What’s the second-biggest social network after Facebook?

YouTube, with over 1.5 billion user accounts.

If you aren’t trying to promote your business on this massive social media site, you are missing the boat. One of the most important considerations to make when publishing content on YouTube is how to make video thumbnails that stand out and attract attention.

Believe it or not, your video thumbnail can actually have a significant impact on whether or not users decide to watch it. In the competitive modern landscape of YouTube, it’s critical that you have a way to gain eyeballs.

Here’s what you need to know about doing that with your video thumbnail.

Include Text

It may seem silly to think that you should include text on a preview image for a video. After all, if someone is clicking on a video, it means they are interested in consuming visual content, right?

That may be true, but you can also think about visual text as a sort of headline for your video. When used properly, a compelling headline on an article is a writer’s best shot at grabbing a reader’s attention and getting them to click through.

The same goes for a headline on a video – putting interesting text over a scene included in your video is one of the best ways to hook users on YouTube and get them to want to visit your video.

Use a Picture of a Person

If you are thinking about including an image on your video thumbnail, it can be helpful to select one that shows a person. This is especially true if you are creating a video for an e-commerce store, or to promote a specific product or item that people can use.

For example, you will often see clothing stores publishing videos on YouTube that show off people modeling or at least wearing their clothes in everyday situations.

You can view here an example of images of people included prominently on a website designed to entice customers.

Choose a Pleasing Color Scheme

Don’t worry about picking fancy, sophisticated colors, or using a lot of different colors together. Instead, think about what will be appealing to the viewer’s eye. Most people are partial to simple colors that are easy to take in but still look nice in the right context, such as black, white, or red.

Highlight Your Most Compelling Scene

Is there a specific part of your YouTube video with a lot of action or drama? It may be wise to use this as your thumbnail.

Think about using a screen capture of this particular part of your video so that you will get people wanting to know more about what is going on.

Learning How to Make Video Thumbnails Doesn’t Have to Be Complex

If you follow some of the basic guidelines about visual psychology, you’ll find it easy to learn how to make video thumbnails that have a positive impact on your business. To learn more about how visuals like a thumbnail and other graphic design can make a difference to your online success, check out our helpful posts on the subject.