23 ways to grab (and keep) Gen Z's attention
The TikTok tricks that get audiences hooked and will elevate your video making game
If there is one thing that is verboten on TikTok it’s gatekeeping. So much so there are a tonne of successful accounts that are solely dedicated to spilling the kind of intel so valuable you really should be paying for it. One such account is Julia Broome’s. She’s a social media whizz who charges influencers and celebrities for her expertise, but she also dishes out tried and tested strategies to us normals for free on TikTok. Last month she blew up by posting a video “exposing the subliminal hooks influencers use” to make you watch their content. It was so well received she turned it into a series called “Hook Tok” where she details the tricks that make videos immediately engaging, particularly with Gen Z audiences.
Broome’s insights are top tier and chime with the best practices I learned and shared with content creators when I headed up editorial at Snapchat. She lists 11 “hooks” and I’ll share nine additional ones, plus three examples which demonstrate how creators super-optimise their videos for maximum engagement. They are all must-knows if you create video content for any platform or audience, and great-to-knows if you consume content. After all, don’t you want to know why you are so compelled to watch?
But first, let’s establish the reason why attention hacks work so well. On TikTok - and any other platform that hosts short form video - content needs to do at least one of these four fundamental things in order to be successful with large audiences:
Make viewers feel something - laugh, cry, satisfy, soothe, make them ask WTF?!?
Have utility - provide value to the audience by entertaining, educating or inspiring
Be authentic - express genuine emotion, feel relatable
Create intimacy - viewers are invited inside another’s world
If a piece of content combines more than one of these fundamentals then it’s likely it’ll be a hit.
The attention hacks - or “hooks” as Broome calls them - work so well because they signal to viewers - either subliminally or consciously - that one or more of the fundamentals are present in the video. They illicit an “ooooo this is going to be good” response from the viewer. Put another way they exploit the viewer’s need to be reassured that something is worth their time. With that in mind let’s jump in…
1. Getting caught setting up
Creators will often start their videos with the camera moving before it settles into a static position, creating the illusion that they are preparing to film. Broome says: “It makes it feel like they just had this thought and they are going to share it with you right now.” This trick makes the content feel hyper organic and intimate because viewers think that they are catching the video’s star in an unguarded moment. Here is Dre Kelly doing just that:
This example from Menyelek similarly begins with a candid moment that makes the video feel so much more authentic than if it had started with the slick dance moves that make up the rest of the video.
2. Shock and awe
Starting a video with make-a-viewer-gasp visuals while acting as if everything is normal is the signature move of creator Meredith Duxbury. “Dosing her face in foundation while talking casually is literally what put her on the map,” says Broome. Duxbury has over 18 million TikTok followers so she’s clearly doing something right.
Other creators do it too, like Mireya Rios, who pours out an extraordinary amount of bright green fake tan to capture a viewer’s attention. Plot spoiler: She goes on to use just a tiny amount…
“You can’t look away from a train wreck,” says Broome of the shock and awe trick, adding that “our brains are so curious and so captivated that you’re much more likely to stay and watch the video”.
3. Covering up a list
Standing in front of - and crucially obscuring - a list is a sure fire way to grab a person’s interest according to Broome. Viewers will always want to see something that is being hidden, it arouses their curiosity, and this is why this technique works so well. Courtney Johnson is a consistent deployer of this tactic, earning her millions of views on her TikTok posts:
4. “I’m running late!”
This could also be called the ‘Alix Earle classic’ according to Broome because it’s something the TikTok queen does all the time. This trick works because it creates a sense of urgency and jeopardy, like in this video where Alix says she has just two minutes to get ready for a night out. Broome says: “Doing this makes it feel like you have a stake in the game. It gives you that rush sensation so you’re likely to watch until the end to make sure she made it on time.”
5. Talking into a microphone
This is a ubiquitous trick used by many creators, not only to improve sound quality, but because as Broome says it, “sets the tone right away that tea is about to be spilled”. Talking into a handheld or holding the microphone part of Apple’s wired headphones signals to viewers that what is about to be said is important. It is a visual cue to “listen up”. Chelsea Fagan uses this hack frequently in her videos:
As does one of my all-time favourite creators, Kyle Prue:
6. Half-baked method
“Fashion influencers and creators will start their videos with their look partly put together, aka half-baked,” says Broome. Why do this? Broome explains that it sets the tone that it will be, “a more personal, more intimate video and make you (the viewer) feel that you’re getting ready with them”. It’s a very popular method because it also creates anticipation for the final “fully-baked” look which helps retention. Sam demonstrates this here by using the camera as a mirror:
7. In the closet
“It’s genius,” says Broome about fashion creators filming videos in their closets. She adds that it’s “a perfect subliminal hook because not only does it feel super personal and super organic but it’s also visually stimulating.” Luxury fashion influencer Whitney creates nearly all her content in her distinctive walk in wardrobe, and has amassed 600k followers as a result. Please also note how Whitney starts this video zipping up her bustier and in doing so ticks the half-baked box too.
8. Start with the back
“Something as simple as starting with the back of your outfit can pique the audience’s interest so much that they’ll stick around and wait until you turn to the front,” says Broome of the ‘start with the back’ trick demonstrated by Daniel Toni Jais below. Making audiences ‘wait for it’ works in other genres too, like this classic.
9. Up close and personal to reveal
Broome explains that this is one the most popular hacks deployed by fashion creators when trying to make their videos extra sticky because it’s “super, super effective”. She explains: “You basically just start close up, you give your audience a detailed shot of your outfit. You act like you’re just running out of the house or you just put your phone down on the side of the street to show your outfit, even though that was likely your plan all along.” Again, this is a tactic that relies on making the viewer ‘wait for it’. It also creates a curiosity gap which encourages viewers to stick around to see the reveal. Here are some well executed examples from Lucy Blehar and Vicky Montanari.
10. Soothing sounds (aka ASMR)
“People are enthralled with sounds, people are enthralled with ASMR,” says Broome, and that’s why you’ll often see creators play with their jewellery or necklaces to make a soothing sound at the start of a video to get viewers hooked. Here is Anastazia, who Broome names as a regular user of this trick. You can’t hear it in this GIF but, believe me, those bracelets are jangling.
11. The lipgloss tactic
“Simply put it’s holding or putting on lipgloss in the beginning of a video to grab a viewer’s attention even though the video has nothing to do with lipgloss,” says Broome. Her theory is that viewers are more likely to pay attention when a creator is doing two things at the same time, and it’s also the reason why GRWM (get ready with me) videos do so well on TikTok. Here is Broome doing the trick herself while talking about… algorithm changes:
OK, are you ready for 12 more examples? Here are my top tips to grab your audience from the get-go.
12. Time stamps
A simple yet effective way to signal to viewers that they are about to see a journey, transformation or reveal is to add time stamps. They’re very common on routine videos on TikTok as they clearly signpost that the video will be tracking a process. Morgan Bailey does this consistently well:
And this, from Jennifer Brown, is a great example of a makeover story that hooks viewers in from the very start:
13. Creeper shots
While you should never film someone without their consent, creating the illusion that you are doing so will create highly engaging content. Viewers love to watch unguarded moments because they think they are seeing what someone is really like. Creeper shots signal to viewers that what they are seeing is not contrived or fake. A great example of this is from Brigette Pheloung who has posted a series of videos of her sister getting ready for work:
And this sweet moment between a grandma and her grandchild, Sara Liso, is another example of how engaging candid moments can be:
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