Startup launch video script template

This is the skeleton we start from for a 45 to 75 second launch video. Copy it, fill in the brackets, then cut everything that does not prove your one line.

Before you write: the line

[Product] lets [who] [do what] [without what pain].

If you cannot fill that in, stop here and fix the positioning first.

The script

SCENE 1 · 0:00 to 0:03 · THE HOOK FRAME
On screen: [the result, the blank state, or the answer to the doubt]
Text: [the line, or the question it answers]

SCENE 2 · 0:03 to 0:10 · THE PROBLEM
On screen: [the old way, in one visual]
Text: [the pain, in five words or fewer]

SCENE 3 · 0:10 to 0:40 · THE PROOF
On screen: [the product doing one real task, start to finish, real speed]
Text: [labels for each step, only where needed]

SCENE 4 · 0:40 to 0:55 · THE SECOND PROOF (optional)
On screen: [a different use case, or the same task at scale]

SCENE 5 · 0:55 to 1:05 · THE CLOSE
On screen: [product name, URL, what to do now]
Text: [available today / join the waitlist / try it free]

The post copy that goes with it

[The line, as a statement or a question]

[Proof point 1]
[Proof point 2]
[Proof point 3]

[Link or what to do now]

Keep the hook line in the copy and the first frame consistent. If they say different things, the viewer has to choose, and usually chooses to scroll.

Common mistakes

• Logo first. Nobody in the feed knows your logo yet. Put it last.
• Feature lists. Ten features in sixty seconds proves nothing. One task proves something.
• Voiceover only. Most people will never hear it. Everything important needs to be on screen.

See how real launches handled each scene in our annotated launch videos, or send us your brief and we will write it with you.