9 Tips for Better YouTube Thumbnails
Thumbnail creation is one of those things you probably do without thinking about it—until you realize how important it actually is.
YouTube thumbnails are the first thing people see when they discover your video, so it's important to create eye-catching thumbnails that convey what the video is about in just a few seconds. While there's no magic formula for creating the perfect thumbnail, there are some basic guidelines you can follow to ensure that your video gets noticed.
What Are YouTube Thumbnails?
A YouTube thumbnail is a small image that appears next to your video's title, description, and play button in search results and on YouTube. It's usually the first impression viewers get of your video, along with your title.
Your thumbnail is one of the most critical elements of your video marketing strategy. This image represents what your video is about at a glance and should communicate your video's topic in just a few seconds.
Why are YouTube Thumbnails important?
YouTube thumbnails play a huge role in how people interact with videos online. A good thumbnail can make or break how well your video performs. They're often the first thing viewers notice while searching through videos, and they determine whether they'll watch your video or move on.
Even if your content is great, without a compelling thumbnail, it might not get clicked on by others. Without a high click-through rate, YouTube is unlikely to promote your video to other potential subscribers.
So, how can you make your YouTube thumbnails stand out?
Tip #1: Plan Your Thumbnails Before Filming
Having a clear path for what you'd like to show in your thumbnail can help capture your main topic or takeaway message. This doesn't mean you have to conceptualize and design your final thumbnail before you even know where your video is headed, but thinking about all the moving pieces in your video script can help inspire a catchy and clickable thumbnail that resonates.
We recommend grabbing a notebook or piece of paper and making 2-3 quick sketches of what you want your thumbnail to look like. Start with the problem your video is trying to solve for your audience. What value is your video adding to their lives? How are you making their problem go away? Focus on how your video is making their day-to-day better -- whether that be entertainment, education, or inspiration.
We recognize this process could get very time-consuming if you're repeating it for every single video you produce, but don't fret! We recommend only brainstorming at the beginning of your YouTube journey (or when you need a brand refresh!) The initial planning phase will make it much easier to create thumbnails that capture your unique brand voice for future videos.
Tip #2: Create Brand Guidelines for Your Thumbnails
There are over 15 million creators on YouTube today, with more and more joining by the hour. With such a massive pool of competition, having a unique brand voice is essential to setting yourself apart from the pack.
This is why we recommend creating brand guidelines for how each thumbnail should look and feel. Brand guidelines are the colors, fonts, images, and shapes that make your brand YOUR brand. They help give your videos a consistent look and keep them from getting too cluttered with different styles over time. You don't want viewers seeing one video from you and then seeing another one that looks completely different but uses the same thumbnail style! They may not even recognize it's your video.
A consistent look across all of your videos will help strengthen your brand and make it easier for users to identify your content. You don't need to overthink this. Check out our blog post on creating simple brand guidelines for all your content marketing needs.
Tip #3: Keep It Simple
One of the biggest mistakes we see creators make is communicating too much information in their thumbnails. The average attention span is 8.25 seconds, so when it comes to these clickable billboards, less is more.
If you try to cram too much into a thumbnail, it will look cluttered and confusing. Remember that the thumbnail is supposed to capture the essence of what your video is about. Make sure that the image doesn't distract viewers from watching the full video.
A good rule of thumb (pun intended) is that if you can't tell at a glance what's in the picture, it's too busy. If you want to add text or other elements, make sure they're clear and easy to read.
Tip #4: Keyword Research
Don't skip this part! Keyword research should be the cornerstone of your video marketing strategy. Why? Because it's how your videos get found in the first place.
A keyword is simply a word or phrase that defines a topic or concept. For instance, "cupcakes" and "cooking" are both keywords. Keywords are important because they help people find what they're looking for online. So if you're trying to rank higher in Google for certain keywords, then those are the ones you should focus on. However, keep in mind that not every single one of these keywords needs to be included. You'd only include two or three of them, depending on how competitive your niche is.
To begin your keyword research, start by looking at videos that are similar to yours (or at least similar topics) and see what keywords they use. Look at how many views the videos are getting. This will give you a good idea of trending topics and areas to focus on in your own videos.
Quick Tip: Try to identify any gaps in those trending topics that YouTubers are covering! You can cover those gaps in your own videos and answer any questions that they might have missed!
You can also use tools like Google Trends or TubeBuddy to find out which search terms are most popular with people who are looking for videos about your niche. This will give you ideas for what words to use in your description and title tags as well as in your thumbnail image itself.
Tip #5: Use Contrast
Make sure there's enough contrast between the background and foreground of your image so that viewers can see what's going on in the thumbnail clearly. If it's hard for them to make out what's happening in the video, they may not click through to watch it.
Contrast is important because it allows people to quickly and easily digest what's going on in your image. If your image has too much of one color (like white), then it can be difficult for people to make out what it is they're looking at. Adding more contrast will give them more options when they're deciding whether or not they should click play on your video!
Tip#6: Avoid Clickbait
Clickbait is a common problem on social media these days, but it's especially prevalent on YouTube. Many channels try to trick people into clicking their videos by promising "the most shocking thing you'll ever see" or "you won't believe what happens next." The problem is that these clickbait tactics don't actually attract viewers — they just annoy them.
Instead of trying to get people's attention with misleading titles and thumbnails, focus on creating content that will engage and entertain your audience and make sure the key message of your video is translated well into your thumbnails.
Tip #7: Use Faces and Text to Evoke Emotion
It’s no secret that people like engaging with content that evokes strong emotions.
One of the most obvious ways people connect is through faces, and YouTube thumbnails are well-known to leverage that fact. The use of faces in video content is fairly well documented at this point.
In a study done by Best SEO Companies, 72% of 740 YouTube videos were found to contain a human face. In most cases, this face wasn't just deadpan and emotionless, either. There study also found that emotional faces get more clicks.
Yup! That silly surprised face you see all over YouTube is intentional.
But it's not just the shocked Pikachu face that gets people clicking.
There's a long list of emotional cues YouTubers use in their thumbnails to trigger a response. To get the most out of your video thumbnails, consider exploring these emotions in your graphics.
Excitement – Showing someone excited about something is a great way to get viewers excited about it too. This emotion has been shown to increase brand loyalty and sales when incorporated into marketing content.
Inspiration – Inspiring people is another great way to get them interested in what you have to offer. People like being inspired and seeing others do what they want to do themselves.
Curiosity – Curiosity is another common emotion that drives people to share content online. People love being able to satisfy their curiosity about something by watching a video or reading an article about it.
Another visual cue that you can use to trigger an emotional response is text. Adding text to a video thumbnail is one of the best ways to communicate what your video is about and make viewers want to click on it.
The text in your thumbnail should be simple and focused on one key message. For example, if you're creating an educational video, use text that tells viewers what they will learn from the video. If you're promoting a product or service, use text that explains why they should buy it or how it can help them in one 2 or 3 words. This might seem challenging to do, but don't overthink it. Think of your thumbnail text as an accessory to your title. Here are some good examples:
Tip #8: Use Arrows/Icons that Lead the Eye!
Arrows or icons pointing toward an object (or person!) can help draw attention toward whatever they're pointing at. You don't need any fancy graphics or expensive software programs to create these types of icons. Canva will work just fine for this type of imagery.
Tip #9: Test Different Thumbnails
Sometimes the video thumbnail you thought was perfect won't perform, and that's ok!
Switching out the thumbnails to slightly different variants can improve your videos’ performance and teach you what works and what doesn’t.
We’ve tested dozens of thumbnails for clients, and it’s amazing how much a thumbnail could impact a video’s performance. Sometimes we don’t notice any differences, but then we’ll see a huge spike in views after switching them out.
There are tools like Optimizely that can help you run tests on your thumbnail variants and measure how they perform against each other. Although these resources are helpful, nothing beats the human eye when it comes to putting a number to creativity. Testing out multiple thumbnails will help you find your secret sauce and make it easier for you to grow your channel's CTR consistently.
Final Thoughts
YouTube is an incredibly effective platform for sharing your content, but it can be difficult to get people's attention. One of the best ways to do this is by using compelling YouTube thumbnails that draw viewers in and compel them to click through.
As YouTube becomes an increasingly popular avenue for content marketers, it is important to make the most of your time by creating compelling thumbnail images. Let us know what you think of these tips in the comments below, and feel free to share them with any peers or friends that may benefit from them.
Looking for help with your YouTube videos? We're here for it. Red 11 Media specializes in helping creators like you grow quickly and efficiently. Contact us today for a 30-minute consultation.
