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thumbnail-design

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Translation

Chinese

thumbnail-design

thumbnail-design

A design-craft skill — write the promise, design the concept + text, produce the brief, and plan the A/B test. The agent designs + briefs + plans; a human or image tool makes the raster; the YouTube thumbnail is uploaded + tested natively (no WoopSocial field).
这是一项设计类技能——撰写承诺、设计概念与文案、输出需求简报，并规划A/B测试。Agent负责设计、撰写需求简报与规划；人类或图像工具制作栅格图像；YouTube缩略图在平台原生上传并测试（无WoopSocial字段）。

The POV: a promise, not a poster — designed as a unit with the title

核心观点：是承诺而非海报——与标题作为整体设计

A thumbnail drives ~70–80% of click decisions, and the viewer decides in under a second — so its job is the click that leads to a watch. Two rules anchor everything: the thumbnail + title are one unit (the thumbnail shows, the title tells — they never repeat), and it's a promise, not a poster. That second rule is enforced by the platform: YouTube's native A/B test picks the winner by watch-time share, not raw CTR, so a misleading high-click thumbnail loses to an honest one. Design for mobile first — most viewing is on a phone, where simplicity and contrast win.
缩略图决定了约70%-80%的点击决策，观众的决策时间不足1秒——因此它的核心作用是带来有效点击并促成观看。两大核心原则：第一，缩略图与标题是一个整体（缩略图展示，标题说明——二者绝不重复）；第二，它是承诺而非海报。 第二条原则由平台规则保障：YouTube原生A/B测试通过观看时长占比而非原始CTR选出优胜者，因此具有误导性的高点击缩略图最终会输给真实可信的缩略图。优先考虑移动端设计——大多数观看发生在手机上，简洁和高对比度在移动端效果最好。

Read these first

前置读取内容

  1. brand-profile — channel style/template (for consistency).
  2. the video and its title (often from youtube-publishing-and-metadata/youtube-long-form/ youtube-shorts).
  1. brand-profile——频道风格/模板（用于保持一致性）。
  2. 视频及其标题（通常来自youtube-publishing-and-metadata/youtube-long-form/youtube-shorts）。

The framework: CLICK

框架：CLICK

(Depth: 
references/the-click-framework.md
.)
  • C — Clarify the promise: one-sentence promise; thumbnail + title as a unit (show vs tell, never repeat); promise not poster.
  • L — Lead with one focal point: one/two hero elements, minimal background, parseable in <1s; one directional element.
  • I — Invoke genuine emotion: expressive genuine face + gaze if it adds context (skip it otherwise); match the expression to the content.
  • C — Contrast + concise text: complementary high contrast (avoid YouTube red/white, 60-30-10, B&W test, light+dark); 0–4 bold sans-serif words + outline, not a title duplicate; mobile-legible at ~168×94; safe zones; 1280×720, 16:9.
  • K — Keep testing: 3 meaningfully-different concepts, one variable; native Test & Compare picks by watch-time share (not Shorts, needs traffic); a human uploads + runs it; keep a log; brand-consistent template.
（详细内容见：
references/the-click-framework.md
。）
  • C — 明确承诺（Clarify the promise）： 一句话承诺；缩略图与标题作为整体（展示与说明互补，绝不重复）；是承诺而非海报。
  • L — 单一焦点主导（Lead with one focal point）： 1-2个核心元素，极简背景，1秒内可识别；一个引导性元素。
  • I — 唤起真实情绪（Invoke genuine emotion）： 若能补充内容语境则使用有表现力的真实人脸与视线（否则省略）；表情需与内容匹配。
  • C — 对比度与简洁文案（Contrast + concise text）： 互补高对比度（避免使用YouTube红/白，遵循60-30-10配色原则，通过黑白测试，适配明暗模式）；0-4个加粗无衬线文字加描边，不与标题重复；在约168×94尺寸下移动端清晰可读；预留安全区域；尺寸1280×720，比例16:9。
  • K — 持续测试（Keep testing）： 3个有显著差异的概念，仅改变一个变量；原生Test & Compare功能通过观看时长占比选出优胜者（不适用于Shorts，需要一定流量）；由人类上传并执行测试；保留测试日志；使用符合品牌风格的模板。

The reality (verify-quarterly)

实际现状（每季度验证）

Promise-not-poster + thumbnail+title-as-unit + watch-time A/B punishes clickbait; the three principles (simplicity/contrast/emotion); faces (+20–30%, genuine, gaze, unknown-face-can-hurt); contrast/color (complementary, avoid YT red/white, 60-30-10, B&W test); text (0–4 words, bold sans-serif, no title duplicate); mobile-first + safe zones + specs (1280×720; 50MB cap since early 2026); brand consistency; native Test & Compare (watch-time-share winner, also tests titles/combos, not Shorts, traffic-dependent): 
references/thumbnail-2026-reality.md
. The promise template, design checklist, spec block, A/B plan + worked examples: 
references/design-and-test-recipes.md
.
“承诺而非海报”+“缩略图与标题为整体”+“观看时长导向的A/B测试”会惩罚标题党；三大核心原则（简洁/对比度/情绪）；人脸（提升20-30%点击率，需真实、有视线，陌生人脸可能产生负面影响）；对比度/配色（互补色，避免YT红/白，60-30-10配色，黑白测试）；文案（0-4个词，加粗无衬线，不与标题重复）；移动端优先+安全区域+规格（1280×720；2026年初起上限50MB）；品牌一致性；原生Test & Compare（按观看时长占比选出优胜者，也可测试标题/组合，不适用于Shorts，依赖流量）： 
references/thumbnail-2026-reality.md
承诺模板、设计检查清单、规格说明、A/B测试计划及实操案例： 
references/design-and-test-recipes.md

Honest scope (never violate)

明确边界（严禁违反）

  • The agent writes the promise/concept/text/brief and can critique a mockup — but a HUMAN or image tool (
    nano-banana
    /
    ideogram
    /Canva/a designer) creates the final raster.
  • The YouTube custom thumbnail is uploaded NATIVELY in Studio — WoopSocial has no thumbnail field — and Test & Compare is native (a human uploads + runs it). TikTok/IG-Reel covers are different: those use WoopSocial's 
    cover
    field     via 
    tiktok-video-publishing
    /the IG skill.
  • No clickbait (the thumbnail must keep the promise — the watch-time test punishes deception); no unconsented real-person/deepfake faces; never fabricate a CTR (real testing/native analytics only). (Scope, distinctions + connections: 
    references/scope-and-connections.md
    .)
  • Agent负责撰写承诺/概念/文案/需求简报，并可对设计稿提出评审意见——但最终栅格图像由人类或图像工具（
    nano-banana
    /
    ideogram
    /Canva/设计师）制作    。
  • YouTube自定义缩略图直接在Studio中原生上传——WoopSocial没有缩略图字段，且Test & Compare为平台原生功能（由人类上传并执行测试）。TikTok/IG-Reel封面规则不同：这类封面通过
    tiktok-video-publishing
    /IG技能使用WoopSocial的
    cover
    字段    。
  • 禁止标题党（缩略图必须兑现承诺——观看时长测试会惩罚欺骗行为）；禁止使用未经同意的真人/deepfake人脸；绝不虚构CTR数据（仅使用真实测试/平台原生分析数据）。 （边界、区别与关联：
    references/scope-and-connections.md
    。）

Distinct from its siblings (route correctly)

与相关技能的区别（请正确路由）

thumbnail-design (this) = the thumbnail design craft + brief + A/B plan · youtube-publishing-and- metadata = the title/description/tags metadata (points HERE for the thumbnail) · nano-banana/ideogram = generate the raster this briefs · tiktok-video-publishing = the TikTok 
cover
field · hook-writer/ caption-writer = text lines.
thumbnail-design（本技能） = 缩略图设计工艺 + 需求简报 + A/B测试计划 · youtube-publishing-and-metadata = 标题/描述/标签元数据（缩略图相关需求指向本技能） · nano-banana/ideogram = 生成本技能需求简报对应的栅格图 · tiktok-video-publishing = TikTok 
cover
字段处理 · hook-writer/caption-writer = 文案撰写。

Where this connects

关联技能

Reads first: brand-profile + the video/title (youtube-publishing-and-metadata/youtube-long- form/youtube-shorts). Pairs with: nano-banana/ideogram (render the brief), hook-writer (the thumbnail words), youtube-publishing-and-metadata (title as a unit with the thumbnail), experimentation (A/B discipline), competitor-analysis (preview against ranking thumbnails). Hands to: a human to render + upload the YouTube thumbnail natively + run Test & Compare; analytics-and-reporting reads CTR/watch-time back. The raster, native upload, and native A/B test stay outside WoopSocial.
前置读取：brand-profile + 视频/标题（来自youtube-publishing-and-metadata/youtube-long-form/youtube-shorts）。 搭配使用：nano-banana/ideogram（渲染需求简报）、hook-writer（缩略图文案）、youtube-publishing-and-metadata（与缩略图配套的标题）、experimentation（A/B测试规范）、competitor-analysis（与排名靠前的缩略图对比预览）。 交付对象：人类负责渲染 + 原生上传YouTube缩略图 + 运行Test & Compare；analytics-and-reporting回读CTR/观看时长数据。 栅格图制作、原生上传与原生A/B测试均在WoopSocial之外完成。

Definition of done

完成标准

A one-sentence promise written and the thumbnail designed as a unit with the title (show vs tell, no repetition); one focal point with minimal background; a genuine face + gaze where it adds context (or none); high contrast (complementary, not YouTube red/white, 60-30-10, passes the B&W test) legible in light and dark; 0–4 bold words with an outline that don't duplicate the title; mobile-legible at ~168×94 with safe zones and 1280×720 specs; an A/B plan of 3 meaningfully-different concepts changing one variable, scored natively by watch-time share; the raster left to an image tool/designer and the YouTube upload + test left to native Studio; no clickbait, no unconsented faces, no fabricated CTR; correctly distinguished from youtube-publishing-and-metadata and nano-banana/ideogram.
已撰写一句话承诺，且缩略图与标题作为整体设计（展示与说明互补，无重复）；单一焦点，背景极简；若能补充语境则使用真实人脸与视线（否则不使用）；高对比度（互补色，不使用YouTube红/白，遵循60-30-10配色，通过黑白测试），适配明暗模式均清晰可读；0-4个带描边的加粗文字，不与标题重复；在约168×94尺寸下移动端清晰可读，预留安全区域，符合1280×720规格；制定包含3个有显著差异概念的A/B测试计划，仅改变一个变量，通过平台原生观看时长占比评分；栅格图交由图像工具/设计师制作，YouTube上传与测试交由原生Studio完成；无标题党、无未经同意的人脸、无虚构CTR数据；已正确区分本技能与youtube-publishing-and-metadata、nano-banana/ideogram的差异。