# Ugc Hook Writing > Write UGC hooks that stop the scroll and testimonial scripts that sell, for AI-generated UGC clips (VEO, Sora, Kling). Use this skill whenever the user wants to write, script, batch, critique, or fix UGC ads, spokesperson scripts, testimonial scripts, or hooks — including requests like "write hooks for this product", "write me a UGC script", "give me 3 hook angles", "why isn't my UGC converting", "make this sound less like an ad", or any mention of hook lines, the first 3 seconds, scroll-stopping openers, skeptic-to-believer testimonials, the 5-beat script, or scripts for faceless/AI creator clips. Also trigger when the user pastes a product and asks for ad copy a real person would say to camera, even if they never say the word "UGC." - Skill: `jordangaston/ugc-hook-writing` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add jordangaston/ugc-hook-writing` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/jordangaston/ugc-hook-writing/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Docs & Writing - Author: jordangaston (https://skillmd.com/u/jordangaston) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/jordangaston/ugc-hook-writing --- # UGC Hook & Script Writing Write hooks that stop the scroll and testimonial scripts that sell, so AI-generated UGC clips become products people pay for, not clips that just look clean. A technically perfect UGC clip with a flat first line is worthless — nobody buys it, nobody runs it, nobody watches it. UGC lives or dies on the first half-second and the words the creator says. **The hook is not the intro. The hook IS the ad.** If the first line doesn't land, the other 28 seconds never happen and the platform stops showing the clip. ## Core principles Hold these the whole way through. They override any instinct carried over from cinematic ad work. 1. **The first 0.4 seconds decide everything.** The hook is ~80% of the work. Spend your effort there. 2. **UGC copy is spoken persuasion at volume, not visual-led.** No orchestra, no clever cut to hide behind — the words ARE the ad. It must sound like a human who actually used the thing, not a brand reading a brief. If it reads like something a brand would write, you've already lost. 3. **Never lead with the product.** The product is Beat 3, never Beat 1. Lead with the human truth, the problem, or the curiosity. The product enters as the relief. 4. **You do not write one hook. You write three, from three different angles, then test and scale the winner.** Creative is the new targeting — each angle catches a different audience. Leave the creative ego at the door; ad performance decides the winner, not taste. 5. **Realism now comes from being unpolished.** Contractions, fragments, one idea per line, a small stumble. A little imperfection beats a flawless robotic read. 6. **Tight beats long.** Aim for ~30 seconds. Things do not go viral if people do not watch to the very end. Cut every word that isn't pulling weight. 7. **Each beat must fit one 7–8 second clip.** Models like VEO cap a generation at 7–8s (Sora/Kling stretch to ~15s). Write the beat first, then generate to it. If the creator can't say the line naturally in one breath, it's too long. ## The 5-beat script skeleton Every converting UGC script runs on the same five beats. Write the beat, then generate the clip to it. | Beat | Timing | Job | |---|---|---| | **1. HOOK** | 0–3s | Stop the scroll. Pattern-interrupt, callout, or curiosity gap. No product. One line, sometimes two. This is 80% of the work. | | **2. AGITATE** | 3–8s | Name the real problem or frustration the viewer has. Make them feel seen ("I'd spent £200 on serums that did nothing"). Earns the right to pitch. | | **3. PRODUCT** | 8–15s | Introduce the thing as the turn. "Then I found this." Casual, almost reluctant, like gatekeeping a secret you decided to share. Never a hard sell. | | **4. PROOF / DEMO** | 15–25s | Show or describe the result. Real, specific, understated ("Three days and the redness is gone"). Specificity is what makes it believable. Bake in the product shot here. | | **5. CTA** | 25–30s | One clear, soft next step. "Link's in my bio, just try it." A friendly nudge converts better than "BUY NOW." | ## Workflow Follow in order. The default deliverable is **3 hooks + one full 5-beat script** built on the strongest hook. ### Step 1: Lock the product and core promise Confirm two things with the user (or infer from context, then state your assumption): 1. **Product** — the thing being sold, and its price if known (specifics like "£24 serum" carry weight later). 2. **Core promise** — the single outcome, in one sentence (e.g. "Visibly brighter skin in under a week, for a fraction of premium brands"). Never lead with the product downstream — but you must know it here to write everything else. ### Step 2: Write at least 3 hooks from 3 different angles This is the strategic core. Pull from the **Hook Bank** (`references/hook-bank.md`, 32 named patterns across 7 angles). Pick angles that are genuinely different so the test covers a wider audience. The seven angles: - **Problem-callout** — name a pain or wasted money ("I spent £200 on serums this year. This £28 one does more than all of it.") - **Curiosity / open-loop** — promise a payoff, delay it ("I changed ONE thing in my routine and the difference is kind of insane.") - **Social-proof** — borrowed trust ("Everyone keeps asking what I'm using, so here it is.") - **Negative / contrarian** — challenge a habit ("Stop doing [common thing] immediately. You're wasting money.") - **Controversy / insider** — forbidden knowledge ("The [industry] doesn't want you to know about this ingredient.") - **Demo / visual-action** — the visual is the hook ("This was my [thing] three days ago. This is now.") - **Relatable / story** — a human moment ("POV: you finally found the [product] that actually works.") Default: write **three** hooks from **three** angles. Make each sound like a person, not a brand. Read every one out loud in your head — if you'd stumble saying it, rewrite it. ### Step 3: Build the full 5-beat script on the strongest hook Recommend the strongest hook, then expand it into a full 30-second, 5-beat script using the skeleton above. For most paid UGC, structure it as a **testimonial** with a skeptic-to-believer arc (see below) — the most sellable format. Size each beat to fit one 7–8s clip. Include a bracketed visual/delivery note per beat where it helps generation (e.g. `(holds up the bottle to camera)`). ### Step 4: Voice pass Before delivering, rewrite anything that sounds produced. Make it sound like a text from a friend who's genuinely a little too excited about a $20 serum: - **Contractions, always.** "I've", "it's", "don't", "kinda". Nobody says "I have been using this." - **Start mid-thought.** "So I've been using this for like two weeks…" — the "so" makes it feel like you caught them mid-conversation. - **Filler real people use,** sparingly: "honestly", "literally", "ngl", "I'm not gonna lie". - **One idea per line.** People speaking off the cuff don't nest clauses. Use fragments ("Clean, bold."). - **Specific over generic.** "£28 serum" beats "affordable serum". "Three days" beats "quickly". - **Deliberate small imperfection.** A tiny stumble, a restart, an "um" can read MORE real than a clean take. Avoid: brand-speak ("revolutionary", "game-changing", "elevate your routine"), three adjectives in a row no human stacks, and anything that sounds marketing-department-approved. ### Step 5: Deliver all three hooks and remind them to test Deliver the full script AND all three hooks. Tell the user to generate and run all three, watch retention and cost-per-result, kill the losers, and make more variations of the winner. Your job as the writer is not to be right on the first try — it's to give the test enough good shots on target. ## The skeptic-to-believer arc (testimonials) A testimonial is the 5-beat script with a specific emotional arc. The magic ingredient is **earned credibility through doubt** — the more the creator sounds like they expected nothing, the more the viewer trusts the payoff. 1. **The skeptical setup** — "I honestly didn't think this would work." Doubt up front makes the rest believable. 2. **The relatable struggle** — what they tried before that failed. The viewer recognises themselves. 3. **The discovery** — low-key, almost accidental. "A friend made me try it." 4. **The turn** — the specific, concrete result. Not "it's amazing", but "my skin cleared in four days." 5. **The reluctant recommendation** — "I don't usually post stuff like this, but…" Reluctance reads as honesty. ## Output format When delivering a full UGC deliverable, ALWAYS use this structure: ``` # [Product] — UGC hooks + script **Core promise:** [one sentence] ## 3 hooks (generate and test all three) A — [angle]: "[hook line]" B — [angle]: "[hook line]" C — [angle]: "[hook line]" Recommended to build first: [A/B/C] — [one line why] ## Full 30s script (built on Hook [X]) BEAT 1, HOOK (0–3s) (delivery note): "[line]" BEAT 2, AGITATE (3–8s): "[line]" BEAT 3, PRODUCT (8–15s) (visual note): "[line]" BEAT 4, PROOF / DEMO (15–25s) (visual note): "[line]" BEAT 5, CTA (25–30s): "[line]" ## Test note Generate all three hooks as clips. Scale whichever wins on cost-per-result and retention, not preference. ``` If the user only wants hooks, deliver just the hooks block (still three, still three angles). ## Quality checklist Before delivering, verify — these are the nine ways UGC scripts die: - [ ] **Hook leads with a human truth, problem, or curiosity — never the product.** (Product is Beat 3.) - [ ] **No brand-speak.** Reads like a text to a friend, not a marketing department. - [ ] **Three hooks from three genuinely different angles** — never just one. - [ ] **Every line says naturally in one breath (~7s).** Nothing crammed. - [ ] **The testimonial starts skeptical.** No creator thrilled from word one. - [ ] **Proof is specific.** "Four days, redness gone" — not "it works amazing." - [ ] **CTA is soft.** "Link's in my bio" — never "BUY NOW LIMITED TIME." - [ ] **Voice is unpolished.** Contractions, fragments, one small imperfection allowed. - [ ] **~30 seconds total, each beat sized to one 7–8s clip.** ## References - `references/hook-bank.md` — the full 32-pattern Hook Bank (7 angles), the fill-in 5-beat template, the skeptical-testimonial line bank, and a complete worked example. Load it whenever writing hooks or a script.