The first seconds and the thumbnail: how to keep the viewer
In a short video feed a video has about two seconds before people scroll past. The thumbnail decides whether people tap the video in your profile and in search.
The first seconds. Start with the most interesting part: the result, a question or an unexpected shot. Do not greet or introduce yourself — you can do it later or not at all. Good openings: «I paid for a subscription in two minutes — here is how», «Here is what happens if…», a shot of the finished result and only then the process.
The first frame without sound. Many people scroll with the sound off, so the first frame needs large text or motion that makes sense without a voice.
The thumbnail:
— a large object or face, readable at a small size;
— 3–5 words of text, no more;
— contrast with the background;
— no small details at the edges — platforms crop thumbnails differently.
In YouTube Shorts the thumbnail is picked from the video frames; in Reels and TikTok it is also picked from frames or uploaded separately. So film one «thumbnail» shot on purpose: close, still, with room for text.
To see what thumbnails of successful videos look like, use the «YouTube & Shorts thumbnail» tool in the «Tools» section.