https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uva2pjgtnLw
.png)
The video sets up the overall premise within 20s.
But then reveals the twists, foreshadowing the various obstacles that are gonna come between the characters and their goal.
As a result of that, we know what to expect throughout, which is massive for keeping an audience hooked.
Related to that, let’s talk about…
I always say how important it is to make your audience aware of the next thing they’re waiting for.
Especially when a video is long (this one is 22min), we need to know the specific points of interest between now and the end.
This is smartly set up using an early visual aid:
The progression is crystal clear.
And because of the earlier foreshadowing, we know the impetus for progression is gonna be exciting.
It didn’t feel totally satisfying to have the final decision based on something that basically happened off-screen.
Maybe part of the channel strategy is to be super community-engaged (which is cool!).
But speaking purely as a viewer, this felt like a drop down from the drama we’d seen throughout. I expected the final decision to be based on the most extreme challenge yet.