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Three seconds decide the fate of your ad

A viewer decides within seconds whether to keep watching or scroll on. What makes them stop?

What wastes content budgets is rarely weak production — it is a weak opening. A clip that starts with a logo or a wide establishing shot loses half its viewers before the message lands.

Start from the result, not the introduction

Show the product in use, or the moment the customer wants, in the very first frame. Introductions belong at the end of a clip, not the beginning.

Movement in the first frame

The eye follows movement. A completely static opening reads as a photo and gets scrolled past; a simple camera move or motion inside the scene buys you two more seconds.

Write the first three seconds before the rest

Try writing the opening alone in three different versions, then pick the one that answers the viewer's silent question: "why does this matter to me?" The rest of the script gets easier after that.

Sound is part of the opening

Most viewers start without sound. If your message lives only in the voice-over, you have lost it. Put the most important line on screen as text too.

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