Open Loops and Blind Bullets
Tease the outcome, hide the how — keep them riveted with unresolved curiosity.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~days to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 82%
To keep audiences riveted, Fladlien opens curiosity loops and closes them later. The base tactic is the blind bullet: for every interesting point, tell them the amazing outcome but not how it occurs ('an article written in 1957 that doubled my conversion rate the first time I applied it'). He layers in tension and drama by framing a goal as borderline impossible so people stay to see if he pulls it off. He explicitly avoids the common 'stay till the end for a free bonus' bribe because everyone does it, which anchors you as ordinary and invites the same judgment people apply to everyone else. Testimonials get the same treatment ('wait till you discover what John did next'), and numbered lists work because you know the count but not the contents.
Origin
Fladlien frames these as his preferred alternatives to the ubiquitous 'stay till the end' bonus technique, drawing the blind-bullet idea from direct-response copywriting and social-media list headlines.
Core principles
- 01A blind bullet promises an amazing outcome but hides how it happens.
- 02Open loops keep people watching to find out the resolution.
- 03Tension and drama ('can he really do the impossible?') beat bribes for stickiness.
- 04Avoid the 'stay till the end for a free bonus' technique — everyone does it, so it anchors you as ordinary.
- 05Numbered lists work because you know how many there are but not what they are.
How to run it
- 1
Convert points into blind bullets
Go through your webinar and turn every interesting point into a bullet that reveals an intriguing outcome but withholds how it happens.
Pro tip 'An article written in 1957 that the first time I applied it doubled my conversion rate' — they must stay to learn what it is.
- 2
Open loops early
Tell them up front that by the end they'll discover X, Y, and Z, creating unresolved threads that pull them through.
- 3
Use tension and drama
Frame a goal as borderline impossible so people stick around to see whether you can actually deliver it.
Pro tip 'Will I be able to show you how to do X?' — they doubt it, so they stay to find out.
- 4
Avoid the stay-till-the-end bribe
Skip the common 'stay to the end for a free bonus' technique; use open loops, drama, and mid-arc story cuts for stickiness instead.
Pro tip Cut testimonial stories mid-arc: 'wait till you discover what John did next.'
Watch out Doing what everyone else does anchors you as ordinary and invites the same judgment people give everyone else.
In the wild
Fladlien teases 'an article written in 1957 in an obscure scientific magazine that the first time I applied it automatically doubled my conversion rate' — stating the outcome but not what the article was or what it taught.
→ Creates an open loop that keeps the audience watching to find out what the article is.
Common mistakes
Relying on the stay-till-the-end bonus
Because almost everyone uses the 'stay to the end for a free bonus' technique, it makes you look like everyone else and invites the same dismissive judgment, instead of the riveted attention open loops create.
Is it for you?
Best for
Webinar presenters and content creators who need to hold attention across a long-form presentation.
Not ideal for
Formats demanding immediate, complete answers where withholding the how frustrates the audience.
From the transcript
“you turn it into a bullet point a blind bullet point as we call it where you tell them some amazing outcome but you don't…”
“creating a whole bunch of open Loops like what we're talking about here is by the end of the webinar you'll discover X Y and…”
From the episode
Jason Fladlien: The Quarter-Billion-Dollar Webinar Man Reveals His Best Marketing and Sales Secrets
Jason Fladlien