--- name: social_video_series description: Design and run an episodic social video series: pick a series promise, structure episodes for retention, write hooks and episode-ending bridges, and measure whether viewers come back. Triggers on requests to start a video series, plan episodes, grow returning viewers, or fix a series that keeps losing its audience. --- # Social Video Series ## Purpose Turn one-off videos into a series people follow. This skill covers the format design: what the series promises, how each episode is built, how episodes connect, and how you know the series is working. It is platform-neutral with notes on the native series features in YouTube and TikTok (see `references/platform-series-features.md`). ## Workflow ### 1. Lock the series promise Pick one recurring viewer need, not a topic category. "Fixing common indoor portrait lighting problems" works; "weekly videos about photography" does not. Write one sentence stating what every episode delivers: > "In every episode, I take one weak product page and show how I would improve its copy." That sentence is your filter. An episode idea that fails the promise does not belong in this series. Draft 5-8 episode ideas that satisfy it before producing anything. ### 2. Build the episode structure Give every episode the same 3-4 structural landmarks so returning viewers know where they are, without making scripts identical. A useful template: 1. Cold open: the episode's hook in the first 2-3 seconds (see step 3). 2. The body: the episode's payoff, paced with a cut, new information, or visible progress every few seconds. 3. The recap beat: one line tying the episode's lesson to the series theme. 4. The bridge: a deliberate path to the next episode (see step 4). Check the platform's retention report per episode. The steepest drop usually lands in the first 30 seconds (YouTube labels this "Intro" in key moments). If a recurring section consistently loses viewers, cut it, don't keep it for branding. ### 3. Write the hook as an open loop The hook's job: confirm "this is for you" in the first seconds and leave one thing unresolved. Use one of these patterns: - **Curiosity gap:** "What I'm about to show you changed how I shoot everything after 8pm." - **Problem call-out:** "If your Reels keep dying at 200 views, it's probably this." - **Before/after:** "Six months ago this account was at zero. This is episode 12." - **Story start:** start mid-action, explain nothing, let the first 10 seconds raise the question the episode answers. - **Direct question:** "Why do most episodic series lose half their viewers by episode 3?" Rules: the question must be answerable by the video. A loop the episode never closes buys one view and loses the follow. Never open with a logo animation, a slow pan, or "hey guys, welcome back." These read as filler instantly. ### 4. Design the bridge, not just the cliffhanger Retention across episodes comes from the bridge, the last 10-15 seconds that give a viewer a reason to watch the next one. Three kinds that work: - **Open loop:** "Next episode, the part of this I always get wrong, and the fix that took me four tries." - **Payoff stack:** this episode solves one problem and reveals a related one you name but do not solve. - **Chapter preview:** a 3-second montage of what comes next, under the same series bumper or sound. Do the bridge in the edit and on the platform: end screens on YouTube, pinned comments and captions like "Part 1" / "Episode 2" / "Day 5", and series hashtags for discovery (see `references/platform-series-features.md`). ### 5. Keep the series recognizable Use a consistent title format, one recurring intro sound or phrase, and the same shooting setup across episodes. Visual consistency builds trust and tells a new viewer they have landed mid-series. Recognizable does not mean identical: vary thumbnails and framing so the feed doesn't look like a wallpaper of the same shot. ### 6. Write a short series bible before episode 1 One page that holds: the promise, the audience, the episode structure, the hook patterns you will rotate, the bridge style, the publishing cadence, and the kill criteria (when to end or reboot the series). A worked example is in `references/episode-blueprint.md`. For story-driven series, also note characters, the season arc, and cliffhanger rules. Keep it short enough to actually consult. ### 7. Launch with a test season, then measure Plan 8-12 episodes as the test season. Publish on a fixed cadence so viewers learn when to expect you. Then measure series health, not just views: - **Episode-to-episode flow:** what share of viewers of episode N also watch episode N+1? Track it per bridge type. - **Returning viewers:** are new, casual, and regular viewers growing? YouTube Studio shows audience composition per channel; watch it across the season. - **Retention per episode:** compare each episode's curve against the last 10 similar-length uploads on the same channel, not against a universal benchmark. As rough market context, a 2025 benchmark of 10,000+ videos put average YouTube retention near 23.7%, with only 16.8% holding past 50%. The steepest drop usually hits the first 30 seconds. For short-form, ~50-60% still watching after the opening seconds means the hook works; ~30% deep in means strong retention. - **Drop points:** find where the bottom of the retention curve separates and in which seconds. Fix the edit there, not the concept. Expand only the episodes and bridges that move viewers forward. When flow stalls across two or three episodes, revisit step 1, the promise may be drifting. ## Output Contract Deliver, in order: (1) the one-sentence series promise; (2) 5-8 episode ideas that satisfy it; (3) the episode structure with hook pattern and bridge type chosen per episode; (4) the series bible (one page); (5) a publishing cadence; (6) the measurement plan naming the exact metrics from step 7. The whole package fits in a single message or a short doc, and every recommendation names which episode or metric it applies to. ## Operating Rules 1. Promise first, format second. Never pick a publishing cadence before the series promise is locked. 2. Every episode must stand alone AND connect. If an episode only makes sense after watching three others, rewrite it. 3. One new hook pattern per season at most. Rotate proven patterns; don't experiment with the hook on every episode. 4. Compare against the channel's own history, not industry benchmarks. Benchmarks are context, not targets. 5. If the test season doesn't grow returning viewers, change the promise or the structure, not the thumbnail color. Report that honestly before pitching a season two. 6. When covering platform features (Shorts Series eligibility, TikTok Series paywall rules), verify the current numbers before quoting them. Eligibility and limits change; the reference file carries the last-verified figures and sources.