Nobody Knows This About Instagram

TikTok is arguably the most competitive place on the Internet for attention.

I’ve posted on it daily since November 1 last year. Eight hundred sixty-eight videos total, or 2.84 videos daily for 306 days straight.

Some might say I’m developing a unique perspective on attention and hooks.

Those people would be right.

I probably shouldn’t share this…

I probably shouldn’t share this because everybody will start using it.

But you were generous enough to give me your attention for this article, so I want to reward that.

Here’s a hook I’ve noticed to do consistently well.

(If you don’t know what a hook is, it’s what you use to get people watching/reading/engaging through the rest of your content.)

My best hook 🪝

The hook is a variation of “Nobody knows this about [topic].”

You use it at the beginning of a piece of content.

Here are some examples from my content.

Opening line (hook): Nobody knows this about Instagram – 4.8 million views.

Opening line: Gen Z doesn’t know about this video – 384k views.

Opening line: People don’t realize this about Google – 796k views.

How often should you use this?

This hook is something I noticed only recently.

It’s very reliable for capturing attention right away. 

I’m using it sparingly because I don’t want it to get played out within my content.

If I cry wolf too often and don’t back the hook up with something interesting, it will no longer work for me.

So, I only use it with exciting/useful facts.

However, if you don’t post often, you should try this for your next post.

You can use this at the beginning of a LinkedIn post, email subject, Instagram Reels intro, TikTok intro, and more.

Use it at the very beginning of your content.

Some notable runner-ups for hooks

This person did this accomplishment – example: This 21-year-old is on track to make a million dollars this year selling Notion templates without coding – 570k views.

I probably shouldn’t share this – example: I probably shouldn’t share this since people I know watch and know I wear pink all the time, but this is the reason I do it – 156k views.

No podcast has ever done this

Here’s a bonus for this article.

Most podcasts are recorded in a recording studio.

I recorded my podcast on a bike.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2jBj9eNlP0oO8x9Ymt26gX?si=aed7337558a941f8

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/i-recorded-this-on-a-fast-electric-bike-ride-in-brooklyn/id1700357503?i=1000626252326

YouTube: