Make a great first impression 🖼️ 👀

One thing that I'm most proud of for my content is the fact that I always take the time to design a custom thumbnail for every single post that I make on Hive. All you have to do is check @daltono/portfolio and you will see that I'm quite consistent in that regard. The first impression of a thumbnail and title is one of the most important aspects of your content's success.

In case you didn't already know, a thumbnail is a small image that represents a larger piece of content, such as a video, article, or webpage. It is often used as a visual representation of the content and can be displayed as a small preview before the content is selected.

Having a good thumbnail is important for a few reasons:

1. It can help to attract attention and draw people in to view the content. A well-designed thumbnail can be eye-catching and visually appealing, which can help to grab the attention of users and increase the chances that they will click on the content. Think of movie posters, album artwork, or the cover of a video game or magazine. All must be unique in some way to stand out in the massive sea of options.

2. A good thumbnail can help to convey important information about the content. For example, if the thumbnail is for a video, it can give viewers an idea of what the video is about and whether it is relevant to their interests. Similarly, if the thumbnail is for an article, it can give readers an idea of what the article is about and whether they might want to read it.

3. Having a good thumbnail can also help to improve the overall user experience. If the thumbnail is poor quality or misleading, it can lead to a negative impression of the content, even if the actual content is of high quality. On the other hand, a well-designed thumbnail can help to set expectations and create a more positive experience for users.

These are just some of the main reasons why you must not neglect your thumbnails. If you are looking to increase the quality and effectiveness of your thumbnail designs, then you have come to the right place. Read on to learn more.

What makes a thumbnail good❓

There are several traits that can make a thumbnail effective at representing and promoting your content. Everyone will have different reasons for being attracted to your thumbnail, so it is best to cater to as many people as possible with the design rather than just doing what you like all of the time.

1. Visually appealing: A good thumbnail should be visually appealing and eye-catching. This can be achieved through the use of strong colors, interesting graphics, or other design elements that draw attention.

2. Relevant to the content: The thumbnail should be relevant to the content it represents. This can help to give viewers an idea of what the content is about and whether it is relevant to their interests.

3. Clear and legible: The thumbnail should be clear and legible, even when displayed at small sizes. This is important for ensuring that users can easily understand what the content is about. Don't make your font so small that it is unreadable.

4. High quality: The thumbnail should be of high quality, with good resolution and accurate color representation. Poor-quality thumbnails can create a negative impression of the content. You can find high-resolution images at https://unsplash.com/ or https://pixabay.com/. You can also use https://www.google.com/advanced_image_search to filter your image search results to only show photos with HD resolution.

5. Consistent with the content's branding: The thumbnail should be consistent with the branding of the content, including any logos or other visual elements that are associated with it. This can help to create a cohesive and professional look. If you have a logo, make sure to place it on all of your thumbnails in an unobtrusive manner.

6. Attention-grabbing: A good thumbnail should be able to grab the attention of users and encourage them to click on the content. This can be achieved through the use of solid visuals or compelling headlines or slogans.

As you can see, there is a lot that contributes to having what many consider to be a good thumbnail. You may have to try several different styles of design before you find the one that works best for your content.

Do you suck at designs❔

I understand that not everyone is a graphic designer. Fret not, you still have plenty of options. YouTube is full of tutorials that will walk you through how to design a thumbnail. If you don't want to learn to do it yourself, there are many other alternatives.

1. Hiring a professional designer: If you have the budget, you can hire a professional designer to create your thumbnails for you. This can be a good option if you want high-quality, professional-looking thumbnails. You can find a freelancer of your preference at https://www.upwork.com/ or https://www.fiverr.com/. Most designers will create something for you for $5 or less. If you can bring them consistent business, they may be willing to work for even cheaper.

2. Using a design tool: There are many design tools available that can help you create your own thumbnails. Some popular options include https://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop, https://www.canva.com/, and https://www.gimp.org/. If you work exclusively from iOS, then you could try https://www.pixiteapps.com/apps/union/. These tools usually have a wide range of templates, graphics, and other design elements that you can use to create your thumbnails.

3. Ask for help from friends or colleagues: You may also be able to get help with your thumbnail design from friends or colleagues who have design skills or experience. This can be a good option if you don't have the budget to hire a professional designer or access to design tools. It may not be something you can rely on daily, but if you only need a thumbnail weekly it could work.

You do not have to be an amazing artist to create a solid thumbnail. As long as you are putting in some sort of effort to represent your work, then you most likely are doing better than most. Not much is more painful for me to see than an awesome body of work with a bad thumbnail, or worse, no thumbnail at all.

Get in a habit of doing this 🧐

Once you make one great thumbnail, you then know you are capable of doing it for every single post you do on Hive. Whether it be a video, blog, or some other form of content, having an appealing image to go with it is rather essential. Think of each post as an important job interview, you always want to be looking your best for something like that. Treat your thumbnails with the same care and you will not regret it.

Do you have any extra tips for users who are just getting started with thumbnail creation?

I'd love it if you dropped any bits of information that you have down in the comments so that others may benefit from your knowledge and experience.

My NFTs: @daltono/nfts