Hook-Retain-Reward

LIVA (electrolytes) (DTC supplement)

A 20-second UGC ad mapped to the three beats.

Hook: "You are not hungover - you are dehydrated." Said straight to camera, mid-pour.

Retain: Quick beats: the science in one line, the sachet going into the glass, on-screen text "Na / K / Mg" carrying the muted viewer.

Reward: Back at the desk, clear-headed: "Headache gone in twenty minutes." Then: "60-day guarantee, link in bio."

1. Hook

What stops the thumb in the first 3 seconds?

The opening 1-3 seconds that earns the rest of the watch. Visual disruption, a bold claim, a pattern interrupt or an open loop. If the hook fails, nothing after it is seen - this is where most of the leverage is.

Good answer: Mid-action open: "You are storing your knives completely wrong" with a hand already reaching for the drawer.

Wrong answer: A slow logo intro or a calm establishing shot. By second 2 they are gone.

2. Retain

What keeps them watching through the middle?

The sag zone. Hold attention by paying off the hook in beats, stacking small open loops, fast cuts and forward motion ("but here is the part nobody tells you..."). Every few seconds give a reason to keep watching.

Good answer: A three-step demo where each step resolves one question and opens the next, with on-screen text carrying the dropped-audio viewer.

Wrong answer: A flat middle that explains instead of unfolding - the classic drop-off cliff at 5-8 seconds.

3. Reward

What payoff makes the watch feel worth it?

The close that satisfies the curiosity you opened - the result, the punchline, the transformation - then hands off to a clear next step. A rewarded viewer rewatches, shares, and acts.

Good answer: The before/after reveal lands, then a one-line CTA: "Link in bio - 60-day guarantee."

Wrong answer: Ending on a hard sell with no payoff, so the watch feels like a setup with no punchline.

How is this different from the Hooks library?

Hooks give you the opening line. Hook-Retain-Reward structures the entire clip - hook, middle and payoff - around how attention decays.

Does it work for static ads?

No. It is a video-retention structure. For statics, lean on the angle, the hook line and the format.