity - Since VLOOKUP is a common and useful function, it’s counterintuitive to stop using it. Plus, this title opens up a loop at the end by not telling you what the other function is.

How you can use this hook: Tell your audience about a common and useful tool you no longer use, and hint that you’ve found a better tool.

Examples of this hook in action:

• I no longer use an iPhone, I use this phone instead…

• I no longer bow hunt, I use this instead…

#MindBlown

Title: 8 Mind-Blowing Websites You Probably Didn't Know Existed

Formula: 8 Mind-Blowing (Tools) You Probably Didn’t Know Existed

Hook score: +6956

Why this works:

List - Have I told you lists make it easy to understand what the video is about and build curiosity?

Curiosity - Describing these websites as “mind-blowing” and that “you probably didn’t know existed” builds curiosity.

How you can use this hook: Tell your audience about the mind-blowing tools they didn’t know existed.

Examples of this hook in action:

• 8 Mind-Blowing National Parks You Probably Didn’t Know Existed

• 8 Mind-Blowing YouTube Tools You Probably Didn’t Know Existed

Flop of the Week

Title: MY GO TO BEAUTY TOOLS AND MONTHLY SKINCARE REGIME 2022 | NINA UBHI

Hook score: -78

Why this flopped: I think this video flopped because of the word “and”.

Most successful videos are about a single topic, but this video is about two topics.

In your titles, you want to make a big promise and deliver on it.

When you start including multiple topics in your title you confuse your audience.

And if you confuse you lose.

Alright, that wraps up this week’s Creator Hooks!

Have any questions about the hooks in this edition?

Reply to this email and let me know!

And if you know a fellow creator who needs help with writing better titles, please forward this email to them and send them to creatorhooks.com.

Here’s to the war on boring content.

- Jake

P.S. Follow me on Twitter for more title tips @jthomas__

P.P.S. See previous editions here

*The hook score is a calculation of how many views the video got more than the average for that channel. The higher the score, the better the video did.