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William Trippe

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Short-Form Video Designer

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Short-Form Video Guide — 2026 Edition

What actually works on Reels, Shorts, TikTok & Suno Hooks right now. Vertical 9:16, mobile-first, retention-driven.

1. Specs At A Glance

Platform Best Length Max Best For
Instagram Reels 15-30 sec 90 sec Lifestyle, e-com, aesthetics
YouTube Shorts 30-60 sec 3 min Discoverability + long-form
TikTok 15-30 sec 10 min Organic reach, trends
Suno Hooks 15-30 sec 60 sec Music-first discovery

2. The 5-Part Structure That Holds Retention

Hook (0-3s) → Lead (3-10s) → Body 1 → Open Loop → Body 2/3 → CTA

  • Hook: Pattern interrupt — movement, question, bold claim
  • Lead: Promise payoff but don’t answer yet
  • Body: One idea per cut, 1.5-2.5 sec per clip
  • Open Loops: Ask a question, answer 10 sec later to keep watch time
  • CTA: One action only, cut immediately after

3. Hook Bank

Movement Hooks: POV through coffee mug, whip-pan shoes to face, object appearing, clothes toss

Spoken Hooks (copy these):

  • “I should not be saying this…”
  • “I have a question…”
  • “What would happen if…”
  • “I almost didn’t post this”
  • “I bet you didn’t know this”
  • “You weren’t supposed to see this”
  • “This will cost you money”
  • “Most of you will skip this”
  • “Nobody tells you this”
  • “You won’t believe what I discovered”

4. Filming Setup (Phone Only)

  • Light: Face a window, soft light
  • Framing: Eye line top third, captions middle third
  • Audio: Lapel mic or close phone mic + trending audio
  • Format: 9:16 vertical 1080×1920, no watermarks

5. Editing Rules

  • Keep text in middle 60% — top/bottom get covered by app UI
  • Big readable captions
  • Cut fast, cut right after payoff
  • Switch music when mood shifts

6. 3 Ready Templates

A – Educational (30 sec): 0-3s “Most Reels fail for 3 reasons” / 3-8s “3 fixes doubled my views” / 8-22s Fix 1,2,3 / 22-30s Result + “Follow for template B”

B – Story (45 sec): 0-3s “I almost didn’t post this” / 3-10s Setup / 10-35s 3 beats with open loops / 35-45s Resolution + CTA

C – Suno Promo (25 sec): 0-2s Black + sting “new track?” / 2-8s You vibing / 8-18s Lyric visual / 18-25s Title + “Full song on profile” – loop beat

7. Pre-Post Checklist

  • ☐ Vertical 9:16 exported?
  • ☐ First 3 sec has movement or bold text?
  • ☐ Captions readable without sound?
  • ☐ No watermarks in corners?
  • ☐ One CTA only?
  • ☐ Cover frame with face + 2-word hook?

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