Of the thousands of creators I’ve worked with, one of the biggest mistakes I see is this:
👉 Not spending enough time crafting strong video titles.
Many of us obsess over our thumbnails (which is important), but a thumbnail without a compelling title is like bait without a hook. If the viewer scrolls past without clicking, all that design work goes to waste.
Let’s break down what makes a great title—and how it works with your thumbnail to win the click.
🎯 How Titles and Thumbnails Work Together
Think of your title and thumbnail as a team. A perfect example?
Vsauce’s “This is not yellow.”
Just a simple yellow blob for the thumbnail. Nothing flashy.
But the title? It stops you cold.
“What do you mean this isn’t yellow? I’m looking at yellow!”
That Curiosity Gap is irresistible. The video goes on to explain how monitors trick our eyes using red and green to create yellow. Super smart—and over 21 million views later, clearly effective.
🔍 YouTube Isn’t Just a Search Engine
Yes, YouTube is the second-largest search engine in the world.
But here’s what many forget:
Over 70% of views on YouTube come from recommendations, not search.
That means your title has to appeal not to someone looking for your video, but to someone who wasn’t—until your title (and thumbnail) grabbed them.
📚 Information Gaps: Curiosity Sells
Great titles leave just enough out to make viewers feel like they have to click.
This is what we call an information gap.
It’s the secret behind titles like:
- “This is not yellow.”
- “I Tried This Recipe—and Now I Make It Every Day.”
- “The 5 Mistakes Every Beginner Makes…”
Each creates questions in the viewer’s mind:
What’s so special?
Am I making those mistakes?
Am I missing out?
💡 Curiosity + Gain = High Click Potential
Here’s an example of a solid but traditional cooking video title:
- “Quick & Easy Garlic Butter Chicken Recipe | Delicious Dinner Idea”
Nice. Descriptive. 2.3M views. But…
Compare that with:
- “So Delicious I Make It Every Day | Chicken & Potato Recipe”
Now that triggers curiosity and gain. The viewer thinks:
“If it’s that good… I need to see this.”
Same topic. Wildly different emotional impact.
😨 Using Fear (the Right Way)
Fear doesn’t have to mean horror. It can mean FOMO or fear of doing it wrong.
Take this title:
- “5 Mistakes All Noobs Make in Clash of Clans” – 2.2M views
No list. No explanation. You have to click to find out.
“Am I a noob? Am I doing it wrong?”
That’s fear-based click motivation—and it works.
🚫 Don’t Just Keyword Stuff
Bad example:
“Electro Dragon Level 6 | Black Zero | Town Hall 15 Attacks | Clash of Clans”
It’s built for search, not humans.
Yes, keywords matter. But they’re not everything.
A better approach is:
- “I Tried Electro Dragons at TH15—Here’s What Happened”
Still gets your keywords in and appeals to emotion, curiosity, and narrative.
✅ Use Keywords Effectively
If you’re reviewing the iPhone 15, sure—put “iPhone 15” in the title.
But instead of:
“iPhone 15 Unboxing and Review”
Try:
“The iPhone 15 Surprised Me—Here’s Why”
Or
“This iPhone 15 Feature Changed My Workflow”
Curiosity + Emotion + Relevance > Generic description.
🔧 Title Tool You Can Use (with Caution)
There are tools that rate your titles and give suggestions. Helpful? Yes—but don’t get obsessed with the “score.”
You’re writing for humans, not just an algorithm.
Let’s say you’re titling this very video you’re watching:
- “How to Write Better YouTube Titles” → meh. Descriptive, but overused.
Better?
- “9 Out of 10 YouTubers Write Bad Titles—Are You One of Them?”
Now you’ve got fear, curiosity, and personalization.
🔁 Don’t Be Afraid to Change Your Title Later
If the video isn’t performing? Change the title. Test a new version.
Titles aren’t permanent, and YouTube rewards better CTR—even if it comes later.
✨ Final Thoughts
Great titles are:
- Built for humans, not just search
- Paired with strong thumbnails
- Filled with curiosity, emotion, gain, or fear
- Written to spark a question in the viewer’s mind
The next time you’re crafting a title, ask yourself:
Would I click this—even if I wasn’t looking for it?
If the answer is yes, you’re on the right track.
