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.

Btw, if you want to save more time and use a title generator that uses all the titles ever featured in Creator Hooks, check out Creator Hooks Pro.

Simple System

Title: This Simple Productivity System Made Me $100 Million

Framework: This Simple (Activity or Entity) System (Achieved Big Goal)

Hook score: +320

Why this works:

Desire – This leverages desire two ways:

This creator’s audience would love to make $100M.
People like simple systems.

Curiosity – This builds curiosity two ways:

It opens a loop and makes you want to know what this system is.
It’s counterintuitive because you wonder how a simple productivity system can help somebody make so much.

How you can use this framework: Tell your audience about your simple system that helped you achieve a big goal.

Examples of this framework in action:

This Simple Photography Setup Helped Me Win Photo of the Year
This Simple Investing System Made Me $10 Million

It’s Coming

Title: This Chart Predicts Every Recession (it’s happening again)

Framework: This [Entity] Predicts Every [Negative Event] (it’s happening again)

Hook score: +444

Why this works:

Negativity – Scary events, like recessions, grab people’s attention and interest.

Curiosity – This builds curiosity two ways:

It’s talking about the future and the future is a naturally curiosity-filled topic.
It opens a loop and makes you want to know more about the chart and the upcoming recession.

How you can use this framework: Tell your audience about something that predicts negative events thats happening again.

Examples of this framework in action:

This Chart Predicts Every Major Hurricane (it’s happening again)
These Traits Predict 90% of Divorces (do you have them?)

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Conspiracy Combo

Title: This Is Why You Can’t Go To Antarctica

Framework: This Is Why You Can’t (Activity)

Hook score: +696

Why this works:

The biggest reason this video did so well is probably that the thumbnail contains all of the major conspiracies around Antarctica.

And the title is simple, but builds curiosity because it’s open-ended.

How you can use this framework: Use the title to tell your audience why they can’t do something, and in the thumbnail show the major conspiracies surrounding the topic.

Examples of this framework in action:

This Is Why You Can’t Lose Weight
This Is Why You Can’t Afford A House

Levels of Mastery

Title: 6 Levels of Thinking Every Student MUST Master

Framework: 6 Levels of (Activity) Every (Position) MUST Master

Hook score: +888

Why this works:

List – Lists make videos feel more tangible (you know exactly what the video will be about) and they add some curiosity.

Specific Audience – Calling out students makes students more likely to click this video because they feel like it was made specifically for them.

Desire – This creator’s audience wants to get better at thinking and become geniuses (like the thumbnail says).

Curiosity – This opens a loop and makes you want to know what the 6 levels are.

How you can use this framework: Tell your audience about the levels of an activity they must master.

Examples of this framework in action:

6 Levels of Reading Music Every Pianist MUST Master
6 Levels of Communication Every Manager MUST Master

Simple Settings

Title: 11 YouTube Settings Small Channels Must Turn ON

Framework: 11 (Entity) Settings (Beginners) Must Turn ON

Hook score: +1819

Why this works:

List – Lists make videos feel more tangible (you know exactly what the video will be about) and they add some curiosity.

Specific Audience – Calling out “Small Channels” makes small channel owners feel like this video was made specifically for them. And since most channels are small, this has a huge potential audience.

“Settings” – Videos about settings often do well. My theory is that they’re very tangible and easy to turn on/off, unlike strategies or tips that require work and thinking.

How you can use this framework: Call out beginners in your audience and tell them about the settings they must turn on.

Examples of this framework in action:

11 Netflix Settings New Parents Must Turn ON
11 Camera Settings New Photographers Must turn OFF

Flops of the Week

Title: How To Pick your Perfect Career (the Ultimate Guide) – Part 1

Hook score: -95

Why this flopped: This flop of the week is a two-parter: both parts 1 and 2 for “How to Pick Your Perfect Career” got much fewer views than this channels average (17K and 27K compared to the channel’s recent average of 366K views).

There are a handful of things I think could’ve been better with these videos:

These could’ve been one video. Together they’re only 21 minutes, so it’s not so long that it needs to be broken into two videos. The hardest part of a video is getting somebody to click and watch the first 30 seconds, so breaking this video into two videos means you have to get somebody to click and watch the first 30 seconds twice instead of once.
The fact that this video is a two-parter and the first video is only 9 minutes long doesn’t really say “Ultimate Guide” to me (though if these were one, it would make a lot more sense).
The thumbnail of the first video doesn’t really make it clear who this video is for.
The thumbnail text in the first video removes some of the curiosity — we already know it’s about the Ikigai framework. It’d be worth testing something that builds more curiosity and makes it clear who this video is for. Something like, “Do This To Find Your Best Career.”
The topic is for a specific audience at a specific point of time, whereas some of the other videos, like “6 Levels of Thinking Every Student MUST Master” are more broadly appealing.

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 see all of the videos from Creator Hooks in one place, check out Creator Hooks Pro.

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