Introduction
Since Zazzle has been pushing it’s creators to create and upload our own thumbnails for our products, I’ve had to learn a lot, and fast, to catch up. With 2,000 products in just my JessicaAmber store, there are a lot of thumbnails to make. And the more I make, the more I learn about how to make the thumbnails the best they can be. Today, I will share with you a before-and-after thumbnail comparison, and three lessons that will make your thumbnails even better.
My Before and After
This is my ‘Handsome & Can Cook’ Father’s Day Apron, which is available on my Zazzle store. The first thumbnail was made in Feb 2024, and the new one is from June 2024. As you can see, I’ve made several changes, which help make the cover image more appealing, easier to read, and more likely to convert. Read the tips on how I did this below.
Tip 1: Crop… A Lot!
Everyone is viewing Zazzle on their mobile phones these days. And that means your beautiful cover images will be about 1′ big on the screen. Can you read your text at that size? Can you tell what the product is at that size? I couldn’t on my Version 1 thumbnail.
In Version 2, I cropped my design. I got rid of everything that was unnecessary – in this case, the top of the man’s head, and the waist of the apron. This made the design on the apron bigger and easier to read.
Note: Don’t crop the model’s heads off! Even if it would help make the design bigger, you still want a nice friendly face there to help make a human connection and sell your product!
Tip 2: Brighten things up!
My background was dark and moody in my first thumbnail. I thought this would be good for making the man stand out, but the apron is already dark, so it kinda just made the whole design look too dark.
The other reason the darkness is bad is because on a subconscious level, we pick up on things that are odd, and this one triggers a gut feeling of ‘why is this man in such a dark kitchen?’ Dis-ease means less likely to convert!
So, in the new cover image, I made the background brighter. More sunny, more happy, simply better.
Top 3: Coordinate Your Colours!
The more colours you have in your design, the more chaotic things get. My apron has 3 colours – navy blue, gold, and white. Then, the model is wearing a light blue shirt. That color isn’t in my design, so it clashes. And even though the buyer won’t be wearing or buying the model’s t-shirt, they still react based on what they see. If they see a clashing colour scheme, they just won’t feel good.
In my new cover photo, I edited the colour of the t-shirt to white. Now it matches the white in my design. It doesn’t grab attention, and therefore more focus can go onto the apron itself.
More Lessons Like This
A lot of what I’ve learned about marketing for Zazzle has come from Jen and Elke Clarke. I can’t recommend their courses enough, they are the go-to experts on turning a print on demand side hustle into a thriving business. I’ve started out with their Print on Demand Starter Kit, since it was much more affordable to me at my current income level. I hope to save up enough soon to enter their Proft by Design Academy, where the big earners learn how to master every aspect of their Zazzle business.
Conclusion
I hope these tips help you create more beautiful and effective cover images for your Zazzle products. If you have any questions, or want to share your improved thumbnails, let us know in the comments below!
Peace, love & sunshine,
JessicaAmber
