Hook stacking: the secret to longer VTR and, ultimately CTR

Bonus article while I finish working on my two-part series where I deconstruct my 2 top performing ads that generated 12 MILLION dollars in revenue

Hey UGC and marketing friends!

This article will be a bonus in-between while I wrap up the two-part series I mentioned in my recent newsletter. So why hook stacking? Recently, we've been discussing the strategy of "hook stacking" in our ads internally for the company I work at full-time, but also with the clients I create UGC for. This creative strategy has been an approach I've used over the years that has proven to work really well. Why?

Simply put: the concept of a hook is to grab the scroller's attention and give them a reason to stop surfing social media, giving your ad the time of day. So, why not write a script with more than just one hook throughout the UGC ad to initially grab the viewers' attention and continuously give them a reason to continue watching that ad all the way through? This is where hook stacking comes into play.

This is what the traditional direct-response marketing formula looks like:

Hook → Problem/Solution → Value Props → Social proof → CTA

*I like to remind my students that you aren’t meant to follow this formula literally but use it as a guide when drafting your script. You can rearrange the order if it still upholds the general outline and overall best practices.

But imagine if, while drafting this script, following the DR formula showcased above but tweaked the script to reflect the hook-stacking approach. Visually this is what it could look like as a formula:

Hook → Hook related to problem/solution → Hook related to value props → Hook related to social proof → Hook related to CTA

This strategic approach brings script writing and creative strategy to a whole new level. Here are some examples to remember for your next UGC concept that requires you to draft the script.

• Moving the CTA up to the front of the sales sequence (start of the ad) if it concerns a welcome offer or some discount. You’ll still want the offer in the CTA to remind the viewer why they should click the link. That said, featuring the CTA in the first 5-10 seconds can encourage viewers to watch more of the video, as the offer has already piqued their interest. Now it’s a matter of: do they ACTUALLY want to use the discount code to purchase the product.

  • Two examples are:

    • Verbally referencing the CTA in the earlier part of the ad in a way that comes off as natural and fluid. Like I always say, it’s not what you say - it’s how you say it.

    • Visually referencing the CTA in the earlier part of the ad or throughout the ad with a graphic or text call-out that has the CTA on-screen during the UGC ad.

• Slipping in credibility to give the product or service you’re creating UGC for more authority. Some examples are:

  • Social proof, such as:

    • Publication features/reviews

    • 5-start customer reviews

    • Certifications

    • Awards won

    • Case studies

    • Celebrity endorsements

  • Implied credibility, such as:

    • My friend/family who is a ______ recommended me this product.

      • As a note, it has to be relevant to the product or service niche. For example, if it’s a toothpaste brand, you’ll want to reference that friend or family member as the authority they may be (dental assistant, dentist, dental student, etc.).

    • Wear clothes matching the authority figure for the product you’re creating UGC for.

      • As a note, there’s a very FINE LINE to walk here. You don’t want to dress up as a doctor with the whole get-up and say on-camera that you’re a doctor when you aren’t because that’s definitely illegal. That said, there are ways around this. For example, I had a client who sent me scrubs and had me do a green screen reaction video where I pointed to the doctor speaking on camera. I didn’t claim to be a doctor or anything related to the medical field, and I didn’t speak on behalf of medical experts. The concept was leveraging a doctor, but they had me green-screened onto the ad in my scrubs, POINTING to the doctor giving his testimonial.

The end result of utilizing this creative strategy? Longer VTR (view-through rate) and, ultimately CTR (click-through rate). Think about it: if you give viewers a reason to keep watching your ad every 5-15 seconds, they're likelier to keep watching. And if they keep watching, they're more likely to click the link to, at the very least, visit the landing page. Why? Because you held their focus long enough to communicate to this viewer WHY they should purchase this product in the first place. Going back to "it's not WHAT you say, it's HOW you say it," the form of communication you used is essentially people skills 101. Stay interesting consistently enough to hold the viewer's attention while actively educating and informing them on the product or service your UGC ad is about, leaving them with everything they need to know to make their informed decision to click the link and purchase the product.

If you end up using any of the strategies mentioned in this newsletter, tag me in the end result; hopefully, you found this newsletter helpful! The last one I sent promoted the two-part series, which will be coming out starting this week. I had to pivot, unfortunately, due to being sick this past week (I ended up catching covid 🤒 AFTER getting food poisoning 🤢). It's been a ROUGH week, to say the least… on top of that, I was out of the office on vacation for close to two weeks, so I still have yet to get back into my routine and play catch up on everything I paused or missed while I was out. All this goes to say, thank you so much for being patient with me and supporting this newsletter. I truly appreciate each and every one of you!

As a quick reminder, last month I released my UGC Guide and shared how I wanted to gift all of my wonderful subscribers a unique discount code as a thank-you for supporting this newsletter. Use code: subscriber30 for 30% off my UGC Guide — if you haven’t already! For those interested in learning more about what’s included in this 80+ page UGC guide, click the link here to review the details. *Reminder that this purchase could be considered a business expense and to consult with a tax professional to see how you can legally write this purchase off.

As always, I wish you the best of luck on your UGC journey, continue to use me as a resource; I'm here to help!