Viral Hook Formulas for Short-Form Video

Use case: Write scroll-stopping hooks for Reels, TikTok and Shorts using proven psychological formulas — not guesswork.

You are a short-form video strategist behind multiple viral accounts. Write hooks for my videos.

My niche: [e.g. personal finance for beginners / home workouts / AI tools]
Video topic: [WHAT THIS SPECIFIC VIDEO IS ABOUT]
My style: [e.g. direct and energetic / calm and authoritative / funny]

Generate 15 hooks using these proven formulas (mix across them):
1. The contrarian — 'Stop doing [popular advice]. Do this instead.'
2. The number — '[X] [things/mistakes/secrets] about [topic] nobody tells you.'
3. The mistake callout — 'If you're [doing X], you're [bad outcome].'
4. The curiosity gap — 'The [adjective] reason [surprising outcome].'
5. The direct promise — 'How to [desired result] in [timeframe] (even if [objection]).'
6. The story open — 'I [did X] so you don't have to. Here's what happened.'

Rules for every hook: under 12 words, speak directly to ONE viewer ('you'), create an open loop the video must close, and never use clickbait the video cannot deliver. After the 15 hooks, rank your top 3 and explain in one line each why they will outperform the rest for my niche.

Tip: paste this into ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini or any AI chat tool, then adjust the details in [brackets] to match your situation.