How to make eye-catching thumbnails | Blog Master Class #3 ft. Carina Fragozo

 Imagine the timeline of a person who has subscribed to more than 100 channels. Every day, this person is going to see dozens of new thumbnails. Which means that yours is going to have to stand out from the rest, doesn't it?

Hi everybody, I'm Carina Fragozo, and I have a channel called English in Brazil where I teach English to Brazilians and discuss a variety of topics. Thumbnails are extremely important because they are one of the first things that people will see of your video.

In this Blog Master Class episode I'm going to give you some suggestions on how to improve your thumbnails and the chances that people click on your videos. Thumbnails have to be appealing. And I'm sure you can do it, even if, like me, you're not a Photoshop expert. So here are some characteristics of a good thumbnail.

Number one, it is attractive.

Of course it needs to be attractive, it needs to stand out. So a good thumbnail is beautiful, it has nice contrast and it makes people feel excited to watch your video.

Number two, it is clean, it isn't cluttered.

It's OK to use text, I use text all the time. Try not to put too much information, try not to use more than four or five words and try to make these words stand out from the background.

Number three, it has the same colours and patterns as your banner.

It's important because it shows your identity and makes people easily recognise your video. And number four, it has a human element. People want to see your face, they want to establish a connection with you. So, try using close-ups on faces, or showing strong emotions. I know it may sound silly, but it does help. I used to look the same in all my thumbnails, always the same smile and the same face. Which is OK, but it's boring and predictable. So I started making faces or taking screenshots of funny moments of my videos and I think it's been working. I think people feel more encouraged to watch my video. And you can use different styles of thumbnail for different shows on your channel because people will know what to expect.

For example,

I have a series called 'Survival English' where I teach basic English to survive abroad and I have a very specific design for this series. So when people see one of these thumbnails they will immediately recognise this as a 'Survival English' video by Carina Fragozo. So now you know how your thumbnails can make you get more views.

In the next Blog Master Class ,

which is the last one in the series we're going to talk about some finishing touches like playlists, subtitles and end screens that can help you stand out amongst so many channels.

See you next Blog.