YouTube is giving more creators a way to test how different titles perform on their videos. After introducing the ability to test and compare video titles for a “small percentage” of creators in July, YouTube has now expanded the tool to “all creators with access to advanced features” in YouTube Studio, making it easier to choose the best titles to attract viewers.
This extension is based on an existing tool in YouTube Studio that allows users to test the performance of different video thumbnails. Creators can now upload up to three titles or a combination of titles and thumbnails to videos, with YouTube testing those options equally among viewers for two weeks to assess which combination earns the most watch time.
The combinations that increase the most watch time will be labeled as “winners” and then automatically applied to the final video. If the test results are inconclusive, the first title and thumbnail combination uploaded by the user will be applied as the default. YouTube says creatives can also choose to ignore the results of these tests and manually choose the video thumbnail and title of their choice.
This feature is only available on desktop, and can be applied to public long-form videos, live stream collections saved as videos, or podcast episodes. Creators cannot run thumbnail or title tests on videos marked for mature audiences or “made for kids.”
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