No single element of your video is more important than the thumbnail. Sure, it takes a little time to arrange it so that you have an effective thumbnail, but it is SO worth the time. It can easily be the difference between 1,000 and 100,000 views.

In case you don’t already know, your video’s default thumbnail image is created from the exact middle frame of your video. You also have the option of selecting the frames found at the 1/4 and 3/4 mark.

For the SUPER noobs: When a visitor is searching YouTube for a video, they see little image previews of videos (thumbnails) that match their search in the search results. When they are viewing videos, they see thumbnails of related videos on the side. When video responses are allowed, they will see thumbnails of those video responses below the video. The thumbnail is the single most influential factor in whether or not they will click through to your video.

Let’s have a look at a couple examples. Neither of the two thumbnails highlighted below are bad, but one is clearly more effective than the other one. Luckily, both videos were uploaded on the same day and on the same channel (which means they probably get an even amount of promotion), so we can trust that it’s an accurate comparison of the effectiveness of each respective thumbnail.

As you can see, one thumbnail is obviously more suggestive than the other, and that is reflected in the total view counts. I know that I don’t need to tell you that the difference between 88,000 views and 30,000 views is pretty significant.

Keep this in mind when you’re preparing your next video(s). As much as you just want to render it, upload it, and move on, think about the long-term effect that mastering the thumbnail will have.

I know that not everyone promotes dating on YouTube or needs images of scantily clad women in their videos. The same logic applies, even if it isn’t sex that you’re selling. A thumbnail that is at least INTERESTING is mandatory if you hope to have any success with your videos. Make sure that it is also in focus. Nothing worse than a blurry thumbnail that you can’t make out. Most people aren’t that curious, and won’t bother finding out.

If you’re promoting weight loss products, maybe a nice clear before and after photo for your thumbnail would work. Same applies for acne product promotion. If you’re promoting bizz-opp (make money online), a big stack of money might do nicely.

If you’re not necessarily selling anything, then you have even more creative freedom. Promoting a music video? Well, any good music video should have a beautiful woman in it, so hopefully you can use some of that for the thumbnail.

What happens if the image I want for my thumbnail is too far from the 1/4, 1/2, or 3/4 mark?
Well, first of all, shame on you for not taking the thumbnail into account beforehand. But don’t worry, you can still have the image you want. Let’s say I have a 2 minute video, but the thumbnail I want is at the 1:15 mark. No problem. I just extend the video by 30 seconds. With what? With whatever! Music, text, both, whatever. Think of it as 30 seconds to show your URL with whatever additional text information you want. By extending it 30 seconds, your total video running time is now 2:30, making 1:15 the new 1/2 thumbnail (the frame you wanted to use). Of course, it gets more complicated with more difficult running times, like 4:27:12. Bust out that dusty calculator you had to buy for school and put it to some good use.

I know I’ve talked about the importance of thumbnails before, but this is the first time I dedicated an entire post to it. I just wanted to make sure you know how serious it is. Do NOT skimp out on the thumbnail!