The Three Second Rule

When aiming to create a viral video it is critical to capture and captivate the attention of your audience in the first three seconds. If you manage to do that, you’ve managed to get them to stop scrolling and stick with you. Once your viewer has watched for three seconds, it is counted as a view. Here are some ways to increase your view rate:

• Make the opening scene impactful by using bright lights, explosions or something happening that’s very eye-catching.
• Make sure to use text on the video to not only guide the viewer but also possibly take your viewer by surprise (They used condensed milk! No way! Where are they going with this?).
• Start with the end product. This way the viewer continues to watch because they like to see the process unfold before their eyes.

In “Make Your BBQ BB-Cool With These 6 Hacks” you see that we open with a can of lighter fluid while applying the caption “Lighter Fluid”. This intrigues the audience because they are wondering what we are going to do with the lighter fluid. That wonder keeps them watching.

In this next video, “Kit Kat Fudge Bars” the still of the video is the final product. It looks delicious and you want to know how they make it. We implemented all three aspects of the three-second rule into this video. Opening with a visually stimulating scene (how the chocolate chips get into the bowl). We added text so you know the ingredients. And finally, we started the video with a still shot of the final product. The Kit Kat Fudge Bars look delicious, which had people asking, “I wonder how they made them?”

 If your viewer is engaged in the first three seconds, you have now locked down a countable view. By using the aforementioned tools, you are increasing your view rate and therefore increasing your possibility of going viral.