Glossary/H
Hook
What it meansThe opening of an ad: the first frame, the first words and the first movement, whose job is to make someone scrolling stop long enough to see what the ad is. Teams usually judge it by hook rate, the share of impressions that turn into plays of at least three seconds.
- Also called
- Opening, thumb-stopper
- Applies to
- Video ads, and the first glance at a still
- Set by
- The team making the ad
Common kinds of opening
| Opening | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| The problem | Shows the moment the product solves | A phone at 2% on a long journey |
| The result | Shows the end state first | The finished room, then how |
| The question | Asks what the viewer was already wondering | “Why does this always happen?” |
| The person | A face speaking straight to camera | Someone who uses the product |
| The surprise | Something that breaks the pattern of the feed | An object where it should not be |
Example. Kinds of opening, with made-up examples. The right one comes from the product, not the list.
What it means in practice
The opening is the cheapest part of an ad to change and the one that decides whether the rest is seen, so it is the usual first version to make: same body, new opening. Meta counts a 3-second video play when the video plays for at least three seconds,1 which is why the first three seconds are read as the hook.
An opening that stops people with something unrelated to the ad stops the wrong people. Judge a new opening by hook rate and by what happens after it: if hold rate falls as hook rate rises, the opening promised something the ad did not deliver.
Make several openings for one body when you test. The body stays the same, so any difference in hook rate between them belongs to the opening alone.
Common mistakes
- An opening that has nothing to do with the product.It stops people who then leave.
- Changing the opening and the body at once.You cannot tell which change did what.
Sources
- About video ad metrics on Facebook and Instagram, Meta Business Help Center. 3-second video plays, ThruPlays and plays at 25% to 100%.Checked 26 Oct 2026