Creative testing and hooks
Find out which opening earns attention before the story starts.
Most of an advert's fate is decided in its first two seconds. Elarta produces three alternative openings around the same approved concept, so you can find out which way of introducing the product actually holds people, instead of guessing once and hoping.
What is going wrong
A strong advertisement can underperform when its opening does not connect. Testing one opening leaves no meaningful way to compare approaches.
01
The campaign rests on one untested opening
A single film means a single hypothesis. If the opening does not connect, the rest of the work never gets seen, and there is nothing to compare it against.
02
Preference is standing in for evidence
Without alternatives, the opening that runs is the one somebody liked in a review call. That is a taste decision dressed as a marketing one.
03
Creative fatigue arrives with no bench
Performance decays as an audience sees the same opening repeatedly. Brands with nothing else ready simply watch the numbers slide.
04
Three films costs three times as much
Testing properly looks unaffordable when every variant is treated as a new production, so most brands never test at all.
Usually
One film, one opening, one hypothesis, and no way to know whether a different angle would have doubled the hold rate.
Instead
Three openings on the same approved core: benefit-led, mechanism-led and problem-led, each cut to every ratio and named so results are readable.
The client can test three distinct ways of introducing the same approved concept without paying for three separate advertisements.
Three real options rather than one preference
You learn which product angle earns attention, not just which advert performed
A bench of creative ready before fatigue sets in
Far cheaper than three productions, because the core film is reused
The winning angle informs listing images and future campaigns
Included
- Three alternative openings on the same approved concept
- Each changes the first two to four seconds, then joins the approved core
- A choice of benefit-led, mechanism-led, problem-led, detail-led or context-led angles
- Consistent naming so versions are identifiable in an ad manager
- Publish-ready exports in every delivered ratio
- A testing matrix
- A recommendation for isolating the opening variable
Not included
- Three completely different creative concepts
- New product positioning
- New full storyboards
- Additional products
- Campaign management or media buying
A hook changes the opening of an approved concept. It is not a completely different campaign direction, new positioning, or a new storyboard — those are quoted as new concepts. We produce the creative and the testing matrix; we do not run the media.
Enhancements
Single additional hook$700
One alternative opening rather than three. Worth knowing that three cost $1,700 rather than $2,100, and one hook is rarely a real test.
When this is right
This is most valuable when you are already spending on paid social but relying on one opening sequence, and you can read the difference between variants in your reporting.
- Paid social
- Product launches
- Managing creative fatigue
- Brands already spending on advertising
- Clients able to compare creative performance
What actually counts as a hook?
The first two to four seconds, replaced, then joined back to the approved core film. Same product, same concept, same world, different way in. If the idea, the positioning or the world changes, that is a new concept and we will say so rather than quietly charging hook prices for it.
Do you run the tests for me?
No. We deliver the variants, a testing matrix and a recommendation for isolating the opening as the only variable. Media buying and campaign management are not services we offer, which keeps our advice about the creative honest.
How do I know which one won?
Compare hold rate and thruplay across variants with everything else held constant: same audience, same budget, same placement, same period. If more than one thing changes, the test tells you nothing.
Can I test three completely different films?
You can, but that is three productions rather than a hook pack, and it answers a different question. Testing hooks isolates the opening. Testing whole films confounds the opening with everything else.
Hook testing pack
$1,700
Send the advert you are running and we will tell you which three angles are worth testing against it.
All prices are shown in U.S. dollars. Fixed quotes in GBP or EUR are available on request.
Product motion advertising
Premium short-form product advertising built to capture attention, demonstrate one compelling benefit and present the product with precision.
From $3,500
Additional colour or material variant
A second colourway or finish of the same product body, restaged from the approved master.
$500
Extended seven-image listing suite
A seven-image listing narrative that walks a buyer from first impression through benefit, proof, objection handling and purchase confidence.
$2,000