3 Things to Include in Every Video to Retain Viewers

What do all viral videos have in common?

A high retention rate.

A 7 sec vs 19 sec vs 34 sec average watch time on a 40-second video is the difference between dud and viral.

And you need to know three key elements to master retention.

Let's walk through an example of a 59-second video that followed this framework and gained 615k views and 25k likes.

Or you can watch Brian’s in-depth breakdown on Sweat Equity here.

1. The Setup:

This is where you plant a seed in their mind to pay attention to what’s to come.

Set up what they are to look for: challenges, obstacles, and upcoming resolutions.

This can be done in a couple of different ways:

• You are the hero: show you are creating a video to help viewers learn or achieve something.

"We have a dealer that's screwing customers on their car deals, and we are going to show you how they are getting screwed."

• Outline the intention and the obstacle: highlight what viewers want and the challenge standing in their way.

"You want to buy a Toyota car? But you shouldn't buy until you watch this video."

By outlining the viewer's intention (e.g., buying a Toyota car) and the obstacle (e.g., potentially costly mistakes), you help them understand that the video contains valuable information that could save them money, and set up the resolution they’ll be waiting for.

2. The Conflict: What it is

In the middle of the video, introduce the conflict and lay the stakes for what could've been. To keep the viewer's attention from drifting, hit them with something new:

• A surprising fact: "Dealerships tend to misrepresent the MSRP of a new car."
• A change in perspective: "Toyota has very limited inventory, and that's leading to distributors and dealers being greedy."
• Use contrast to help move the video along: The suggested MSRP is $47,307 but the dealership changed it to $57,095”.

3. The Resolution: What could’ve been

This is where you provide the learnings and plug in your content or product as the hero to resolve the conflict.

“There are GOOD dealers who aren’t doing this. Do business with them!”

It's what people have been waiting for. Leave them satisfied with a clear resolution to the conflict and a strong call to action.

“We have FREE dealer reviews here CarEdge.com/data”

Most people like to start at the resolution, by offering the answer or solution immediately.

But short-form platforms want viewers to watch videos.

So the next time you create a short-form video, do yourself a favor and set up your product or solution by:

• Planting a seed of what’s to come
• Introducing conflict
• And then offering your solution or product.