Youtube is an American video-sharing application and also a social media platform. Youtube is owned by Google and is the most visited website after a google search. Anyone can upload videos from any part of the world. This application is very user-friendly and, if used in the right way, very informative. Like any other video posted on other social media platforms, the videos uploaded on youtube also have a thumbnail. A thumbnail is a static image that gives a glimpse of what is present in the video.
The video’s Thumbnail is as crucial as the title since it manipulates the human mind and makes the audience decide whether or not to watch the video. The presence of a clear and related thumbnail attracts more viewers. To have a clear image that fits perfectly, The YouTuber must maintain the aspect ratio of the picture. Therefore it is recommended to have a thumbnail of resolution 1280*720 along with a minimum width of 640 pixels.
Ideal features of a youtube thumbnail
- Google recommends an image size of 1280(wide)*720(tall) pixels.
- Minimum width of 640 pixels is suggested.
- Most popular YouTubers use a ratio of 16:9, which is considered ideal.
- The image should be in the format of .jpg, .png, or .gif (non-animated), BMP formats.
- The maximum file size of the image is 2MB
If the mentioned specifications of the image are met, then the Thumbnail will be clear even when the video is embedded in other pages. An image scaled up will look pixelated and blurry. To avoid this, we are supposed to upload a thumbnail of higher resolution when the video gets expanded to the full size.
Types of youtube thumbnails
Two types of youtube thumbnails a Youtuber can add.
- System thumbnails
- Custom thumbnails
System thumbnails: These are the images automatically selected by the youtube application from the video uploaded. You have to choose an image as a thumbnail for the video. However, if the image is not manually selected, then youtube automatically chooses an image that feels the best.
Custom thumbnail: This is an image manually selected during upload time. This method of uploading a thumbnail is considered efficient in attracting more viewers. Around 90% of the best-performing videos have a custom thumbnail. If a custom thumbnail is not uploaded, YouTube automatically chooses the system thumbnail.
To make eye-catching thumbnails, you can design applications like Canva, Pixlr, Adobe Photoshop, etc. These apps have many editing options and ready-to-use templates, which makes the template attractive and our job- hassle-free.
Tips for creating a catchy thumbnail
These are a few tips to make an attractive thumbnail to gain the attention of a wide range of audiences. However, This is not a compulsion.
- Using Contrasting colors draws immediate attention.
- Show the face of the person featured in the video
- Add a few stills and pictures from the videos ( Consider clicking a still image similar to that)
- Use colors other than Red, Black, and white( since they are in the logo) since the Thumbnail might go unnoticed.
- Be concise
- Do not leave any white spaces
Few common mistakes to be avoided
- Small font size
- Writing either too much or too little text
- Irrelevant or misleading images
- Choosing a monochrome theme
How to change the size of the Thumbnail?
Thumbnails can be resized by using an online image resizer. There are many websites to perform this action. Just upload the image on the website, enter the desired size and click on resize. Download the resized picture, and then the image is ready to use.
How to create and edit thumbnails?
They can be created using Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Spark, Canva, Pixlr, and many other tools. Canva makes your Thumbnail look professional. It has many ready-to-use templates, and the editing system is very simplified. It is a free tool that gets updated regularly. Other tools mentioned above also make professional-looking thumbnails with a user-friendly interface.
How to upload a youtube thumbnail?
The Thumbnail can be uploaded either while uploading your Youtube video or later. Firstly, Sign into youtube studio. From the left menu, please select a video by clicking on its Thumbnail. We can then choose autogenerated Thumbnail and save it. If the account is verified, Then we can upload a custom thumbnail on the Basic Info tab. If live-streaming is going on, Select upload, and then go live. Select upload thumbnail on the New stream screen.
Conclusion
Thumbnail to a video is analogous to the cover of a book. Thumbnail is what makes the audience click on the video. Getting the resolution right is very important to grab the audience’s attention. The ideal side of the Thumbnail is suggested as 1280 pixels wide and 720 pixels tall. This makes the Thumbnail clear when the video opens to its full size. There are many free tools to make an eye-catchy yet professional Thumbnail. A beautiful thumbnail can be made using the tips, do’s, and don’ts mentioned above.
