Does production quality drive performance?

The 10 Minute Personal Brand Kickstart (FREE): https://the505podcast.courses/personalbrandkickstart

What’s up, Rock Nation! Today we’re joined by Brendan Kane - author, speaker, and founder of Hook Point, who’s helped brands like Taylor Swift and MTV generate billions of views through storytelling.

In this episode, we dive into why storytelling is the #1 skill for creators in 2026, how to craft viral formats, and how to turn attention into income.

If you’re a creator or founder looking to master storytelling and grow your brand, this one’s a must-listen.

Want to go deeper on what Brendan shared today?

Grab a FREE copy of his latest book and discover the proven system behind 60+ billion views 👇

https://hookpoint.com/505

Inside, you’ll learn:

•⁠ ⁠How to engineer viral storytelling, not hope for it

•⁠ ⁠The repeatable formula used to generate over 100 million followers

•⁠ ⁠The psychological patterns that make people stop scrolling and start paying attention

Connect with Brendan:

📱 instagram.com/brendankane

🎥 youtube.com/brendankane

🌐 hookpoint.com

SUSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER: https://the505podcast.ac-page.com/rock-report

Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/xgEAzkqAvs

Kostas' Lightroom Presets

https://www.kostasgarcia.com/store-1/p/kglightroompresetsgreece

COP THE BFIGGY "ESSENTIALS" SFX PACK HERE:

https://courses.the505podcast.com/BFIGGYSFXPACK

Timestamps:

0:00 – Intro

1:03 – Why Storytelling Beats Every Algorithm

4:16 – How to Become a Better Storyteller on Social

6:02 – Why Social Media Rules Don’t Actually Change

8:53 – Finding the Right Content Format for You

11:27 – Authenticity vs. Imitation: What Audiences Feel Instantly

12:55 – Personal Brand Kickstart

13:19 – The Key Ingredients of a Great Story

17:01 – How Tension Keeps Viewers Hooked

17:46 – The 6 Communication Types That Shape Your Content

22:12 – Why Most Brands Fail to Connect Emotionally

26:20 – How to Script Content That Actually Performs

30:02 – Best Performing Formats for Real Estate, Law & More

31:42 – The General Principle: How to Go Broad Without Selling Out

33:54 – Building Trust Before You Sell

35:58 – Why Views Don’t Equal Sales

37:53 – Turning Attention Into Income

39:30 – Optimizing Your Backend Systems for Growth

42:12 – Production Quality vs. Performance

43:48 – Why You Should Study (Not Compare) Big Creators

48:36 – Viral Content Comparison Challenge

59:34 – Dissecting the “How Do You Know” Format

1:00:17 – What Makes a Low-Production Video Go Viral

1:01:06 – Why Simple Storytelling Still Wins

1:02:55 – How to Build Emotional Hooks into Any Video

1:05:53 – More Viral Content Comparison

1:12:01 – Why the Video Performed Better

1:15:06 – The Golden Triangle

1:15:41 – Comparing 505 Instagram Reels

1:19:04 – The Data Behind Great Hooks

1:20:47 – You’re Not Shadowbanned — You’re Misreading the Metrics

1:22:58 – Hook Point’s Process for Analyzing Formats

1:23:59 – Why Some Hooks Don’t Convert

1:26:11 – Telling Stories That Stick

1:28:32 – Avoiding the Trap of Trend-Chasing

1:29:43 – The Power of Pattern Recognition in Content

1:31:39 – Storytelling ≠ Viral — It’s About Connection

1:33:32 – How to Turn Insights into Actionable Strategy

1:34:23 – What Makes a Great Hook

1:37:36 – Applying Hook Point to Your Own Content

1:39:33 – Final Takeaways with Brendan Kane

1:42:10 – Post-Pod Debrief

If you liked this episode please send it to a friend and take a screenshot for your story! And as always, we'd love to hear from you guys on what you'd like to hear us talk about or potential guests we should have on.

DM US ON IG: (Our DM's are always open!)

Bfiggy: https://www.instagram.com/bfiggy/

Kostas: https://www.instagram.com/kostasg95/

TikTok:

Bfiggy: https://www.tiktok.com/bfiggy/

Kostas: https://www.tiktok.com/kostasgarcia/