Number hook: a count the viewer can track, and the one item that justifies it
Template for the hook built on a number (3 mistakes, 5 tools, 7 days), with the rule that the number must be small enough to finish and the last item must be named as the reason to stay.
Write 5 number hooks for a short video about {topic}. A number hook works because it tells the viewer how long the video is in their head and promises a structure; it fails when the number is too big to finish or every item is the same weight. Use numbers from 3 to 7 for a list and any real measurement for a result. Templates to fill: - '{N} {things} for {outcome}. Number {N} is the one nobody does.' - '{N} {units} of {action}, one result.' - 'I tested {N} {things}. {Small number} worked.' - '{N} seconds, {N} taps, done.' - 'Day {N}. {One-line state}.' Rules: max 12 words, the number is spoken and on screen as a digit, every list number is 3 to 7, every measured number is one I actually measured. For list hooks name which item is the reason to stay (the last one) in the hook itself. For each hook, write the ON-SCREEN text, which is just the number and one word. Return: 5 hooks with their on-screen text, ranked by how clearly the number tells the viewer the length of the video.
In Claude Code, paste the prompt as a message.
Example
Topic: kitchen tools and habits for weeknight cooking.
- ‘Five kitchen tools under twenty dollars. Number one is not a gadget.’ On-screen: ‘5 TOOLS’.
- ‘Three product-photo mistakes. The third is why your listing looks cheap.’ On-screen: ‘3 MISTAKES’.
- ‘I tested four ways to cook rice. One worked every time.’ On-screen: ‘4 WAYS’.
- ‘Four minutes, one pan, a smash burger.’ On-screen: ‘4 MIN’.
- ‘Day seven. Thirteen out of twenty words, up from six.’ On-screen: ‘DAY 7’.
Tips
- Keep the number on screen for the whole video as a countdown or a day stamp. A number that appears once is a title; a number that stays is a progress bar.
- Seven is the ceiling for a list in under 60 seconds. Past that, the viewer stops tracking and the number stops working.
| works with | Claude: Paste into claude.ai or the Claude app. · ChatGPT: Paste into ChatGPT; works with any GPT model. · Claude Code: Runs as a skill or a prompt in the terminal; can read your files and write the result. · Any LLM: Model-agnostic: Gemini, Mistral, a local model. |
| cost | Free. No API, no key. |
| status | Unverified: written from the technique, not yet run end to end by us. |
| license | CC BY 4.0 for the text here; skills are MIT. |
| updated | 2026-11-01 |
| for agents | hook-archetype-number-countdown.md |
Related
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The experiment-diary format that stays honest because one number is measured daily and shown on screen; the prompt plans the daily clip, the tally and a verdict that includes what did not work.
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Template and rules for the question hook, with the test that separates a question that holds (the viewer has an answer and wants it checked) from one that is skipped (nobody cares either way).
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Template for the hook that reverses what the audience has been told, with the two rules that separate it from rage bait: quote the standard advice fairly, and name the case where it still holds.
Curiosity-gap hook: withhold one fact, promise it by a stated second
Template for the hook that opens a gap and names when it closes, with the rule that keeps it from being clickbait: the withheld fact is real, single, and delivered where you said it would be.