Hey performance marketers! We talk a lot about creating content that converts, especially on Meta and TikTok ads. One of the key elements to making ads that work is the hook or thumb stop ratio. This simply means how good your ad is at getting people to stop scrolling and take a look. It's the first step in getting them to watch your ad and, hopefully, make a purchase. In this blog post, we’ll go through what a hook rate is, why it’s important, what makes a good hook rate, and five strategies to improve your hook rates. Let’s get started.

What is a Hook Rate or Thumb Stop Ratio?

The hook rate, also known as the thumb stop ratio, measures how effective your ad is at grabbing attention on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. Essentially, it's about getting people to stop scrolling and take a look at your ad. This is the very first step in capturing their interest and getting them to engage with your content. Without a good hook, your ad is likely to get lost in the endless stream of posts and videos.

Calculating Hook Rate

If you're using Facebook Ads Manager daily, you might notice there isn't a built-in metric for hook rate. Instead, you need to create a custom metric. Here’s how you can do it:

1. Go to your Facebook Ads Manager.

2. Create a custom metric using the formula: 3-second video views divided by Impressions.

3. This calculation will give you the percentage of people who watched the first three seconds of your ad out of all the people who saw it.

This simple metric is crucial because it tells you how many people are initially interested in your ad.

Why Hook Rate is Crucial

At Sovran, we've noticed a strong connection between high hook rates and overall conversion rates. Interestingly, this doesn’t always correlate with click-through rates. There have been many instances where ads with high hook rates had lower click-through rates but still led to better conversions. This suggests that a compelling hook can significantly impact the success of your ad campaign. If you know why this might be, feel free to share your thoughts!

What is a Good Hook Rate?

Determining a good hook rate can vary depending on your industry and account specifics. After analyzing various accounts, we found that an average hook rate is around 25%. For internal benchmarking, we look for rates above 30% to consider them good. Some of the highest hook rates we’ve seen go up to 40-50%, and occasionally even 58% for specific ad placements. It’s important to analyze what’s typical for your account and use that as a benchmark for improvement.

Analyzing Hook Rates

Here’s how you can analyze hook rates in your ad accounts:

1. Custom Columns: Make sure to customize your columns to include the hook rate metric.

2. Key Elements: Focus on the type of messaging, imagery, and thumbnail used in the initial three seconds of your ad. For example, one time we had a really high hook rate because the thumbnail was placed on a completely blacked-out part of the ad, making it visually interesting.

Select the campaigns you want to look at and examine the ads for those specific campaigns. Pay attention to the messaging, imagery, and thumbnails used. For example, in a D2C e-commerce brand over the last 30 days, if their overall video hook rate is at 29%, that’s pretty good. Look deeper into the specifics to find what’s working and what’s not.

10 Strategies to Improve Hook Rates

Strategy 1: iMessage Hooks

Using an iMessage-style conversation in your ad can be highly engaging. Mimicking the look of a text conversation can make your ad feel personal and relatable, as viewers feel like they are peeking into a real-life exchange. This approach can effectively convey messages in a familiar and digestible format.

Strategy 2: Compliment Hooks

A compliment can immediately grab attention. In this type of hook, you hype up the outcome the customers get by using your product. For example, showing a partner noticing a change or improvement can be very engaging and relatable.

Strategy 3: TikTok Trends Hooks

TikTok trends like "TikTok made me buy it," "What I got vs. what I ordered," and "Three reasons why" are great hooks. These trends are popular because they resonate with users. Even though they might seem cliché, they work well for getting attention.

Strategy 4: Exaggeration Hooks

Using exaggeration in your visuals can create a strong emotional response. Spill, drop, or throw the product to show an exaggerated reaction. This can be humorous or surprising, making people want to watch more.

Strategy 5: Comparison Hooks

Comparing a common problem with a solution provided by your product can be very effective. Use provocative ideas that visually contrast the problem and the solution, like showing a struggle followed by relief.

Strategy 6: Green Screen Hooks

Utilize a green-screen to overlay strong social proof or reactions. This can be a testimonial or a notable reaction that stands out, prompting viewers to pay attention to what’s being said or shown.

Strategy 7: Split Screen Hooks

A split-screen showing before and after shots can be very compelling. This type of hook clearly demonstrates the benefits of your product, making the improvement obvious and attention-grabbing.

Strategy 8: Pain Point Hooks

Start your ad by addressing a common pain-point directly. Show what the person is suffering from and how your product can solve that problem. This method creates immediate relevance and interest.

Strategy 9: Oddly-Satisfying Visual Hooks

The best hooks are often the most surprising or visually satisfying. Use bright colors, close-ups, or unusual angles. Split screens, package unboxings, and oddly satisfying visuals like squeezing textured objects can be very effective.

Strategy 10: TikTok Response Hooks

Adding a TikTok response bubble can also boost your hook rates. This involves showing a comment bubble similar to those seen on TikTok. Keep the tone casual and use emojis to make it feel authentic. This strategy works well when addressing common questions or highlighting value.

Conclusion

To wrap up, improving your hook rate is a key step in boosting your ad performance. A good hook can significantly impact your conversion rates, even if it doesn’t always correlate with click-through rates. By analyzing your current hook rates and implementing strategies mentioned above, you can create ads that capture attention and drive results. Sovran helps you create dozens of hook variations in minutes so you don't need to ping your designer and wait a week to test a new hook.