Low Click-Through Rate (CTR): If your video’s CTR (clicks divided by impressions) is below 5% within the first 24 hours, consider a thumbnail change. This might indicate the current thumbnail isn’t grabbing attention.
Wait at least a day: Give the video some time to gather impressions before judging performance.
Smaller channels, in particular, might see views trickle in organically through search over time.
Stalling views: If a video’s views have significantly dropped compared to the initial launch, a new thumbnail could act as a refresh.
A/B testing: You can create multiple thumbnails and run A/B tests through Thumbnail Test to see which one performs better. This can be an ongoing process for older videos.
Branding updates: If your channel’s overall branding has evolved, you might want to update thumbnails on older videos for consistency.
What about the Title?
Generally, avoid frequent changes. Unlike thumbnails, there’s no immediate benefit to swapping titles right after upload.
Growing views: If a video is steadily gaining views with the current title, there’s no need to fix what’s not broken.
Minor tweaks: Small wording changes probably won’t make a huge difference. Focus on significant improvements that better describe the video or target keywords.
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David is the head of the editing team at ThumbnailTest. With his help, the editorial team is able to provide you with the best free guides related to YouTube thumbnails and A/B testing.
