Gain Traction in the Digital Sphere - Explore the Quintessential Five YouTube Tactics

YouTube is undoubtedly the most famous video sharing platform in the world. More than 5 billion videos are watched every single minute on YouTube. And the ever-growing user base has propelled YouTube to the status of 2nd most popular social media platform in the world, and the second most visited website after Google in 2021.

YouTube marketing is great for both businesses and individuals who want to make careers out of YouTube. Many businesses make use of YouTube ads to get their products to their customers and it’s really effective. However, you can make more organic traffic using YouTube video marketing. With a successful YouTube video marketing strategy, you can generate leads without any ad investments.

And in this guide, we will discuss some YouTube video marketing tips that will help you get more subscribers and build your brand outreach.

Tip #1: Create A Roadmap Leading To Your Main Goal

A roadmap is basically a level by level approach to your vision. Instead of just looking at the end plan, you are building your platform up through short attainable goals. There is immense power in setting short term goals. Some serious questions that you should ask yourself are:

Step 1: Start with the question of why you need a YouTube channel in the first place! Decide on what your channel should be about and how the viewers are going to benefit from it.

Step 2: The next step is to prepare a content plan. Here must decide the type of videos and how often it will be published on your channel.

Step 3: What is your target in terms of subscribers and traffic conversion. Do you plan to take the audience to a separate landing or are you planning on making money solely from YouTube?

Planning out such specifics will help you build your platform gradually to the main goal.

Tip #2: Do tests within your strategy

Understanding the audience preferences is paramount to the success of YouTube channels. There are some important tests that you can do to understand the genre that you are targeting.

a. Test video duration

Nobody likes to see a 2 hour long YouTube video unless it’s super interesting. Thankfully, there have been studies that have been conducted to measure the audience reaction to videos of different lengths.

By default, when you create a YouTube account, the maximum upload length is restricted to just 15 minutes. You can go past this limit by verifying your account on YouTube.

When you look at the most trending videos on YouTube, they generally fall within 10 minutes. The average video size on YouTube is 4.4 minutes .

For example, let us look at YouTube videos that explain the same concept, but with different video lengths and see if the audience engagement differs with the videos. we have ensured that both videos are from channels who have a similar subscriber count in order to eliminate disproportionality that arises from viewer base.

This video gives an excellent explanation of the string theory. The Video is From TED-Ed and you can see the audience response in the comments where they praise Physicist Brian Greene for his talk. Note that the video has 2.4 million views.

Now, look at the above video that explains String Theory in less than half the time from TED-Ed. Notice how the video has more than four times the views with an impressive 10 million views. It comes to show that if you can condense your content in such a way that you can get the maximum meaning across in minimum time, you will rack up more views!

b. Test different formats/scenarios

Having a monotonous nature throughout your videos can be quite tiring for the viewer after some time. Make sure to mix things up a bit by introducing new types of video formats or scenarios that keeps the users engaged.

Such a format change will also be invaluable in testing the audience reaction to the different types of videos that you make. These new formats can be in the form of a separate video series that is different from your main content. It can also be something that directly engages the viewers like a live video stream, Ask Me Anything or Q&A type of content, etc.

For example, let us take one among the most popular cooking channels on YouTube – Tasty. If you were to browse through their content, you can see how they got their fame with cookery videos that are short and sweet like the one below:

However, they do not just stick to that same format all the time. you can also see how they mix in lengthier videos of different format. For example:

And many videos that aren’t specifically cooking at all!

And it is evident that these new formats have also become crowd favorites. Now do all their videos hit the 1 million mark? No, that just shows they are constantly testing out the waters go ahead with what works and discard what doesn’t!

c. Try Giveaways and gifts

You can boost the viewership and subscriber count for your channel by setting up occasional giveaways or gifts to the viewers. Make sure that you set the winning criteria to have the viewers subscribe to the channel.

For example, let’s take another popular YouTube channel Unbox Therapy. On Jun 27, 2018, the channel did an announcement that they were giving 106 OnePlus 6 smartphones!

And the result of the announcement was evident in the subscribers count.

From June 23rd to June 27th, 2018, Unbox therapy had gained 12,583 subscribers. However, from the announcement date that is June 27th to June 30th, 2018, the channel saw an increase of a whopping 52,173 subscribers ! Till date, the video has over 14 million views

We do not advise you to try this out when you are just starting your YouTube career. Only venture out to such investments when you are stable when it comes to earnings.

Tip#3: Ask your audience for Feedback

All your videos must be created with the audience in mind. However, sometimes what you may think would work might not fit well with the audience. Hence, it is imperative that you understand their likes and dislikes.

And the best way to improve your videos is to take suggestions from the audience themselves. You can ask them specific questions on how to improve your videos or what they want to see in your future creations. Take notes on what they have to offer and start building your content taking in those suggestions.

There is also another facet to incorporating audience feedback as it projects your YouTube channel to be responsive to the audience, something that is vital to building a strong and loyal viewer base on YouTube.

Tip #4: Analyse your YouTube videos traffic sources

YouTube has made it easier for you to track the sources from which your videos are getting the views. Sign in to YouTube Studio Beta and the click Reach from the Analytics menu provided on the left panel. Now click on Traffic source types.

In this window, you can see the different sources that led viewers to your video. Generally, it can be a mix of websites, YouTube recommendation’s, YouTube search, etc. Metrics like Watch Time gives you an idea of how long viewers watch your videos and Audience Retention shows how consistent they are at watching them. These are just two of the many metrics you can use to your advantage.

Analyzing YouTube videos will help you structure your future videos in a way that it is more susceptible to being clicked.

Tip #5: Track the effectiveness of your videos

You must have an eye on the metrics that your videos garner over the days. While the number of views, likes, and dislikes are great indicators in determining the popularity of the videos, but there are many more factors at play.

Your video ranking is important as it determines the position of your videos when a keyword is typed into the search box. The ranks are calculated by the YouTube algorithm, but you have a certain degree of power in raising the ranks by leveraging the following parameters of the video;

Thumbnail: The first thing that the viewer is going it see when they are browsing through a list of videos is the thumbnail. Make sure that it is attractive and stands out!

Title: The next element that gets the most attention from both the user and the YouTube algorithm is the title. Ensure that the main keyword you are targeting is included in the title.

Description: This is where you can play a lot with keywords, both short and long tail. Be very descriptive about your video, but do not just use a big chunk of text. The description must be succinct and informative. It can also have links to your landing page or sponsors.

Tags: Tags are words or phrases that are used to help YouTube better understand the video. Make sure the tags that you are giving are related to the video that they represent.

Category: YouTube has some predefined categories and the videos that you upload must be put in the right one to get maximum reach.

Subtitles: Subtitles do not carry much weight in terms of SEO or ranking, but they are a much-appreciated addition in the audience point of view.

Yes, it can be quite meticulous but the results are worth the effort. Having a rank tracker like the one from SE Ranking or Tubebuddy can be quite handy at times like these. The software basically tracks everything about your videos and presents them in a neatly organized dashboard, which is cuts the effort significantly for YouTube marketers.

Do not leave the video by itself to garner views, it often fails to register any results because elements like the title, description and the keywords play an important role in getting the videos to the users.

You may also like: How to Convert YouTube to MP4 Safely? [Step by Step Guide] >>

Tip #6: Choose a suitable video creator

Creating attractive videos is a key to make success in Youtube video marketing. So you will need to have a suitable video editor to help you. There are quite a few choices in marketing now, such as Adobe Premiere Pro. However, there is a better choice for most average users - Filmora Video Editor , which provides powerful video editing features and huge transitions, effects, and filters resources.

To know more about Filmora Video Editor, visit its page: https://filmora.wondershare.com/video-editor/

Conclusion

YouTube marketing has evolved over the years to a point where you need a carefully crafted plan to have a successful YouTube career. In this guide, we have mentioned some useful YouTube marketing tips that will help you alo12ng the way.

The greatest takeaway from this guide should be that you must be patient and have persistence. Do not stop what you are doing just because you didn’t see any results on day one. Keep the fire burning and you will reach there in no time!

This video gives an excellent explanation of the string theory. The Video is From TED-Ed and you can see the audience response in the comments where they praise Physicist Brian Greene for his talk. Note that the video has 2.4 million views.

Now, look at the above video that explains String Theory in less than half the time from TED-Ed. Notice how the video has more than four times the views with an impressive 10 million views. It comes to show that if you can condense your content in such a way that you can get the maximum meaning across in minimum time, you will rack up more views!

b. Test different formats/scenarios

Having a monotonous nature throughout your videos can be quite tiring for the viewer after some time. Make sure to mix things up a bit by introducing new types of video formats or scenarios that keeps the users engaged.

Such a format change will also be invaluable in testing the audience reaction to the different types of videos that you make. These new formats can be in the form of a separate video series that is different from your main content. It can also be something that directly engages the viewers like a live video stream, Ask Me Anything or Q&A type of content, etc.

For example, let us take one among the most popular cooking channels on YouTube – Tasty. If you were to browse through their content, you can see how they got their fame with cookery videos that are short and sweet like the one below:

However, they do not just stick to that same format all the time. you can also see how they mix in lengthier videos of different format. For example:

And many videos that aren’t specifically cooking at all!

And it is evident that these new formats have also become crowd favorites. Now do all their videos hit the 1 million mark? No, that just shows they are constantly testing out the waters go ahead with what works and discard what doesn’t!

c. Try Giveaways and gifts

You can boost the viewership and subscriber count for your channel by setting up occasional giveaways or gifts to the viewers. Make sure that you set the winning criteria to have the viewers subscribe to the channel.

For example, let’s take another popular YouTube channel Unbox Therapy. On Jun 27, 2018, the channel did an announcement that they were giving 106 OnePlus 6 smartphones!

And the result of the announcement was evident in the subscribers count.

From June 23rd to June 27th, 2018, Unbox therapy had gained 12,583 subscribers. However, from the announcement date that is June 27th to June 30th, 2018, the channel saw an increase of a whopping 52,173 subscribers ! Till date, the video has over 14 million views

We do not advise you to try this out when you are just starting your YouTube career. Only venture out to such investments when you are stable when it comes to earnings.

Tip#3: Ask your audience for Feedback

All your videos must be created with the audience in mind. However, sometimes what you may think would work might not fit well with the audience. Hence, it is imperative that you understand their likes and dislikes.

And the best way to improve your videos is to take suggestions from the audience themselves. You can ask them specific questions on how to improve your videos or what they want to see in your future creations. Take notes on what they have to offer and start building your content taking in those suggestions.

There is also another facet to incorporating audience feedback as it projects your YouTube channel to be responsive to the audience, something that is vital to building a strong and loyal viewer base on YouTube.

Tip #4: Analyse your YouTube videos traffic sources

YouTube has made it easier for you to track the sources from which your videos are getting the views. Sign in to YouTube Studio Beta and the click Reach from the Analytics menu provided on the left panel. Now click on Traffic source types.

In this window, you can see the different sources that led viewers to your video. Generally, it can be a mix of websites, YouTube recommendation’s, YouTube search, etc. Metrics like Watch Time gives you an idea of how long viewers watch your videos and Audience Retention shows how consistent they are at watching them. These are just two of the many metrics you can use to your advantage.

Analyzing YouTube videos will help you structure your future videos in a way that it is more susceptible to being clicked.

Tip #5: Track the effectiveness of your videos

You must have an eye on the metrics that your videos garner over the days. While the number of views, likes, and dislikes are great indicators in determining the popularity of the videos, but there are many more factors at play.

Your video ranking is important as it determines the position of your videos when a keyword is typed into the search box. The ranks are calculated by the YouTube algorithm, but you have a certain degree of power in raising the ranks by leveraging the following parameters of the video;

Thumbnail: The first thing that the viewer is going it see when they are browsing through a list of videos is the thumbnail. Make sure that it is attractive and stands out!

Title: The next element that gets the most attention from both the user and the YouTube algorithm is the title. Ensure that the main keyword you are targeting is included in the title.

Description: This is where you can play a lot with keywords, both short and long tail. Be very descriptive about your video, but do not just use a big chunk of text. The description must be succinct and informative. It can also have links to your landing page or sponsors.

Tags: Tags are words or phrases that are used to help YouTube better understand the video. Make sure the tags that you are giving are related to the video that they represent.

Category: YouTube has some predefined categories and the videos that you upload must be put in the right one to get maximum reach.

Subtitles: Subtitles do not carry much weight in terms of SEO or ranking, but they are a much-appreciated addition in the audience point of view.

Yes, it can be quite meticulous but the results are worth the effort. Having a rank tracker like the one from SE Ranking or Tubebuddy can be quite handy at times like these. The software basically tracks everything about your videos and presents them in a neatly organized dashboard, which is cuts the effort significantly for YouTube marketers.

Do not leave the video by itself to garner views, it often fails to register any results because elements like the title, description and the keywords play an important role in getting the videos to the users.

You may also like: How to Convert YouTube to MP4 Safely? [Step by Step Guide] >>

Tip #6: Choose a suitable video creator

Creating attractive videos is a key to make success in Youtube video marketing. So you will need to have a suitable video editor to help you. There are quite a few choices in marketing now, such as Adobe Premiere Pro. However, there is a better choice for most average users - Filmora Video Editor , which provides powerful video editing features and huge transitions, effects, and filters resources.

To know more about Filmora Video Editor, visit its page: https://filmora.wondershare.com/video-editor/

Conclusion

YouTube marketing has evolved over the years to a point where you need a carefully crafted plan to have a successful YouTube career. In this guide, we have mentioned some useful YouTube marketing tips that will help you alo12ng the way.

The greatest takeaway from this guide should be that you must be patient and have persistence. Do not stop what you are doing just because you didn’t see any results on day one. Keep the fire burning and you will reach there in no time!

This video gives an excellent explanation of the string theory. The Video is From TED-Ed and you can see the audience response in the comments where they praise Physicist Brian Greene for his talk. Note that the video has 2.4 million views.

Now, look at the above video that explains String Theory in less than half the time from TED-Ed. Notice how the video has more than four times the views with an impressive 10 million views. It comes to show that if you can condense your content in such a way that you can get the maximum meaning across in minimum time, you will rack up more views!

b. Test different formats/scenarios

Having a monotonous nature throughout your videos can be quite tiring for the viewer after some time. Make sure to mix things up a bit by introducing new types of video formats or scenarios that keeps the users engaged.

Such a format change will also be invaluable in testing the audience reaction to the different types of videos that you make. These new formats can be in the form of a separate video series that is different from your main content. It can also be something that directly engages the viewers like a live video stream, Ask Me Anything or Q&A type of content, etc.

For example, let us take one among the most popular cooking channels on YouTube – Tasty. If you were to browse through their content, you can see how they got their fame with cookery videos that are short and sweet like the one below:

However, they do not just stick to that same format all the time. you can also see how they mix in lengthier videos of different format. For example:

And many videos that aren’t specifically cooking at all!

And it is evident that these new formats have also become crowd favorites. Now do all their videos hit the 1 million mark? No, that just shows they are constantly testing out the waters go ahead with what works and discard what doesn’t!

c. Try Giveaways and gifts

You can boost the viewership and subscriber count for your channel by setting up occasional giveaways or gifts to the viewers. Make sure that you set the winning criteria to have the viewers subscribe to the channel.

For example, let’s take another popular YouTube channel Unbox Therapy. On Jun 27, 2018, the channel did an announcement that they were giving 106 OnePlus 6 smartphones!

And the result of the announcement was evident in the subscribers count.

From June 23rd to June 27th, 2018, Unbox therapy had gained 12,583 subscribers. However, from the announcement date that is June 27th to June 30th, 2018, the channel saw an increase of a whopping 52,173 subscribers ! Till date, the video has over 14 million views

We do not advise you to try this out when you are just starting your YouTube career. Only venture out to such investments when you are stable when it comes to earnings.

Tip#3: Ask your audience for Feedback

All your videos must be created with the audience in mind. However, sometimes what you may think would work might not fit well with the audience. Hence, it is imperative that you understand their likes and dislikes.

And the best way to improve your videos is to take suggestions from the audience themselves. You can ask them specific questions on how to improve your videos or what they want to see in your future creations. Take notes on what they have to offer and start building your content taking in those suggestions.

There is also another facet to incorporating audience feedback as it projects your YouTube channel to be responsive to the audience, something that is vital to building a strong and loyal viewer base on YouTube.

Tip #4: Analyse your YouTube videos traffic sources

YouTube has made it easier for you to track the sources from which your videos are getting the views. Sign in to YouTube Studio Beta and the click Reach from the Analytics menu provided on the left panel. Now click on Traffic source types.

In this window, you can see the different sources that led viewers to your video. Generally, it can be a mix of websites, YouTube recommendation’s, YouTube search, etc. Metrics like Watch Time gives you an idea of how long viewers watch your videos and Audience Retention shows how consistent they are at watching them. These are just two of the many metrics you can use to your advantage.

Analyzing YouTube videos will help you structure your future videos in a way that it is more susceptible to being clicked.

Tip #5: Track the effectiveness of your videos

You must have an eye on the metrics that your videos garner over the days. While the number of views, likes, and dislikes are great indicators in determining the popularity of the videos, but there are many more factors at play.

Your video ranking is important as it determines the position of your videos when a keyword is typed into the search box. The ranks are calculated by the YouTube algorithm, but you have a certain degree of power in raising the ranks by leveraging the following parameters of the video;

Thumbnail: The first thing that the viewer is going it see when they are browsing through a list of videos is the thumbnail. Make sure that it is attractive and stands out!

Title: The next element that gets the most attention from both the user and the YouTube algorithm is the title. Ensure that the main keyword you are targeting is included in the title.

Description: This is where you can play a lot with keywords, both short and long tail. Be very descriptive about your video, but do not just use a big chunk of text. The description must be succinct and informative. It can also have links to your landing page or sponsors.

Tags: Tags are words or phrases that are used to help YouTube better understand the video. Make sure the tags that you are giving are related to the video that they represent.

Category: YouTube has some predefined categories and the videos that you upload must be put in the right one to get maximum reach.

Subtitles: Subtitles do not carry much weight in terms of SEO or ranking, but they are a much-appreciated addition in the audience point of view.

Yes, it can be quite meticulous but the results are worth the effort. Having a rank tracker like the one from SE Ranking or Tubebuddy can be quite handy at times like these. The software basically tracks everything about your videos and presents them in a neatly organized dashboard, which is cuts the effort significantly for YouTube marketers.

Do not leave the video by itself to garner views, it often fails to register any results because elements like the title, description and the keywords play an important role in getting the videos to the users.

You may also like: How to Convert YouTube to MP4 Safely? [Step by Step Guide] >>

Tip #6: Choose a suitable video creator

Creating attractive videos is a key to make success in Youtube video marketing. So you will need to have a suitable video editor to help you. There are quite a few choices in marketing now, such as Adobe Premiere Pro. However, there is a better choice for most average users - Filmora Video Editor , which provides powerful video editing features and huge transitions, effects, and filters resources.

To know more about Filmora Video Editor, visit its page: https://filmora.wondershare.com/video-editor/

Conclusion

YouTube marketing has evolved over the years to a point where you need a carefully crafted plan to have a successful YouTube career. In this guide, we have mentioned some useful YouTube marketing tips that will help you alo12ng the way.

The greatest takeaway from this guide should be that you must be patient and have persistence. Do not stop what you are doing just because you didn’t see any results on day one. Keep the fire burning and you will reach there in no time!

This video gives an excellent explanation of the string theory. The Video is From TED-Ed and you can see the audience response in the comments where they praise Physicist Brian Greene for his talk. Note that the video has 2.4 million views.

Now, look at the above video that explains String Theory in less than half the time from TED-Ed. Notice how the video has more than four times the views with an impressive 10 million views. It comes to show that if you can condense your content in such a way that you can get the maximum meaning across in minimum time, you will rack up more views!

b. Test different formats/scenarios

Having a monotonous nature throughout your videos can be quite tiring for the viewer after some time. Make sure to mix things up a bit by introducing new types of video formats or scenarios that keeps the users engaged.

Such a format change will also be invaluable in testing the audience reaction to the different types of videos that you make. These new formats can be in the form of a separate video series that is different from your main content. It can also be something that directly engages the viewers like a live video stream, Ask Me Anything or Q&A type of content, etc.

For example, let us take one among the most popular cooking channels on YouTube – Tasty. If you were to browse through their content, you can see how they got their fame with cookery videos that are short and sweet like the one below:

However, they do not just stick to that same format all the time. you can also see how they mix in lengthier videos of different format. For example:

And many videos that aren’t specifically cooking at all!

And it is evident that these new formats have also become crowd favorites. Now do all their videos hit the 1 million mark? No, that just shows they are constantly testing out the waters go ahead with what works and discard what doesn’t!

c. Try Giveaways and gifts

You can boost the viewership and subscriber count for your channel by setting up occasional giveaways or gifts to the viewers. Make sure that you set the winning criteria to have the viewers subscribe to the channel.

For example, let’s take another popular YouTube channel Unbox Therapy. On Jun 27, 2018, the channel did an announcement that they were giving 106 OnePlus 6 smartphones!

And the result of the announcement was evident in the subscribers count.

From June 23rd to June 27th, 2018, Unbox therapy had gained 12,583 subscribers. However, from the announcement date that is June 27th to June 30th, 2018, the channel saw an increase of a whopping 52,173 subscribers ! Till date, the video has over 14 million views

We do not advise you to try this out when you are just starting your YouTube career. Only venture out to such investments when you are stable when it comes to earnings.

Tip#3: Ask your audience for Feedback

All your videos must be created with the audience in mind. However, sometimes what you may think would work might not fit well with the audience. Hence, it is imperative that you understand their likes and dislikes.

And the best way to improve your videos is to take suggestions from the audience themselves. You can ask them specific questions on how to improve your videos or what they want to see in your future creations. Take notes on what they have to offer and start building your content taking in those suggestions.

There is also another facet to incorporating audience feedback as it projects your YouTube channel to be responsive to the audience, something that is vital to building a strong and loyal viewer base on YouTube.

Tip #4: Analyse your YouTube videos traffic sources

YouTube has made it easier for you to track the sources from which your videos are getting the views. Sign in to YouTube Studio Beta and the click Reach from the Analytics menu provided on the left panel. Now click on Traffic source types.

In this window, you can see the different sources that led viewers to your video. Generally, it can be a mix of websites, YouTube recommendation’s, YouTube search, etc. Metrics like Watch Time gives you an idea of how long viewers watch your videos and Audience Retention shows how consistent they are at watching them. These are just two of the many metrics you can use to your advantage.

Analyzing YouTube videos will help you structure your future videos in a way that it is more susceptible to being clicked.

Tip #5: Track the effectiveness of your videos

You must have an eye on the metrics that your videos garner over the days. While the number of views, likes, and dislikes are great indicators in determining the popularity of the videos, but there are many more factors at play.

Your video ranking is important as it determines the position of your videos when a keyword is typed into the search box. The ranks are calculated by the YouTube algorithm, but you have a certain degree of power in raising the ranks by leveraging the following parameters of the video;

Thumbnail: The first thing that the viewer is going it see when they are browsing through a list of videos is the thumbnail. Make sure that it is attractive and stands out!

Title: The next element that gets the most attention from both the user and the YouTube algorithm is the title. Ensure that the main keyword you are targeting is included in the title.

Description: This is where you can play a lot with keywords, both short and long tail. Be very descriptive about your video, but do not just use a big chunk of text. The description must be succinct and informative. It can also have links to your landing page or sponsors.

Tags: Tags are words or phrases that are used to help YouTube better understand the video. Make sure the tags that you are giving are related to the video that they represent.

Category: YouTube has some predefined categories and the videos that you upload must be put in the right one to get maximum reach.

Subtitles: Subtitles do not carry much weight in terms of SEO or ranking, but they are a much-appreciated addition in the audience point of view.

Yes, it can be quite meticulous but the results are worth the effort. Having a rank tracker like the one from SE Ranking or Tubebuddy can be quite handy at times like these. The software basically tracks everything about your videos and presents them in a neatly organized dashboard, which is cuts the effort significantly for YouTube marketers.

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Do not leave the video by itself to garner views, it often fails to register any results because elements like the title, description and the keywords play an important role in getting the videos to the users.

You may also like: How to Convert YouTube to MP4 Safely? [Step by Step Guide] >>

Tip #6: Choose a suitable video creator

Creating attractive videos is a key to make success in Youtube video marketing. So you will need to have a suitable video editor to help you. There are quite a few choices in marketing now, such as Adobe Premiere Pro. However, there is a better choice for most average users - Filmora Video Editor , which provides powerful video editing features and huge transitions, effects, and filters resources.

To know more about Filmora Video Editor, visit its page: https://filmora.wondershare.com/video-editor/

Conclusion

YouTube marketing has evolved over the years to a point where you need a carefully crafted plan to have a successful YouTube career. In this guide, we have mentioned some useful YouTube marketing tips that will help you alo12ng the way.

The greatest takeaway from this guide should be that you must be patient and have persistence. Do not stop what you are doing just because you didn’t see any results on day one. Keep the fire burning and you will reach there in no time!

The Complete Thumbnail Playbook: From Creation to Analysis

The Ultimate Guide to YouTube Thumbnails that Get Views

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

Search for any topic on YouTube and you’ll find thousands of videos. How do you decide which of them to watch? Thumbnails play a major role in what viewers decide to click on. They’re often more important than video titles.

Viewers click on thumbnails that both standout and feel relevant to their search. Your task when it comes to creating YouTube thumbnails is to make something that does both of those things while also maintaining your personal style.

1. How to Make a YouTube Thumbnail
2. How to Upload a YouTube Thumbnail
3. YouTube Thumbnail Makers
4. How to Make Thumbnails that Get Clicks (Without Clickbait!)
5. Animated YouTube Thumbnails

Part 1: How to Make a YouTube Thumbnail

In order to create a custom video thumbnail, you’ll need a program to put it together in. You can use an image editing program like Photoshop if you have one, but if you don’t you can check out these free thumbnail makers.

Here are some examples of popular thumbnail styles.

1. The Classic Thumbnail (Photo or Screenshot)

A photo that shows what happens in your video – whether that means the finished ‘look’ from your makeup tutorial or you posing in front of the landmark you shot your travel vlog in front of – is a great way to let viewers know what to expect. While curiosity can be a big motive behind clicking on a video thumbnail (or anything online), when people have searched for a specific topic they want to be convinced that your video has what they’re looking for.

#1. Choose Your Photo

To start off, either choose a still frame from your video or take a photograph while you’re still set up from your video. A separate photograph is usually a better idea because your video editor might not be able to export a high-quality snapshot, and also because you’re able to choose your facial expression.

Aim to make this shot a close-up or medium close-up and make sure you’re either in the center of the screen or off to one side, as per the ‘rule of thirds’. Many cameras allow you to bring an optional grid up onto your viewfinder. This will divide your screen into three equal segments both vertically and horizontally. Try to make sure your eyes line up with the top line, and if you’re going to be off to one side then make sure you’re on one of the vertical lines. This will ensure your image is visually appealing.

If you want to add text later, it’s a good idea to be off to one side.

Including your face is important for most types of YouTube videos. People are attracted to eye contact and are more likely to click on thumbnails that feature a face. Gamers might choose to use a picture of a video game character instead and it will have the same effect.

Some situations where it isn’t essential to include your face include tech reviews, where viewers will be more interested in seeing the product, and cooking videos where people are looking to be tempted by a yummy food pic.

#2. Add Text and/or Images

This part isn’t essential – in some cases, a photo is enough – but a lot of the thumbnails for the videos ranked highest in YouTube’s search results include either a couple of words of text, a simple graphic (i.e. an emoji), or both.

In some cases you might use text to make it clear what type of video you’ve made, i.e. ‘review’ or ‘tutorial’. It’s best to keep any text you use brief, but you could get a bit more descriptive and write something like ‘fall makeup tutorial’. Three words is probably the most you can get away with. Remember that your text will be shrunk down with the rest of your image; you need to make it big enough to read easily once it’s shrunk, and that means you don’t have a ton of room for text.

You should also avoid fonts that are harder to read. Fonts with a lot of curves can be harder to read, and you want to make sure you choose a color that stands out from your background. Yellow might work against black, but it probably won’t work against the beige wall of your sunny bedroom. Sans serif fonts tend to be best.

Another tactic used in successful thumbnails is to add small graphics, like emojis or small images (i.e. pumpkins for a Halloween video), which are related to your video’s content. As with text, you don’t want to overload your thumbnail with images, but they’re a great way to add something eye-catching that’s a bit different from competing thumbnails.

2. The Emotional Laser (Background + Face Reacting)

One increasingly popular style of YouTube thumbnail is what we’re going to call the ‘Emotional Laser’. It’s bright (like, blindingly bright), it communicates a clear feeling, and it creates high expectations for how exciting the video’s content is going to be.

The three main elements of the Emotional Laser thumbnail are a background (usually bright), your face on the right wearing an over-pronounced expression, and either the thing your expression is in reaction to (i.e. food, a product, the topic of your video in text) or reinforcement of your emotion (i.e an emoji or question marks) on the left.

#1. Ham It Up (Take Your Reaction Photo)

Take a high-quality photograph of yourself conveying strong emotion. Generally, you want to look extremely excited, disgusted, angry, or shocked depending on the theme of the video.

If there’s an object you want to include in your thumbnail, like a product you’ll be talking about, then it’s a good idea to hold it for this photo. Hold it to one side of your head, turn towards it slightly (but not so much that the camera can only see the side of your face) and put on the expression that’s supposed to be a reaction to the object.

It can be a good idea to take this photo in front of a solid color so you can remove the background easily with chroma key.

#2. Choose Your Background

Your background might be scenery, a solid color, or even the room you filmed the video in. Light or bright colors are popular. Make sure there’s nothing that will distract from your expression. If your background is a room, or anything else where there could be things like pictures hanging, you may want to add a blur effect in the next step.

#3. Put It Together

In your thumbnail maker or a program like Photoshop, you’ll need to put your photo and your background together. This will work differently depending on what program you use. If your program has a chroma key tool and your reaction photo was taken against a solid color then you can make that solid color transparent.

What if I don’t have a separate background? If you don’t have a background you want to use, but you still want your reaction to stand out the same way it would if you did, then you can use your photo editor’s blur tool to turn the normal background of your photo into something you can pop-out from.

#4. Add Extras (Text, Emojis, etc.)

If instead of an object you plan to fill the other side of your thumbnail with text, question marks, emojis, or some other graphic element then now is the time to add it.

Part 2: How to Upload a YouTube Thumbnail

When you upload a new video to YouTube, you will see a Custom thumbnail option under Video thumbnails after your upload is complete.

If you want to add a custom thumbnail to a video that’s already up, that’s easy too.

1. Go to your Video Manager in the Creator Studio.
2. Find the video you want to change the thumbnail for and click Edit next to it.
3. Click Custom thumbnail on the right of the preview screen.
4. Upload your thumbnail and click Save changes.

Remember when you’re uploading custom thumbnails that you need to use a .JPG, .GIF, .BMP, or .PNG image with an aspect ratio of 16:9 and that your file size has to be under 2MB.

YouTube recommends that thumbnail images have a resolution of 1280x720px, and you cannot upload an image with a width of less than 640 pixels.

Make sure that all of your thumbnails adhere to YouTube’s Community guidelines. Anything sexually suggestive, violent, or otherwise graphic could result in your video being age-restricted.

Part 3: YouTube Thumbnail Makers

You don’t have to go out and buy a photo editor like Photoshop to make custom video thumbnails (although it’s a good thing to use if you already have it). Here are two free online programs you can use instead:

Canva is an intuitive option with templates for Thumbnails, Channel Art, and other social media graphics. There are stock photos and graphics provided, but not all of them are free (paid options cost $1 each). Canva’s templates do tend to include paid resources, so you may want to use them mostly for their layouts or as inspiration and replace everything they provide with your own images.

Generally, using Canva is as easy as dragging and dropping things where you want them. You’ll be able to set the dimensions for your project so the image you export is a perfect size. Adding text and changing the size, font, or color is easy too.

Adobe Spark also has templates for channel art, and it’s also very easy to use. The first time you use it helpful notes will pop up to guide you through the process. Using templates is especially simple because you just click on the elements in the pre-made thumbnail and replace them with your own photos/text.

You can make changes to the colors in your Spark thumbnail easily by selecting a new color scheme or filter. You can even toggle through layouts easily. When you choose a new layout, Spark will rearrange all the pieces of your current thumbnail to align with the new layout so you can quickly see what it looks like instead of having to rebuild.

Click to check more YouTube thumbnail makers

Part 4: How to Make Thumbnails That Get Clicks (Without Clickbait!)

Here are the top 10 best practices for creating effective YouTube thumbnails:

#1. Show What Your Video Is About

Being mysterious and clickbaity can get you views, if you’re already big. For small YouTubers, it pays off to be clear about your video’s topic. You want people to click who want to watch the actual content of your video. Even if you manage to get some clicks by being mysterious, you’ll probably end up with low viewer retention because people are clicking away when they realize your video isn’t what they were looking for. That will make YouTube’s algorithm rank your video lower, and then even fewer people will find it.

If your video is a product review, show the product in the thumbnail and maybe even write ‘review’ on it. If your video is a makeup tutorial, show your face with the finished makeup and maybe even include pictures of the products you used. People want to know what they’re clicking on before they click.

#2. Use a Consistent Layout

As you grow, you’ll want people to be able to see one of your thumbnails and instantly know it’s yours. Building a recognizable brand is about consistency. Try to stick with one basic layout for all of your videos. You can still customize every individual thumbnail by using different facial expressions and different graphics, but try to use similar backgrounds, fonts, and general layouts (i.e. you to the right of the thumbnails, text to the left) over and over.

#3. Use Your Face

Why should people want to watch your videos? If the answer is ‘because I can teach them to create delicious food’ or ‘because they want to learn about the latest iPhone’ then your thumbnail should include that food or that iPhone.

If part of the reason people want to watch your videos is you – your personality and your sense of humor – then you should be in your thumbnail.

Viewers who are on YouTube because they like seeing a creator’s personality like to feel the presence of that personality in the video thumbnail, and eye contact naturally draws attention and clicks.

#4. Add Small Graphics

Adding small graphics, like emojis or hearts, to your thumbnail can help you stand out in a couple different ways. First, if they’re being compared to thumbnails that are just screenshots from the video, your thumbnails will look a lot more polished. Second, they’ll add a splash of color which can draw eyes to your video in a search where other thumbnails are not using those same colors.

#5. Your Text Should Be Huge

Your thumbnail will end up being a fraction of the size it is while you’re creating it in your thumbnail maker, and that means that any text you use will end up being shrunk down. You could probably type a six-word sentence in a size 18 font and have it look fine while you’re making your thumbnail, but after you upload it there’s no way people will be able to read it at a glance.

Aim for a huge font size, and 3 words or less (so your thumbnail doesn’t end up looking crowded).

#6. Check Out The Competition

Type your video’s title or topic into the search engine on YouTube and look at the thumbnails for the videos that come up. These are your competition. You want to make a thumbnail that is similar enough to what comes up that viewers know it’s on the same topic, but different enough that it stands out.

Generally, if most of the thumbnails have the same layout, you’ll want to mimic that layout. Where you can break from the crowd is in the colors, fonts, and graphics you use.

Part 5: Animated YouTube Thumbnails

Whether or not you upload a custom thumbnail to YouTube, YouTube’s A.I will choose what it thinks are the 3 juiciest seconds of your video (you cannot choose for yourself) and play them as a GIF-like animation when people mouseover your video thumbnails.

As of now, this only works in the Google Chrome desktop browser. Videos have to be at least 30 seconds long to get moving thumbnails.

Alright, now that you know everything about YouTube thumbnails, go make one! Tell us in the comments what you’re going to do to make your video thumbnails stand out.

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Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

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