Optimizing Video Content with Perfect YouTube Titles

How to Use Video Titles and YouTube Tags for More Views?

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

0

In order to make sure that your videos get the appreciation they deserve, you will need to optimize your titles and YouTube tags for more views. By optimizing your titles and tags, I mean using the right keywords so that YouTube knows how to sort your videos and the viewers who are interested in your content can find it.

1. Find the Best Keywords
2. How to Optimize Your Titles, Descriptions, and Tags

YouTube videos rank on Google just like any other piece of content, and YouTube itself is a lot of people’s go-to search engine. The success of your YouTube videos will largely depend on your ability to optimize your videos so they are ranked in people’s search results. People can’t fall in love with your videos they never stumble across them.

If you optimize your titles, tags, and descriptions to include relevant keywords you will see much better traffic from Google as well as from YouTube’s search results. Here are some tips:

Find the Best Keywords

One of the most important steps to ensuring SEO success is to identify the keywords that you should be using.

You can use the Google keyword planner to find keywords related to your video’s topic. Input one of your competitors’ video links to detect some of the top searches that were used to find the video. The keyword planner will scan through the top searches for that video link and determine the keywords that are used most often.

The keyword list can be a bit overwhelming the first time. Remember to use keywords that get at least 300 searches per month on Google. Using popular keywords will help you match up against competitors in your niche.

How to Optimize Your Titles, Descriptions, and Tags

Your keyword research will help you craft title, description, and tags of your videos.

How to Optimize YouTube Titles

The ideal YouTube title intrigues the potential viewer, drawing them in and making them want to click the link.

A video title should include your most important keyword. Usually, your most important keyword will be the first word in your title. Great titles are accurate and descriptive, but also exciting and captivating.

You should also consider using general keywords that are popular on Google like “funny video” “Tutorial” “Review” and “Fitness”.

How to Optimize Your Video’s Description

The description of your video is the next big important challenge. The text description of your video is how Google and other search engines determine the subject matter of your video for ranking.

Some tips for success with your description include; using 2-3 important keywords in the first 25 words and making each YouTube description more than 250 words.

Your ideal description will help to index your video without over-utilizing keywords and being flagged as spam.

How to Optimize YouTube Tags

Tags will help decide which videos your video will be displayed beside as similar content and which searches it will appear in.

By using targeted and optimized tags you can gain more traffic and views. Some of the top rules that you should consider with tags are; using 8-12 in every video and making sure the top keyword you used in your title is included as a tag.

Tags on previous videos can also be rearranged and edited as you do keyword research. This will help improve the ranking of some of your older videos. If you all the tags you usually use to a notepad or text edit file and separate them with commas you can paste them all back into YouTube in the new order. This is the simplest way to mass edit tags.

Click here for more tips about YouTube search optimization.

These tips will help you optimize your YouTube tags for more views, as well as your other YouTube metadata.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

0

In order to make sure that your videos get the appreciation they deserve, you will need to optimize your titles and YouTube tags for more views. By optimizing your titles and tags, I mean using the right keywords so that YouTube knows how to sort your videos and the viewers who are interested in your content can find it.

1. Find the Best Keywords
2. How to Optimize Your Titles, Descriptions, and Tags

YouTube videos rank on Google just like any other piece of content, and YouTube itself is a lot of people’s go-to search engine. The success of your YouTube videos will largely depend on your ability to optimize your videos so they are ranked in people’s search results. People can’t fall in love with your videos they never stumble across them.

If you optimize your titles, tags, and descriptions to include relevant keywords you will see much better traffic from Google as well as from YouTube’s search results. Here are some tips:

Find the Best Keywords

One of the most important steps to ensuring SEO success is to identify the keywords that you should be using.

You can use the Google keyword planner to find keywords related to your video’s topic. Input one of your competitors’ video links to detect some of the top searches that were used to find the video. The keyword planner will scan through the top searches for that video link and determine the keywords that are used most often.

The keyword list can be a bit overwhelming the first time. Remember to use keywords that get at least 300 searches per month on Google. Using popular keywords will help you match up against competitors in your niche.

How to Optimize Your Titles, Descriptions, and Tags

Your keyword research will help you craft title, description, and tags of your videos.

How to Optimize YouTube Titles

The ideal YouTube title intrigues the potential viewer, drawing them in and making them want to click the link.

A video title should include your most important keyword. Usually, your most important keyword will be the first word in your title. Great titles are accurate and descriptive, but also exciting and captivating.

You should also consider using general keywords that are popular on Google like “funny video” “Tutorial” “Review” and “Fitness”.

How to Optimize Your Video’s Description

The description of your video is the next big important challenge. The text description of your video is how Google and other search engines determine the subject matter of your video for ranking.

Some tips for success with your description include; using 2-3 important keywords in the first 25 words and making each YouTube description more than 250 words.

Your ideal description will help to index your video without over-utilizing keywords and being flagged as spam.

How to Optimize YouTube Tags

Tags will help decide which videos your video will be displayed beside as similar content and which searches it will appear in.

By using targeted and optimized tags you can gain more traffic and views. Some of the top rules that you should consider with tags are; using 8-12 in every video and making sure the top keyword you used in your title is included as a tag.

Tags on previous videos can also be rearranged and edited as you do keyword research. This will help improve the ranking of some of your older videos. If you all the tags you usually use to a notepad or text edit file and separate them with commas you can paste them all back into YouTube in the new order. This is the simplest way to mass edit tags.

Click here for more tips about YouTube search optimization.

These tips will help you optimize your YouTube tags for more views, as well as your other YouTube metadata.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

0

In order to make sure that your videos get the appreciation they deserve, you will need to optimize your titles and YouTube tags for more views. By optimizing your titles and tags, I mean using the right keywords so that YouTube knows how to sort your videos and the viewers who are interested in your content can find it.

1. Find the Best Keywords
2. How to Optimize Your Titles, Descriptions, and Tags

YouTube videos rank on Google just like any other piece of content, and YouTube itself is a lot of people’s go-to search engine. The success of your YouTube videos will largely depend on your ability to optimize your videos so they are ranked in people’s search results. People can’t fall in love with your videos they never stumble across them.

If you optimize your titles, tags, and descriptions to include relevant keywords you will see much better traffic from Google as well as from YouTube’s search results. Here are some tips:

Find the Best Keywords

One of the most important steps to ensuring SEO success is to identify the keywords that you should be using.

You can use the Google keyword planner to find keywords related to your video’s topic. Input one of your competitors’ video links to detect some of the top searches that were used to find the video. The keyword planner will scan through the top searches for that video link and determine the keywords that are used most often.

The keyword list can be a bit overwhelming the first time. Remember to use keywords that get at least 300 searches per month on Google. Using popular keywords will help you match up against competitors in your niche.

How to Optimize Your Titles, Descriptions, and Tags

Your keyword research will help you craft title, description, and tags of your videos.

How to Optimize YouTube Titles

The ideal YouTube title intrigues the potential viewer, drawing them in and making them want to click the link.

A video title should include your most important keyword. Usually, your most important keyword will be the first word in your title. Great titles are accurate and descriptive, but also exciting and captivating.

You should also consider using general keywords that are popular on Google like “funny video” “Tutorial” “Review” and “Fitness”.

How to Optimize Your Video’s Description

The description of your video is the next big important challenge. The text description of your video is how Google and other search engines determine the subject matter of your video for ranking.

Some tips for success with your description include; using 2-3 important keywords in the first 25 words and making each YouTube description more than 250 words.

Your ideal description will help to index your video without over-utilizing keywords and being flagged as spam.

How to Optimize YouTube Tags

Tags will help decide which videos your video will be displayed beside as similar content and which searches it will appear in.

By using targeted and optimized tags you can gain more traffic and views. Some of the top rules that you should consider with tags are; using 8-12 in every video and making sure the top keyword you used in your title is included as a tag.

Tags on previous videos can also be rearranged and edited as you do keyword research. This will help improve the ranking of some of your older videos. If you all the tags you usually use to a notepad or text edit file and separate them with commas you can paste them all back into YouTube in the new order. This is the simplest way to mass edit tags.

Click here for more tips about YouTube search optimization.

These tips will help you optimize your YouTube tags for more views, as well as your other YouTube metadata.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

0

In order to make sure that your videos get the appreciation they deserve, you will need to optimize your titles and YouTube tags for more views. By optimizing your titles and tags, I mean using the right keywords so that YouTube knows how to sort your videos and the viewers who are interested in your content can find it.

1. Find the Best Keywords
2. How to Optimize Your Titles, Descriptions, and Tags

YouTube videos rank on Google just like any other piece of content, and YouTube itself is a lot of people’s go-to search engine. The success of your YouTube videos will largely depend on your ability to optimize your videos so they are ranked in people’s search results. People can’t fall in love with your videos they never stumble across them.

If you optimize your titles, tags, and descriptions to include relevant keywords you will see much better traffic from Google as well as from YouTube’s search results. Here are some tips:

Find the Best Keywords

One of the most important steps to ensuring SEO success is to identify the keywords that you should be using.

You can use the Google keyword planner to find keywords related to your video’s topic. Input one of your competitors’ video links to detect some of the top searches that were used to find the video. The keyword planner will scan through the top searches for that video link and determine the keywords that are used most often.

The keyword list can be a bit overwhelming the first time. Remember to use keywords that get at least 300 searches per month on Google. Using popular keywords will help you match up against competitors in your niche.

How to Optimize Your Titles, Descriptions, and Tags

Your keyword research will help you craft title, description, and tags of your videos.

How to Optimize YouTube Titles

The ideal YouTube title intrigues the potential viewer, drawing them in and making them want to click the link.

A video title should include your most important keyword. Usually, your most important keyword will be the first word in your title. Great titles are accurate and descriptive, but also exciting and captivating.

You should also consider using general keywords that are popular on Google like “funny video” “Tutorial” “Review” and “Fitness”.

How to Optimize Your Video’s Description

The description of your video is the next big important challenge. The text description of your video is how Google and other search engines determine the subject matter of your video for ranking.

Some tips for success with your description include; using 2-3 important keywords in the first 25 words and making each YouTube description more than 250 words.

Your ideal description will help to index your video without over-utilizing keywords and being flagged as spam.

How to Optimize YouTube Tags

Tags will help decide which videos your video will be displayed beside as similar content and which searches it will appear in.

By using targeted and optimized tags you can gain more traffic and views. Some of the top rules that you should consider with tags are; using 8-12 in every video and making sure the top keyword you used in your title is included as a tag.

Tags on previous videos can also be rearranged and edited as you do keyword research. This will help improve the ranking of some of your older videos. If you all the tags you usually use to a notepad or text edit file and separate them with commas you can paste them all back into YouTube in the new order. This is the simplest way to mass edit tags.

Click here for more tips about YouTube search optimization.

These tips will help you optimize your YouTube tags for more views, as well as your other YouTube metadata.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Creating Impactful YouTube Thumbnails & Ads

How to Make YouTube Banners and Thumbnails

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

The art on your YouTube channel – banners, thumbnails, icons, and watermarks – will help to determine how viewers feel about your vlog. If your art does not look like it all goes together then people will get a sloppy, amateurish, impression of your channel. However, if your different pieces of channel art all seem to complement each other and match the tone and theme of your channel then it will help viewers to have a pleasant browsing experience. They will get the impression that you take your YouTube channel seriously and that they can trust you as a source of information, comedy, or general entertainment.

How to Make YouTube Banners and Thumbnails

YouTube Banners and Thumbnails are two of the most important pieces of channel art you will need. This article will explain the best practices for both, and suggest sites where you will be able to build your own banners and thumbnails for free.

1. YouTube Banners

Quick Tips:

1. The image you upload for your YouTube banner should be 2560 x 1440px (pixels).
2. The ‘safe area’ for text, logos, and other important visual information (like faces) is 1546 x 423px.

Your banner is probably the first thing that comes to mind when you think about channel art. Banners are the headers that rest at the tops of channel pages on YouTube. Your banner should be 2560 x 1440 px, although not all of it will always be visible. On a desktop computer or mobile device only a 1546 x 423 px ‘safe area’ will be visible. When viewed on a TV screen your entire image will be visible. YouTube does support PNG, but if your PNG file does not upload properly (as has been the case for some YouTubers) then changing your file type to JPEG might help.

YouTube Banners are extremely important to the success of your channel. If you do not have a banner then it looks like you do not really care about your vlog. If you have a basic banner that is not at all personalized then it certainly looks like you care, but it might also look like you are new to YouTube.

The best banners are customized to reflect the kind of experience you want viewers to have on your channel. The banner of a comedic YouTube channel might use bright colors, where the banner for a gaming channel will probably use darker colors similar to the ones that are in the games the vlogger plays. Connecting your banner to the theme of your channel is part of how you define the style of your vlog. It is the difference between being a Beauty Guru and a general YouTuber who gives makeup tips sometimes.

Including a photo of yourself, or your logo if you have one, is a great way to personalize your banner.

2. YouTube Thumbnails

Quick Tips:

1. Search for your video’s topic to see the thumbnails your thumbnail will be competing against.
2. Make any text huge so people can read it on their smartphone screens.
3. Emojis, colored boarders, and graphics are all potential ways to stand out.

Thumbnails are often ignored by newer YouTubers. YouTube selects a thumbnail for every one of your videos and it is always a still image from that video. You can choose which frame you want to use and a lot of people feel like that is good enough. When you create a custom thumbnail, however, you get to not only choose your image but insert a title.

If you are choosing the images you are using for thumbnails you can make sure they are always similar frames. This will help people identify your videos quickly in searches. Using titles in your thumbnails will also help searchers identify your videos, if you always use the same title style. Another benefit of titles is that they capture the attention of people looking for your specific topic. Remember when building your thumbnails that they will appear smaller on YouTube than they probably are while you edit them. On mobile devices, they will look even smaller. So, if you are going to use text in your thumbnail, make sure it is huge.

One thumbnail taboo that you should never break is using an image that has nothing to do with your video. Using an image of a cute cat for a vlog post that has nothing to do with cats is misleading and will anger viewers. You may draw in a lot of viewers who want to see a cat video, but they will leave right away when they do not see a cat and they will never watch anything by you again.

3.Where To Create Banners and Thumbnails

There are sites online that will allow you to edit images and use them in templates for YouTube banners. You can also use these services to edit your thumbnails. Two of the most popular, free, online photo editors are PicMonkey.com and Canva.com.

Canva has templates you can use to create YouTube banners, as well as a variety of stock images you can use in combination with your own when creating channel art. It is free to edit images on Canva, but they do have some premium features which cost $1 each to access. This service has both a desktop version and an iPad app.

PicMonkey lets you import images from your computer or social media accounts, edit them, and use them in templates for YouTube banners or other kinds of social media graphics. PicMonkey is free to use, but you can only access their more advanced editing tools if you buy a paid subscription. Monthly subscriptions are $4.99 per month, and yearly subscriptions are $2.75 per month.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

The art on your YouTube channel – banners, thumbnails, icons, and watermarks – will help to determine how viewers feel about your vlog. If your art does not look like it all goes together then people will get a sloppy, amateurish, impression of your channel. However, if your different pieces of channel art all seem to complement each other and match the tone and theme of your channel then it will help viewers to have a pleasant browsing experience. They will get the impression that you take your YouTube channel seriously and that they can trust you as a source of information, comedy, or general entertainment.

How to Make YouTube Banners and Thumbnails

YouTube Banners and Thumbnails are two of the most important pieces of channel art you will need. This article will explain the best practices for both, and suggest sites where you will be able to build your own banners and thumbnails for free.

1. YouTube Banners

Quick Tips:

1. The image you upload for your YouTube banner should be 2560 x 1440px (pixels).
2. The ‘safe area’ for text, logos, and other important visual information (like faces) is 1546 x 423px.

Your banner is probably the first thing that comes to mind when you think about channel art. Banners are the headers that rest at the tops of channel pages on YouTube. Your banner should be 2560 x 1440 px, although not all of it will always be visible. On a desktop computer or mobile device only a 1546 x 423 px ‘safe area’ will be visible. When viewed on a TV screen your entire image will be visible. YouTube does support PNG, but if your PNG file does not upload properly (as has been the case for some YouTubers) then changing your file type to JPEG might help.

YouTube Banners are extremely important to the success of your channel. If you do not have a banner then it looks like you do not really care about your vlog. If you have a basic banner that is not at all personalized then it certainly looks like you care, but it might also look like you are new to YouTube.

The best banners are customized to reflect the kind of experience you want viewers to have on your channel. The banner of a comedic YouTube channel might use bright colors, where the banner for a gaming channel will probably use darker colors similar to the ones that are in the games the vlogger plays. Connecting your banner to the theme of your channel is part of how you define the style of your vlog. It is the difference between being a Beauty Guru and a general YouTuber who gives makeup tips sometimes.

Including a photo of yourself, or your logo if you have one, is a great way to personalize your banner.

2. YouTube Thumbnails

Quick Tips:

1. Search for your video’s topic to see the thumbnails your thumbnail will be competing against.
2. Make any text huge so people can read it on their smartphone screens.
3. Emojis, colored boarders, and graphics are all potential ways to stand out.

Thumbnails are often ignored by newer YouTubers. YouTube selects a thumbnail for every one of your videos and it is always a still image from that video. You can choose which frame you want to use and a lot of people feel like that is good enough. When you create a custom thumbnail, however, you get to not only choose your image but insert a title.

If you are choosing the images you are using for thumbnails you can make sure they are always similar frames. This will help people identify your videos quickly in searches. Using titles in your thumbnails will also help searchers identify your videos, if you always use the same title style. Another benefit of titles is that they capture the attention of people looking for your specific topic. Remember when building your thumbnails that they will appear smaller on YouTube than they probably are while you edit them. On mobile devices, they will look even smaller. So, if you are going to use text in your thumbnail, make sure it is huge.

One thumbnail taboo that you should never break is using an image that has nothing to do with your video. Using an image of a cute cat for a vlog post that has nothing to do with cats is misleading and will anger viewers. You may draw in a lot of viewers who want to see a cat video, but they will leave right away when they do not see a cat and they will never watch anything by you again.

3.Where To Create Banners and Thumbnails

There are sites online that will allow you to edit images and use them in templates for YouTube banners. You can also use these services to edit your thumbnails. Two of the most popular, free, online photo editors are PicMonkey.com and Canva.com.

Canva has templates you can use to create YouTube banners, as well as a variety of stock images you can use in combination with your own when creating channel art. It is free to edit images on Canva, but they do have some premium features which cost $1 each to access. This service has both a desktop version and an iPad app.

PicMonkey lets you import images from your computer or social media accounts, edit them, and use them in templates for YouTube banners or other kinds of social media graphics. PicMonkey is free to use, but you can only access their more advanced editing tools if you buy a paid subscription. Monthly subscriptions are $4.99 per month, and yearly subscriptions are $2.75 per month.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

The art on your YouTube channel – banners, thumbnails, icons, and watermarks – will help to determine how viewers feel about your vlog. If your art does not look like it all goes together then people will get a sloppy, amateurish, impression of your channel. However, if your different pieces of channel art all seem to complement each other and match the tone and theme of your channel then it will help viewers to have a pleasant browsing experience. They will get the impression that you take your YouTube channel seriously and that they can trust you as a source of information, comedy, or general entertainment.

How to Make YouTube Banners and Thumbnails

YouTube Banners and Thumbnails are two of the most important pieces of channel art you will need. This article will explain the best practices for both, and suggest sites where you will be able to build your own banners and thumbnails for free.

1. YouTube Banners

Quick Tips:

1. The image you upload for your YouTube banner should be 2560 x 1440px (pixels).
2. The ‘safe area’ for text, logos, and other important visual information (like faces) is 1546 x 423px.

Your banner is probably the first thing that comes to mind when you think about channel art. Banners are the headers that rest at the tops of channel pages on YouTube. Your banner should be 2560 x 1440 px, although not all of it will always be visible. On a desktop computer or mobile device only a 1546 x 423 px ‘safe area’ will be visible. When viewed on a TV screen your entire image will be visible. YouTube does support PNG, but if your PNG file does not upload properly (as has been the case for some YouTubers) then changing your file type to JPEG might help.

YouTube Banners are extremely important to the success of your channel. If you do not have a banner then it looks like you do not really care about your vlog. If you have a basic banner that is not at all personalized then it certainly looks like you care, but it might also look like you are new to YouTube.

The best banners are customized to reflect the kind of experience you want viewers to have on your channel. The banner of a comedic YouTube channel might use bright colors, where the banner for a gaming channel will probably use darker colors similar to the ones that are in the games the vlogger plays. Connecting your banner to the theme of your channel is part of how you define the style of your vlog. It is the difference between being a Beauty Guru and a general YouTuber who gives makeup tips sometimes.

Including a photo of yourself, or your logo if you have one, is a great way to personalize your banner.

2. YouTube Thumbnails

Quick Tips:

1. Search for your video’s topic to see the thumbnails your thumbnail will be competing against.
2. Make any text huge so people can read it on their smartphone screens.
3. Emojis, colored boarders, and graphics are all potential ways to stand out.

Thumbnails are often ignored by newer YouTubers. YouTube selects a thumbnail for every one of your videos and it is always a still image from that video. You can choose which frame you want to use and a lot of people feel like that is good enough. When you create a custom thumbnail, however, you get to not only choose your image but insert a title.

If you are choosing the images you are using for thumbnails you can make sure they are always similar frames. This will help people identify your videos quickly in searches. Using titles in your thumbnails will also help searchers identify your videos, if you always use the same title style. Another benefit of titles is that they capture the attention of people looking for your specific topic. Remember when building your thumbnails that they will appear smaller on YouTube than they probably are while you edit them. On mobile devices, they will look even smaller. So, if you are going to use text in your thumbnail, make sure it is huge.

One thumbnail taboo that you should never break is using an image that has nothing to do with your video. Using an image of a cute cat for a vlog post that has nothing to do with cats is misleading and will anger viewers. You may draw in a lot of viewers who want to see a cat video, but they will leave right away when they do not see a cat and they will never watch anything by you again.

3.Where To Create Banners and Thumbnails

There are sites online that will allow you to edit images and use them in templates for YouTube banners. You can also use these services to edit your thumbnails. Two of the most popular, free, online photo editors are PicMonkey.com and Canva.com.

Canva has templates you can use to create YouTube banners, as well as a variety of stock images you can use in combination with your own when creating channel art. It is free to edit images on Canva, but they do have some premium features which cost $1 each to access. This service has both a desktop version and an iPad app.

PicMonkey lets you import images from your computer or social media accounts, edit them, and use them in templates for YouTube banners or other kinds of social media graphics. PicMonkey is free to use, but you can only access their more advanced editing tools if you buy a paid subscription. Monthly subscriptions are $4.99 per month, and yearly subscriptions are $2.75 per month.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

The art on your YouTube channel – banners, thumbnails, icons, and watermarks – will help to determine how viewers feel about your vlog. If your art does not look like it all goes together then people will get a sloppy, amateurish, impression of your channel. However, if your different pieces of channel art all seem to complement each other and match the tone and theme of your channel then it will help viewers to have a pleasant browsing experience. They will get the impression that you take your YouTube channel seriously and that they can trust you as a source of information, comedy, or general entertainment.

How to Make YouTube Banners and Thumbnails

YouTube Banners and Thumbnails are two of the most important pieces of channel art you will need. This article will explain the best practices for both, and suggest sites where you will be able to build your own banners and thumbnails for free.

1. YouTube Banners

Quick Tips:

1. The image you upload for your YouTube banner should be 2560 x 1440px (pixels).
2. The ‘safe area’ for text, logos, and other important visual information (like faces) is 1546 x 423px.

Your banner is probably the first thing that comes to mind when you think about channel art. Banners are the headers that rest at the tops of channel pages on YouTube. Your banner should be 2560 x 1440 px, although not all of it will always be visible. On a desktop computer or mobile device only a 1546 x 423 px ‘safe area’ will be visible. When viewed on a TV screen your entire image will be visible. YouTube does support PNG, but if your PNG file does not upload properly (as has been the case for some YouTubers) then changing your file type to JPEG might help.

YouTube Banners are extremely important to the success of your channel. If you do not have a banner then it looks like you do not really care about your vlog. If you have a basic banner that is not at all personalized then it certainly looks like you care, but it might also look like you are new to YouTube.

The best banners are customized to reflect the kind of experience you want viewers to have on your channel. The banner of a comedic YouTube channel might use bright colors, where the banner for a gaming channel will probably use darker colors similar to the ones that are in the games the vlogger plays. Connecting your banner to the theme of your channel is part of how you define the style of your vlog. It is the difference between being a Beauty Guru and a general YouTuber who gives makeup tips sometimes.

Including a photo of yourself, or your logo if you have one, is a great way to personalize your banner.

2. YouTube Thumbnails

Quick Tips:

1. Search for your video’s topic to see the thumbnails your thumbnail will be competing against.
2. Make any text huge so people can read it on their smartphone screens.
3. Emojis, colored boarders, and graphics are all potential ways to stand out.

Thumbnails are often ignored by newer YouTubers. YouTube selects a thumbnail for every one of your videos and it is always a still image from that video. You can choose which frame you want to use and a lot of people feel like that is good enough. When you create a custom thumbnail, however, you get to not only choose your image but insert a title.

If you are choosing the images you are using for thumbnails you can make sure they are always similar frames. This will help people identify your videos quickly in searches. Using titles in your thumbnails will also help searchers identify your videos, if you always use the same title style. Another benefit of titles is that they capture the attention of people looking for your specific topic. Remember when building your thumbnails that they will appear smaller on YouTube than they probably are while you edit them. On mobile devices, they will look even smaller. So, if you are going to use text in your thumbnail, make sure it is huge.

One thumbnail taboo that you should never break is using an image that has nothing to do with your video. Using an image of a cute cat for a vlog post that has nothing to do with cats is misleading and will anger viewers. You may draw in a lot of viewers who want to see a cat video, but they will leave right away when they do not see a cat and they will never watch anything by you again.

3.Where To Create Banners and Thumbnails

There are sites online that will allow you to edit images and use them in templates for YouTube banners. You can also use these services to edit your thumbnails. Two of the most popular, free, online photo editors are PicMonkey.com and Canva.com.

Canva has templates you can use to create YouTube banners, as well as a variety of stock images you can use in combination with your own when creating channel art. It is free to edit images on Canva, but they do have some premium features which cost $1 each to access. This service has both a desktop version and an iPad app.

PicMonkey lets you import images from your computer or social media accounts, edit them, and use them in templates for YouTube banners or other kinds of social media graphics. PicMonkey is free to use, but you can only access their more advanced editing tools if you buy a paid subscription. Monthly subscriptions are $4.99 per month, and yearly subscriptions are $2.75 per month.

Richard Bennett

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

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