A hook is the opening of an ad — the first frame of an image, the first headline word, the first second of a video. Its job is exactly one thing: stop the scroll. If the hook fails, nothing else in the ad gets a chance. If the hook works, the rest of the creative carries the weight.
Hook patterns that work
- Question: 'Why does my [common pain] keep happening?' — opens a loop the viewer wants closed
- Stat: 'I lost €1,200 to this in 6 months' — concrete number forces a pause
- Pattern interrupt: starting mid-sentence, on a contrast cut, on an unexpected visual
- Founder POV: 'I started this because…' — first-person earns attention faster than brand voice
- Before/after: instant visual contrast in the first frame
- Specific specificity: 'For founders running their first €5k/mo Meta budget' — narrowness signals relevance
Hooks that fail
- Generic openers ('Are you ready to…') — every ad starts that way; viewers skip on autopilot
- Brand-first ('Introducing the all-new…') — viewers don't yet care about your brand
- Slow burn — anything that takes 4+ seconds to make the offer clear
- Stock-footage feel — the ad-detector fires immediately
Operator note
Test hooks before you test offers. The same offer with a stronger hook can 2-3× CTR; the same hook with a different offer barely moves the needle. Hook diversity in your creative library is more valuable than headline diversity.