YouTube Intro Hook Template (Kallaway)
Btw -> if you want a tool that just does this for you automatically, I built https://sandcastles.ai for
this. It currently works for short-form scripts/hooks, but if you want to be the first one to try our
long-form version, sign up for the waitlist:
YouTube Intro Hook Overview:
Before I write the full body of the script, I start with the intro.
And my ultimate goal, after establishing click confirmation, is to build a curiosity loop.
You need to open a rabbit hole in the viewer’s mind that they can’t help but dive headfirst into.
Each line should make them want to go to the next line.
My intro hook framework works every single time.
You can just copy it.
Outline (must hit these 5 pieces):
1.​ Give immediate context on what the video is about
2.​ Establish common take or belief
3.​ Create contrast by referencing contrarian approach
4.​ Give proof of why they should trust you
5.​ Share your plan for explaining your solution
Explanation With Example
Part 1: Give immediate context on what the video is about
This is so the viewer can opt in and confirm the click.
So for example, I had a video with a title of “How To Write A Killer Script That Keeps Viewers
Hooked”
And the first 3 lines of the intro were..
Today we’re talking about writing killer scripts.
The reason winning creators go viral so often…is because of their scriptwriting.
You might have a great video idea, but how do you actually write the script, with a compelling
story that keeps people hooked the entire time?
So this was tailormade to establish the context and explicitly confirm that this video is about
scriptwriting so that you can keep viewers hooked.
You want to start bluntly stating this as quickly as possible.
-----------------Part 2: Establish the common take or belief
The next thing you want to do is establish the conventional belief on this topic.
People get more eager to listen when they feel like you’re talking about something they care
about.
The easiest way to build this common ground is to reiterate their common belief on the topic.
They likely already know the common belief and have struggled from it, so restating it quickly
helps them pattern match that this is something they care about
It also helps set up the contrast in part 3.
For example, the common belief about scriptwriting is that it’s hard, it’s an art, and nobody
knows how to do it.
So in the intro for this video, I said…
This is an art.
And it’s one of the hardest things to learn when you’re starting out making videos.
Again, I’m doing this because people want you to confirm their existing belief before offering a
way to change it.
This makes them feel like you’re relating to them.
The next part of the intro, which is critical, is to build contrast against this common belief.
And the only way to build that contrast is to first state what the common belief is…so this is a
necessary set up step.
------------------
Part 3. Create contrast by sharing a contrarian approach
Offer a contrarian take or perspective that contradicts their common belief.
This will stun them and hold them into needing to hear what you have to say.
The best way to exceed their expectations is to offer that you have a way for them to solve the
problem using a method they didn’t believe was possible.
So in today’s video, I wrote this…
But the good news is…
There is a right answer.
I’ve analyzed hundreds of the top creators across every niche.
And then all run the exact same scriptwriting process.
This formula has driven hundreds of billions of views.
And it works every single time.
This is me contrasting against the common belief that scriptwriting is not actually art…it’s
science.
There is a formula and I have it.
Right away, I have nailed the click confirmation and began to raise their expectations for what
the video might deliver.
-----------------Part 4 and 5. Give Proof // Share Your Plan
The last two steps can be done in either order, but they consist of proving why they should trust
you and that you have a plan to do so.
So in today’s video, I wrote this…
So in this video, I’m gonna break it all down…
This is the proven 5 step framework for how to write killer scripts that keeps viewers hooked.
Btw, I’m Kallaway, I’ve done over a billion views, have a million followers, and this stuff is all I
do, all day long.
I started with a plan and then layered on proof at the end.
By the end of this intro framework, you have them hook line and sinker.