Video thumbnails are very important. It is your video’s chance to make a first impression. Sometimes using the right video thumbnail can make a huge difference in the amount of views the video will have.
Have you ever uploaded a video to YouTube and cringed at the video thumbnail that YouTube automatically chose? Have you wished that you could designate a specific image for the video thumbnail instead of the one YouTube automatically generates? Did you know you could? Here’s a couple options on how to choose a custom thumbnail.
Change a thumbnail at any time
1. Go to your channel’s “Video Manager”
2. Click Edit for the corresponding video you’d like to change. (If your account is verified and in good standing, you may have the ability to upload custom thumbnails for your video uploads.)
3. You will see an option to choose a “Custom thumbnail” under the “Video thumbnails” section.
4. Upload an image under 2MB. Pixelied has a great article on making the ideal picture size.
5. Once the thumbnail is uploaded, don’t forget to click the “Save Changes” button.
6. Thats it!
Upload a custom thumbnail when you upload a video
- Record or upload your video.
- At the end of the video processing stage in the upload interface, you will see an option to choose a “Custom thumbnail” under the “Video thumbnails” section.
- Once the thumbnail is uploaded, don’t forget to click the “Save Changes” button.
- Upload an image under 2MB.
- Once the thumbnail is uploaded, don’t forget to click the “Save Changes” button.
- Thats it!
Yay! Now go get lots of views!
Source: Google > Video Thumbnails