Tool Gate · How it works
How the Short-Form Hook & Retention gate works
How the Short-Form Hook & Retention Lab grades a video hook: six weighted criteria into a 0–100 score, and a promise-payoff gate where a hook that overpromises is forced to REWORK — which is how a hook scoring 80 still fails, because a hook that wins the scroll-stop and can't deliver bleeds retention.
How the gate works
This tool grades a short-form video hook before you post it. Each control is marked from your own evidence and weighted into a 0–100 score — and then the score is run past a gate that can only make the verdict worse.
The 6 weighted controls
| Signal | Weight |
|---|---|
| Stops the scroll in 1 second | 25 |
| Opens a curiosity gap or stakes | 20 |
| Specific, not vague | 15 |
| Promise matches the payoff | 20 |
| Spoken + on-screen reinforce | 10 |
| Tight — no wasted words | 10 |
| Total | 100 |
The verdict bands
If the promise doesn't match the payoff (that criterion at 0), the verdict is forced to REWORK regardless of the score. A hook that overpromises wins the scroll-stop and then tanks retention when the video can't deliver.
In the worked sample it scores 80 out of 100 and still reads REWORK — Every other criterion is maxed — score 80, which reads SHIP. But the promise doesn't match the payoff (0), and that's the gate: it's forced to REWORK. A hook that overpromises wins the scroll-stop and then bleeds viewers the second the video can't deliver what the hook sold. The one thing to fix first: Promise matches the payoff — it's at 0. Rebuild the hook to promise exactly what the video actually delivers; a clickbait hook wins the view and loses the watch-time..
Common questions
Can something score well on the How the Short-Form Hook & Retention gate works and still fail?
Yes. The weighted score is run past a worsen-only gate — the Promise-payoff — that can only make the verdict worse. In the worked sample it scores 80 out of 100 and still reads REWORK, because every other criterion is maxed — score 80, which reads SHIP. But the promise doesn't match the payoff (0), and that's the gate: it's forced to REWORK. A hook that overpromises wins the scroll-stop and then bleeds viewers the second the video can't deliver what the hook sold.
What is a worsen-only gate?
A dispositive rule that can only lower a verdict, never raise it. One fatal flaw overrides an otherwise-good score, because a single disqualifying gap shouldn't hide behind a high average. The tool also names the one thing to fix first — here, "Promise matches the payoff — it's at 0. Rebuild the hook to promise exactly what the video actually delivers; a clickbait hook wins the view and loses the watch-time.".
Scores the hook, not the creator. Runs offline in the workbook — no platform data pulled.
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<iframe src="https://redhub.ai/visuals/tool/short-form-hook-retention-lab.html" title="How the Short-Form Hook & Retention gate works — RedHub AI" width="760" height="1635" loading="lazy" style="border:0;width:100%;max-width:760px"></iframe>
<p style="font:14px/1.5 system-ui,sans-serif"><a href="https://redhub.ai/visuals/tool/short-form-hook-retention-lab">How the Short-Form Hook & Retention gate works</a> — by <a href="https://redhub.ai">RedHub AI</a>, the AI that tells you when to doubt it.</p>Image + link — a static picture for any blog
<a href="https://redhub.ai/visuals/tool/short-form-hook-retention-lab"><img src="https://redhub.ai/visuals/tool/short-form-hook-retention-lab-share.png" alt="Diagram of the Short-Form Hook & Retention Lab: six weighted criteria, a promise-payoff gate, and a hook scoring 80 forced to REWORK because the promise doesn't match the payoff." width="760" loading="lazy" style="max-width:100%;height:auto;border-radius:16px"></a>
<p style="font:14px/1.5 system-ui,sans-serif"><a href="https://redhub.ai">RedHub AI</a> — the AI that tells you when to doubt it.</p>
This is how Short-Form Hook & Retention Lab works. More diagrams in the Visual Field Guide.