Are you hoping to get more people to watch your videos? Do you understand how to make them compelling enough for visitors to click on them in an instant?
A thumbnail is the first thing your audience sees when they come across your video. It serves the same purpose as a book cover by giving your viewers a concise summary of your material in a single image. You cannot afford to take the cover image of your movie for granted in the face of such fierce online competition. People prefer watching videos above reading anything else, but if your thumbnail is unattractive, they’ll swipe past it.
This guide will show you how to design your video thumbnails properly in order to boost the number of views for your videos.
What does a video thumbnail represent?
Every company needs a video marketing strategy that generates high-quality videos that can be disseminated via various platforms to increase awareness. When videos are published, the thumbnails are typically shown as a still image, however these pictures are frequently blurry and won’t help you much.
You’ll need a distinct thumbnail that grabs attention and sums up the video in a single glance. It should immediately catch the interest of your target audience and compel them to watch.
People typically form their opinions about your video content based on the thumbnail, which affects whether or not they choose to go through. Work with a video marketing company to produce polished thumbnails that will increase traffic to and viewership of your video content.
To help you get started, here are nine of the most useful suggestions!
1. A thumbnail that accurately depicts the title and substance of the video
Your thumbnail should accurately reflect the video’s content. If your movie’s goal is to inform viewers about a certain subject, the thumbnail should reflect this. Never utilize a thumbnail for your video that has nothing to do with it because doing so will trick your viewers. Visitors should be encouraged to click, but you don’t want them to leave after viewing the content.
By tricking your audience, you can shorten the time they spend watching your movie because most people will leave as soon as they realize they’ve been taken for a ride. Additionally, your material will be penalized on results pages, resulting in a lower ranking in search results and fewer views than if you had provided a precise thumbnail.
2. Pictures in high resolution
Make a high-resolution image of the thumbnail for your video. Instead of using a fuzzy image, choose one that is clear because viewers will find it harder to understand the story. Whenever feasible, use high-quality photos to capture the attention of your audience because you only get one chance to make a good first impression.
The use of high-quality images as your video’s thumbnails shows your dedication to creating high-quality material and persuades viewers to click and watch the whole thing. The online economy is fiercely competitive, so you must uphold high standards from the very first point of contact with your customers if you want them to read your content.
3. Something to which you can relate on an emotional level
People’s actions and choices are influenced by their emotions. Video marketing statistics show that videos with emotional thumbnails get more hits than those without them. When creating your video thumbnails, add a personal touch to capture the attention of your audience. Show up in your videos so that you can establish a connection with your audience and convey a sense of presence. By taking these actions, you may increase the authenticity of your online communications and entice viewers to watch your films.
If your movie features people, take pictures of their faces to convey real emotion. Particularly if the expression is over the top, as in anger or horror, people are drawn to expressive faces. Additionally, your headline should be emotionally compelling to increase the likelihood that readers will click it.
4- Keeping Brand Consistency at All Times
When it comes to branding your marketing materials, thumbnails are not an exception. However, branding involves more than just sticking your logo on a thumbnail image. It all comes down to keeping a consistent look that makes it simple for people to recognise you. Use this area to display your logo, brand colors, typefaces, filters, and other distinctive brand elements.
Making your thumbnails uniform gives your content previews a united appearance and gives your online video platforms a great, polished appearance. People will find it simple to recognise your work because of the uniform appearance of your playlists on Facebook and YouTube.
The YouTube account for Brian Dean is a great illustration of brand coherence in video thumbnails. Brian uses fonts, graphics, colors, and structure in a consistent manner across his entire website.
Another advantage of having a distinctive design is that it will catch the eye of people who are already familiar with your brand and stop them from scrolling past your content when they are browsing. The creation procedure is also sped up by a predetermined structure because you won’t have to build new thumbnails for fresh flicks.
5. Effective and Efficient Words
Text is a fantastic additional design element for your thumbnail. Make the few words you have in your thumbnail count as you only have a few to deal with. The language you employ should make it clear to viewers what the subject of your movie is.
Explain to your viewers what the video is about using a few attention-grabbing words because you are restricted by space and your audience’s attention span (no more than six). The video’s whole title shouldn’t be included in the thumbnail text; instead, it should only contain a few carefully selected words that will intrigue visitors.
The text should be a different color from the background to make it easier to read.
6. Recognize your key point
What is the main focus of your picture?
As part of your content marketing strategy, you should decide on the focal point of your thumbnail image and make it as obvious as you can. This will make it lot simpler for you to grab viewers’ attention, inspire strong feelings, and spark interest in your film. Use the sticker effect to highlight the focus location (a line around the image that distinguishes it from the background).
7. Make it understandable
Your thumbnail should be easy to understand if you want to increase the number of clicks and views. To make it simpler for viewers to grasp what is happening, use contrasting colors, typefaces, and images. Your video thumbnail should be reader-friendly because you only have a brief window of time to grab readers’ attention.
Use bold and simple typefaces, position the text on a clear, contrasting area of the image, and you’ll boost readability. Work along with a growth marketing agency to create simple, quick-to-read thumbnail images.
8. Picture montage
Examine your thumbnail’s structure carefully to make sure that important information is not obscured or withheld from readers. Make sure the text is in the ideal location, which is typically to the left of the box, because it communicates the plot of the movie on your thumbnail.
Your video will have a play button when it appears in search results pages. Avoid placing critical information in the center of the image so that the button doesn’t cover anything important. In order to preserve the thumbnail’s appeal at all times, you must also make sure that the image’s focus point is in the optimal location. Use the rule of thirds to decide where to position the major aspects of your thumbnail to create a more natural-looking image.
9. Final Outcome
If your video builds to something amazing, share the finished article. To demonstrate to viewers what they will learn from viewing the film, the thumbnail should include the last act. This strategy will enhance your video marketing strategy because it will stimulate the curiosity of your viewers, who will most likely click on your video to find out what it’s all about.
Users can see a preview of your film in a video thumbnail, and if it’s well-designed, it will get more clicks and views. If you follow the right instructions, creating a good thumbnail is not tough, but creating an excellent video is.