if you're losing views and you can't figure out why I just want to tell you it's right here staring you in the face and you're not doing anything about it but fear not because with over 10 years over 2,000 videos and over 150 million views of experience I'm going to show you it's simpler than you think it's all to do with the first 30 seconds here's the deal nearly every video on YouTube experiences a huge drop off in retention in the first 30 seconds now you probably already know this but do you really grasp the
severity of it so we're talking about 30% 40% possibly more than half of your audience abandoning your video in that brief half minute window that's pretty steep right so imagine if you can improve that by 10% 20% even more that's a lot more viewers sticking around for a lot longer boosting your watch time and Everybody Knows YouTube loves watch time and speaking of watch time the more you get the quicker you'll reach this here's some data showing you the average view duration of different video lengths split between the median and the top 10% of creators
on YouTube where do you currently sit on this graph by comparison it's probably near the bottom end isn't it which is why the first 30 seconds of your video is so important so in this video I'm going to share with you a three-part framework to improve your intros or hooks now this isn't about Reinventing Your content it's about following a simple structure and it's one of those things just like the video idea the video thumbnail and a video title that small channels all too often neglect and everything I've just mentioned are the elements of a
YouTube video that the viewer encounters first so let's give them more attention and more effort and we'll start with a very powerful technique that's transforming videos across pretty much every Niche on the platform and once I show it to you it's one of those things that you can't really unsee every time you click on a video you go oh yeah now I see that in action you see the thing is your video is intro doesn't actually start at 0 seconds it actually starts with your packaging first off give yourself a pat on the back you've
already accomplished something huge convincing a viewer to choose your video from an ocean of Alternatives but that is just the beginning because your thumbnail and title have already set some sort of expectation when you convinced a viewer to click on a video you also made a promise a promise of something of value to that viewer and so what you need to do from second Z Z is confirmed to the viewer that they're going to get what they came for you need to prove to the viewer that the video isn't clickbait or a misunderstanding that they
truly are in the right place and this is a demonstration of that in action from the biggest YouTuber on the platform we are now stranded on this deserted island in the middle of the ocean and we're going to be stranded here for the next 7 days and now let's examine another video title and intro from a slightly smaller Channel this is how to come up with with a killer YouTube video idea to blow up your channel did you catch it they're echoing their title at the beginning of their video this small action can be the
difference between getting a 100,000 views and barely cracking 100 views now obviously you don't just need to read out your title word for word at the start of the video but the key is to address the Curiosity that the title sparked in the first place and you want to fulfill that promise as quickly as possible say in the first 5 to 10 seconds of a video which brings us to the next 10 seconds of a video once you've established the topic of your video there's something else that you need to validate in today's information saturated
World establishing credibility quickly is key you need to show your audience that you're not just another voice in a crowd but someone with valuable insights and experience so the next 10 seconds are crucial because this is where you the Creator Answer the burning question in every viewer's mind why should I believe you so let's spread this down with another example I found the key to going so viral you realize it's not luck I've worked with some of the biggest creators on YouTube such as the cheeky boyos AR and young gravy getting the millions of views
and top creators understand that you can't just post a good video and expect people to watch it do you see what the Creator accomplished there in just a few seconds they made a bold Claim about understanding verality backed it up with specific impressive collaborations and hinted at Insider Knowledge from Top creators this technique works because it quickly establishes Authority and experience it tells the viewer I'm not guessing here I've been in the trenches with successful creators but credibility isn't just about name dropping it's also about demonstrating real expertise so here are some other things you
can do to establish that all important trust mention relevant experience or qualifications especially when the topic is about health law Finance education you can also create a challenger on a topic to show the actual experience and results and reference studies or data that backs up your claims the key is to be specific but also authentic don't exaggerate but don't be shy about your achievements either your viewers want to know they're learning from somebody who's walked the talk and now we move on to the final segment of the intro which is a make or break moment
it separates videos that merely start strong from those that keep viewers glued until the absolute end of a video if you get this right not only will you retain viewers but they'll be hanging off every single word that you say but here's the thing there is a critical mistake even season creators make the thing is I often find myself watching videos and thinking to myself why do I need to keep watching and this is because the Creator fails to communicate the importance of the upcoming content so let's fix this with three proven strategies that you
can mimic from the big players on YouTube and we'll start with this one see how this creator sets up her audien's expectations so I'm going to show you guys how to use chat gbt to help you come up with project ideas I'll also show you guys how to chat GPT to be like an expert tutor and teach you Concepts step by step finally I'll give you guys some tips on how to get the most out of chat GPT by going to the basics of prompt engineering see how she clearly outlines three valuable takeaways this gives
viewers concrete reasons to stick around you can easily recreate this by clearly articulating what viewers will gain from watching your entire video will they learner gamechanging technique discover a time-saving hack or understand a complex Topic in simple terms be simp simple be direct about their expectations and if that doesn't work for you here's another strategy for whatever reason we started treating editing like it's a maths problem rather than using it as an opportunity for Creative expression so here are three things that I regret I didn't know sooner that would make me not just an editor
but an artist Hayden provides common problems that the audience can relate to and Promises Solutions and these Solutions will Elevate editors into artists that stand out you too can identify specific challenges that your content addresses then just tease the solution that you're going to provide this creates a powerful problem solution Dynamic that engages a viewer and this is a strategy a formula a framework that you can apply to many different niches and one of the more effective tricks you'll often find in Colin and samia's videos this is one of my favorites and it's where things
get really interesting by the end of the episode we're actually going to pitch Emma on a way that we think she could return to YouTube in a healthy way we're also going to suggest a change that we think YouTube should make to the platform it's called opening a loop and they just did it seamlessly twice how Emma could return to YouTube and what change YouTube should make opening Loops means introducing an intriguing idea or posing a question that you promise to resolve by the end of a video it creates manyi Cliffhangers and the best creators
do this over and over again multiple times in videos remember that the goal here is to create a sense of anticipation and value you want your viewer to start thinking wow I can't afford to miss any part of this video and since you've made it this far into this video I highly recommend you rewind to the beginning and watch the intro all over again because we've just done everything we've been talking about and you're still watching and now you know how important it is to nail your intro but what if people don't click on the
video in the first place if that happens then I'm afraid all of the time time and energy you've put into that intro is wasted which is why I highly recommend you watch this video about how to make killer thumbnails
