YouTube Thumbnails

I understand why YouTube thumbnails are the way they are, but things like the common “what’s this” face or “I’m disgusting” face thumbnail makes me shy away. Even if it might be good or something someone recommend to me. But just seeing that generic YouTube thumbnail turns me away. But I know that’s how you “get views”. I want creators to succeed but what they have to do actively turns me away. And makes me think about these damn kids….

I skip every single clickbait thumbnail. I like that they exist as they let me know which videos to skip.

I mean, I'm not the biggest fan of creators who use thumbnails with their mouths hanging open as if they're about the give a blowjob. But literally "damn kids"? Way to make 31 seem young my dudes.

Is this a random complaint or actually relevant to GB somehow? Looking at the YouTube thumbnails for GB content, I don't see a problem.

Like this one? I personally didn't mind it at all and was hoping for even more ridiculous thumbnails going forward, but the pissy downvote brigade and downright hostile community reaction quickly put an end to that.

I don't often give a shit about a thumbnail in any capacity.

@topcyclist: I know a Football Manager youtuber said that there was a noticeable increase in viewership once he started putting his face in the thumbnails. I do wonder whether the exaggerated emotions are what 'does the trick' or if it's more of a case that people can instantly recognize who the creator is by looking at the thumbnail, instead of having to look at the text and think about the faces in their mind that might fit that channelname.

They are ugly and at this point a bit tired but if it gets them the views then go for it I guess.

When it comes to popularity, no doubt attractiveness it's a factor. That's in all walks of life a factor. But i don't think it's like a must-have. Like if you click on a scientific video, maybe an awkward-looking nerd fits the average person's idea of a knowledgeable source better than a square-jawed chiseled god and therefore more people give the nerd a shot . But when a genre gets dominated by nerdy looking folk, there's a place for alternatives. The young doctor, the beautiful nerd, the female football fan, the elderly dancer. Having something that seperates you from the pack can help.

There's also something to be said for appearing affable / likable. After all, the youtuber industry is sort of built upon the parasocial relationships between the daily youtuber and the daily viewer, so it helps when a large portion of the audience can see you as a potential real-life friend. Especially if you're not making videos on an industry where looks matter (If i want to know what the modeling world is like, i would probably end up listening to an attractive person), you don't need to be attractive to make people want to spend time with you. Just look at someone like Dan Ryckert. I don't think Dan is particularly attractive (not ugly neither though), but he scores especially high on the 'I wish i had a friend like ...' charts.

None of this is new. Media has been sold on the equivalent of click bait as long as there has been media. Those of us who grew up in the 80s remember tabloids like this at the supermarket:

Movies have always had their most exciting scenes in the trailers. Books often have covers that don't really reflect what's inside but instead focus on heaving bosoms and action even if the actual novel is much more restrained.

This is just another version of the same thing. Sensationalist titles, shocked looking faces, promises of extreme content (you won't BELIEVE these 10 cancelled games) etc.... Not every channel does it, including not every super successful channel, but it's just old promotional tactics repackaged for a digital world. It's more noticeable when you're scrolling through 50 video thumbnails all on the same screen, but it's really nothing new.

And I'm sure there are plenty of Youtube videos out there about Batboy!