WHAT KEEPS VIEWERS WATCHING FACEBOOK REELS?

Summary from the TLDR Marketing newsletter

Facebook Reels performance is driven by early hooks and format, not trends. Videos with speech in the first 3 seconds see +24.7% higher 10-second retention and +5.6% more engagement than music-only content. Vertical videos boost reach by +20.9% and 30-second retention by +38.5%. Showing a person early increases short-term retention by +10.1%. For very short clips, seamless loops lift replays by +18.7% and reach by +23.6%. Prioritize voice, human presence, and vertical format to keep viewers watching.