A Practical Look at Attention, Momentum, and a Message That Sticks
“If you’ve got a riff, you’ve got a song.” – Keith Richards
“A lot of the time, if somebody only knows a little bit of a song, it’s the hook.” – Taylor Swift
Two artists.
Two eras.
Same truth:
The opening makes or breaks you.
Richards knew the riff is the foundation – the thing that announces itself instantly.
Swift knows the hook is the part people actually remember.
That’s not just songwriting.
That’s marketing.
And a great marketing hook sticks.
At J.Schmid, we build ideas that work across every channel. But when I joined the team, they found out I also build ideas in a different medium:
On stage.
With a guitar.
Powered by questionable coffee and late-night adrenaline.
I’m a songwriter.
And here’s what songwriting teaches you very quickly:
You get maybe three seconds.
Spotify, TikTok, the inbox, the mailbox – doesn’t matter.
If the opening doesn’t grab me, I’m gone.
Last year, my roots & blues record hit #2 on the USA charts and stayed in the Top 15 for nearly twenty weeks.
Not because I’m a household name.
But because the hook did its job.
Marketing works the exact same way.
Every piece of creative has to:
• Hit fast
• Say something true
• Build momentum
• Stick the landing
• Make someone feel something
• Make them want more
The riff (Richards) pulls you in.
The hook (Swift) stays with you.
Your brand needs both.
So, here’s the question I ask when reviewing creative:
Does this open like a Stones riff?
Does it stay with me like a Swift hook?
Does it stop me, or make me scroll?
What’s a great marketing hook, from a song or a brand, that grabbed you instantly?
– Mike, Senior Writer at J.Schmid
Tags: Brand Storytelling, branding, Humanity Marketing, Strategy