I’ve asked some of the best creators on YouTube, “How do you write such great titles?”
And they’ve all said the same thing: “I just model what works.”
So this email will show you 5 videos worth modeling to help you write great titles and save time.
P.S. If you want to save more time and use a title generator that uses all the titles from this newsletter, check out Creator Hooks Pro.
Audit Incoming
Title: What Actually Triggers an IRS Audit
Framework: What Actually Triggers (Bad thing)
Hook score: +466
Why this works:
Negativity – Nobody wants to get audited, so this title leverages that fear.
Curiosity – “What Actually” opens a loop and makes you want to know what triggers an audit. “Actually” also brings a little bit of secrecy and promises insider information.
How you can use this framework: Tell your audience about what actually triggers something bad.
Examples of this framework in action:
- What Actually Triggers Procrastination
- What Actually Triggers Belly Fat
Horrible Houses
Title: Why 90% of New Homes Are Garbage (The “Builder Grade” Lie)
Framework: Why 90% of [Entities] Are Garbage (The “[Fancy label]” Lie)
Hook score: +756
Why this works:
Negativity – People love drama, controversy, and conspiracy like this.
Curiosity – Promising to answer “why” opens a loop a little bit, but this title is also a little counterintuitive because of “New Homes Are Garbage”. You’d hope something new is nice, not garbage.
How you can use this framework: Tell your audience why something they expect to be nice is actually garbage.
Examples of this framework in action:
- Why 90% of Organic Food Is a Scam (The “Natural” Lie)
- Why 90% of Golf Tips Are Garbage (The “Pro Tip” Lie)
Check out Creator Hooks Pro here.
P.S. I just got this email from a customer who used Creator Hooks Pro to write a title that helped his new channel get monetized:
AI Gold Rush
Title: I Tried 500+ AI Tools, These 9 Will Make You Rich
Framework: I Tried 500+ (Entities), These 9 Will (Achieve goal)
Hook score: +992
Why this works:
Experience – His experience with these tools brings trust and credibility to this video.
List – Lists make videos feel more tangible (you know exactly what the video will be about), and they add some curiosity.
Desire – This creator’s audience would love to get rich from AI tools.
Curiosity – This opens a loop and makes you want to know which tools these are.
How you can use this framework: Tell your audience that you put a lot of effort into testing things, then tell them which options will help them achieve a goal.
Examples of this framework in action:
- I Read 400+ Fantasy Books, These 9 Are The Best
- I Played 100+ RPG Games, These Are The Only 9 You Need To Play
Page Turners
Title: 10 books that will make you ADDICTED to reading!
Framework: 10 (Entities) that will make you ADDICTED to (Activity)!
Hook score: +1930
Why this works:
List – Lists make videos feel more tangible (you know exactly what the video will be about), and they add some curiosity.
Desire – This creator’s audience is into great books.
Spice – “ADDICTED” adds some spice and emotion to make this not just a boring list title.
How you can use this framework: Tell your audience about things that will get them addicted to a good thing.
Examples of this framework in action:
- 5 tools that will make you ADDICTED to vibe coding!
- 10 first date questions to get her ADDICTED to you
King of Kings
Title: Every Religion’s View Of Jesus Explained In Detail
Framework: Every (General entity’s) View Of (Specific entity) Explained In Detail
Hook score: +24,424
Why this works:
Curiosity – This builds curiosity because it promises (or alludes to) contrast. It’s interesting to see how different things think about or react to the same thing.
How you can use this framework: Tell your audience what different camps think about something.
Examples of this framework in action:
- Every Country’s View Of Immigration Explained In Detail
- Every Sport’s Road to a Championship Explained In Detail
Flop of the Week
Title: Give Me 11 Minutes, I’ll Show You How To Reach Anyone In The World
Hook score: -89
Why this flopped: This is a proven title format, but no matter how good of a format you use, if the audience isn’t interested in the topic, your video probably won’t do well.
I’m assuming that’s what’s going on here — the audience just doesn’t seem to care enough about reaching anyone in the world.
In this case, I’d just focus on the benefit of reaching anyone in the world:
“This Simple Skill Made Me An Extra $100,000 Last Year”
“This 5-Step System Will Change Your Business Forever”
(Admittedly, I don’t love these, but they’re just examples of how you could think outside of the box about your titles.)
Alright, that wraps up this week’s Creator Hooks!
Hope you enjoyed this week’s edition and if you know a fellow creator who needs help writing better titles, please send them to creatorhooks.com.
– Jake
(@jthomas__ on Twitter)
P.S. Read previous editions here.
P.P.S. If you want to write better titles and grow your channel, check out Creator Hooks Pro.