Glossary · 24 terms
Short-form video, defined plainly.
The hook, retention, and distribution terms that decide whether a short-form video breaks out — each one defined, with why it matters and how to put it to work.
Hooks & openings
Hooks & openings
Hook
The first one to three seconds of a short-form video, engineered to stop the scroll and earn the next second of attention.
Hooks & openings
Pattern interrupt
A sudden break in the visual or audio rhythm that snaps a scrolling viewer out of autopilot and back into active attention.
Hooks & openings
Scroll-stopper
The visual or auditory element in the first frame that physically halts a viewer's thumb mid-scroll.
Hooks & openings
Cold open
Dropping the viewer straight into the action or payoff with no intro, setup, or context.
Hooks & openings
Call to action
The explicit instruction telling viewers exactly what to do next — follow, comment, click, or save.
Retention metrics
Retention metrics
Watch time
The total amount of time viewers spend watching a video, summed across every play.
Retention metrics
Retention rate
The percentage of viewers still watching at each point in a video, plotted as a curve from start to finish.
Retention metrics
Completion rate
The percentage of viewers who watch a video all the way to the end.
Retention metrics
Average view duration
The mean number of seconds a viewer spends on a video, calculated across all plays.
Retention metrics
Hook rate
The percentage of viewers who keep watching past the first three seconds of a video.
Retention metrics
Outlier score
A channel-normalized measure of how far a video's views exceed the creator's own typical baseline — surfacing true breakouts, not just big accounts.
Formats & techniques
Formats & techniques
Talking head
A video format where a person speaks directly to camera, usually framed from the shoulders up.
Formats & techniques
B-roll
Supplementary footage cut over the main audio or talking track to illustrate, vary, and energize a video.
Formats & techniques
UGC (user-generated content)
Content created in the authentic, unpolished style of an everyday user rather than a brand — often produced for brands by creators.
Formats & techniques
Faceless content
Short-form video that never shows a creator's face, built from voiceover, b-roll, text, or screen recordings instead.
Formats & techniques
Jump cut
An abrupt edit that removes pauses, breaths, and dead time to compress a take into a fast, dense sequence.
Formats & techniques
Voiceover
A recorded narration track laid over footage, carrying the message while visuals play underneath.
Formats & techniques
Green screen
A technique that keys out a solid backdrop so a creator can be composited over images, articles, or video.
Distribution & strategy
Distribution & strategy
Content repurposing
Reworking one piece of content into multiple formats or platforms to extract more reach from the same idea.
Distribution & strategy
Short-form video
Vertical, typically sub-60-second video built for endless-feed consumption on platforms like TikTok, Reels, and Shorts.
Distribution & strategy
Content pillar
A recurring core theme or topic category that organizes a creator's or brand's content into a consistent identity.
Distribution & strategy
Shadowban
A suspected suppression of a video or account's reach without an explicit notification or ban.
Distribution & strategy
Viral coefficient
A measure of how many new viewers each existing viewer generates, indicating whether content spreads or stalls.
Distribution & strategy
Engagement rate
The percentage of viewers who interact with a video — liking, commenting, sharing, or saving — relative to reach or views.
From theory to script
Knowing the terms is the easy part.
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