Packaging, titles and thumbnails

A good title and a good thumbnail can be the difference between 100,000 views and a million. So I go in with a title first, because it tells me what the video is for, and I refine it after the edit. Then test. We used to run 30 to 40 titles and thumbnails on Meta ads before an episode went out. On YouTube, keep the thumbnail fixed and test three titles. And for the record, the KKK thumbnail took me five minutes.

How do I use it?

1. Write a working title before you film so the shoot knows what outcome it is serving.
2. Write the hook first too, then swap it if the shoot gives you a better spontaneous moment.
3. After the edit, refine the title against what the video actually delivers.
4. Pre-test 30 to 40 title and thumbnail variants as Meta ads that point at the subscribe button, and wait three or four days for the click-through ranking.
5. On YouTube’s A-B test hold the thumbnail fixed and run three titles, then test thumbnails once the title is settled.
6. Make thumbnails look like YouTube by studying how creators in the niche package their videos.
7. Put the brand or format name in the title whenever it is relevant so you own the term.
8. Use freelance thumbnail designers who work across several channels, so their insight comes from more than one world.

In his words

So we used to take 30 to 40 different titles and thumbnails, and we used to run them on meta-ads.

Tom Sharman, 2026