I Made 10,000+ Ads. Only 6 Hooks Kept Winning

Six Ad Hooks That Repeatedly Perform

Fraser Cottrell says his team reviewed 10,000+ ads and identified six hooks that repeatedly perform across the accounts they work with. His central point: a hook’s effectiveness depends on the audience’s stage of awareness in the funnel. Copying a hook without understanding its purpose is less useful than understanding the psychology behind it and adapting it to the rest of the ad.

Frameworks and Playbooks

Match the Hook to Funnel Stage and Customer Awareness

• Top of funnel: People may recognize a problem but not know the brand. Hooks should educate, create interest, and help qualify viewers.
• Middle of funnel: People are considering a product category but have not chosen a brand. Hooks should create curiosity about why this product is different.
• Bottom of funnel: People are close to buying. Make the offer prominent and reduce friction in the purchase decision.

Build Every Hook from Three Components

• Visual: What viewers see.
• Audio: What they hear or what is said.
• Text: On-screen copy, which can reinforce the audio or add context.

The components should work together; the hook is not just the opening line.

Design the Hook to Carry into the Full Ad

• Use the opening to establish the ad’s central concept, then develop that concept throughout the video.
• Aim to attract people likely to keep watching or buy—not simply the largest possible audience.
• Use customer reviews and research to find comparisons or customer insights that can become credible creative angles.

The Six Hooks and How to Use Them

Top of Funnel: Educate and Qualify

1. “I Swapped This for This”

Compare a familiar choice with the advertised product. For example, an ad might show someone replacing a recognizable fast-food breakfast with a protein shake. The familiar reference makes the comparison easy to understand.

Action: Find a real substitution customers make, ideally supported by reviews or customer research. Keep the execution simple.

2. “Most X Isn’t X Anymore”

Suggest that a familiar category has changed for the worse, then position the product as an alternative. An Underbrush chewing-gum ad, for example, contrasts modern gum with the brand’s version.

This can serve as the core pitch angle, not just an opening line: the ad introduces a concern and then explains the product’s difference.

Action: Build a substantiated category contrast into the whole video rather than relying on a provocative claim alone.

3. “Four Facts About X That Will Change How You Do Y”

A numbered list gives viewers a clear structure and a reason to keep watching until the end. One example is a soap ad promising four facts that would change how viewers wash.

Action: Use a specific, finite list and make each point deliver on the opening promise. Cottrell argues that a defined endpoint encourages viewers to finish watching.

Middle of Funnel: Create Product-Specific Curiosity

4. “This Is No Ordinary X”

Signal that the product differs from others in a category the viewer already cares about. Portland Leather bags, for example, are positioned around craftsmanship and as an alternative to expensive designer brands.

The example pairs the line with a visual sequence—someone reaching into a bag and taking out sunglasses—to add curiosity.

Action: Make the product category clear, then show or explain the meaningful difference. The hook should help reach relevant viewers rather than appeal indiscriminately.

5. “I Tried X for 30 Days—Here’s What Happened”

Set a defined test period and preview the experience the video will cover. One example is a mushroom product ad showing someone eating mushrooms every morning for 30 days.

Cottrell says the timeframe can help set expectations, particularly in health and wellness.

Action: Use a credible timeframe and make the visuals provide context for the test, the experience, and the product itself.

Bottom of Funnel: Prompt Purchase

6. Lead with the Offer

Put the discount or promotion in the first frame for viewers who already know the brand or are ready to buy. A Primal Queen ad opens with a double discount and directs viewers to the shopping-cart feature. The 14-second video focuses on the offer.

Action: Prioritize brand recognition and the deal; keep the message direct and the purchase step clear.

Practical Recommendations

• Evaluate hooks by their fit with funnel stage, not just whether they sound catchy.
• Treat simple, familiar concepts as a strength; the examples are designed to communicate quickly.
• Use curiosity and urgency deliberately, but understand the mechanism before adapting a trend.
• Research ads with tools such as TrendTrack, then analyze why they work instead of copying their surface wording.
• Cottrell argues that ads people choose to watch can help generate stronger engagement signals for Meta. He recommends investing in more watchable, higher-quality creative as audiences face heavy ad exposure.

Business Metrics, Offers, and Timelines

• The analysis covered 10,000+ ads and selected six recurring hook types.
• The mushroom example uses a 30-day test period.
• The Primal Queen example is 14 seconds long and promotes a double discount.
• Cottrell invites brands spending more than $70,000 per month on paid social to apply to work with his agency.
• Omnisend sponsorship: The video promotes a 30% discount for the first three months using code Fraser30. The sponsor section recommends automating welcome, abandoned-cart, and birthday messages, and highlights email/SMS tools, templates, and revenue tracking. It also claims e-commerce brands may be missing 30% of potential revenue from email and SMS. This is presented as part of the sponsorship pitch, not as independently substantiated data in the video.

Presenters and Sources

• Presenter: Fraser Cottrell, discussing creative work by his agency, referred to in the subtitles as Fraggle/Fraggell.
• Sponsor: Omnisend.
• Examples and brands referenced: Underbrush, Portland Leather, Primal Queen, McDonald’s, Huel, and an unnamed soap brand.
• Research and platform references: TrendTrack, Meta, and TikTok Shop.