Hook Checklist

Check your first 1–3 seconds before posting — runs entirely in your browser.

Hook Checklist

0/6

Something visually interesting happens in the first 1 second
No slow logo/intro before the hook
The hook promises a clear payoff ("watch till the end", "here's how")
On-screen text reinforces the spoken hook
Opening breaks a pattern viewers expect (avoids instant scroll-away)
Hook still works with sound off (visual or text-driven)

Common questions

Why are "no slow intro" and "something interesting happens" separate items?

One second is a genuinely short window, and a video can fail either one independently — a strong spoken hook still fails if the first frame is a branded intro card, since the swipe-away decision often happens before anyone hears a word.

Why does the checklist ask about sound-off viewing specifically?

A large share of TikTok's audience never turns sound on at all, for the same reason burned-in captions matter on the Post Checklist — a hook that only works when heard, not seen, loses that entire portion of viewers before it gets a chance to land.