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The best way to promote your business or your brand is by networking across social media platforms— the most popular being Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. The more you spread your content, the greater exposure and the more likely you are to gain subscribers, clients, sales, and leads. So, if you have a YouTube video, for example, be sure to promote it on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Be sure to learn the mechanics of each platform to avoid issues sharing content.
If your YouTube thumbnail is not showing up on LinkedIn, here are some possible reasons why:
- Browser Cookies and Cache
- Browser Update
- Extensions and Pop-up Blockers
- Image Format and Size
Let’s look into each scenario, understand why it might be causing the issue and then learn how to solve it. There is also a helpful tool built-in to LinkedIn that might be of use to you in resolving your YouTube thumbnail issue. We’ll tell you what it is and all the information on how to use it.
4 Reasons Your YouTube Thumbnail is Not Showing on LinkedIn
For the uninitiated, LinkedIn is an online service based on employment. It’s where you can essentially display your resume and portfolio to prospective employers who may be on the hunt to fill a position. To be competitive on this platform takes more than listing out your job history; you have to show companies your skills. What better way to do that than visually with a YouTube video?
1. Image Format and Size
Checking the image formatting may seem like an obvious fix, but not all formatting guidelines are the same across platforms. It could be your first time trying to add a YouTube video link and thumbnail to LinkedIn– which has very clear requirements for videos and thumbnails. For starters, they recommend that you custom make your thumbnail. There are three different ratios for LinkedIn display: landscape, square and vertical, and each ratio has its minimum and maximum pixel sizes.
- Landscape ratio: 16.9; Min: 640 x 360 pixels; Max: 1920 x 1080 pixels
- Square ratio: 1:1; Min: 360 x 360 pixels; Max: 1920 x 1920 pixels
- Vertical ratio: 9:16; Min: 360 x 640 pixels; Max: 1080 x 1920 pixels
Other important requirements for your YouTube video thumbnail are as follows:
- Thumbnail File Format: JPG or PNG
- Thumbnail Max Size: 2 MB
- Thumbnail Aspect Ratio & Resolution: Must match video
If you don’t want to worry about specs for your thumbnail, you can always use a website like placeit.net to create your custom YouTube thumbnail image.
2. Browser Update
Before possibly updating your browser, you want to make sure that you are using a supported browser for LinkedIn. The supported browsers are Microsoft Edge, Chrome, Safari, and Firefox if you’re using a PC. If you’re using a mobile device, the supported browsers are Microsoft Edge, Chrome, Safari, and Android.
Once you’ve identified if your browser is supported, you can move on to check if an update is needed. Each PC browser will have different instructions on how to locate updates, so be sure to look those up and follow them step by step. App updates can typically be found in your App Store under your profile if you’re using your mobile device. Be sure to restart the browser after an update before going to LinkedIn to check on your thumbnail image.
Pro tip: Edge and LinkedIn are both Microsoft products, so many users have found that if their images, including their video thumbnails, do not appear in other browsers, they do appear in Edge.
3. Browser Cookies and Cache
If your cache has an outdated version of LinkedIn, it may prevent the browser from properly displaying your images. You need to clear your cookies and cache in your browser to fix this. Again, each browser has different steps to clear your browser history.
The following are steps on how to clear your browser history for your particular browser:
- Firefox: Options> Privacy & Security> Cookies & Site Data> Clear Data
- Chrome: Settings> History> History> Clear Browsing Data> Clear Data
- Edge: Settings> Privacy, Search & Services> Clear Browsing Data
- Safari: Safari> Clear History
Be sure to close out and reopen your browser before going back to LinkedIn and checking out your YouTube thumbnail image.
4. Extensions and Pop-Up Blockers
Browser extensions and pop-up blockers can affect the script on a website by circumventing the script or blocking it altogether. The way to check and see if this might be causing issues with your thumbnail images appearing in your web browser, disable your browser extensions and pop-up blockers.
Check online for instructions on how to disable browser extensions and pop-up blockers for your particular browser, refresh your page and see if your images appear. Most web browsers will have this option under Settings>Privacy & Security, but Safari has it under Preferences>Windows.
Use LinkedIn Post Inspector
If all else fails, LinkedIn has a built-in tool that will help remove bugs, update your data and take care of any other issues that might be preventing your YouTube thumbnail images from showing up in your web browser. It’s called Post Inspector, and all you have to do to use it is enter the URL of the webpage and select “Debug Issues.” If anything is detected that might be causing issues with your web page, Post Inspector will let you know then you can address the issues from there.
There is also an option to clear cache using Post Inspector to retrieve the most up-to-date information about your new post. Go to Post Inspector and enter the URL of the page with the post and select “Inspect.” Your link preview should now appear with the latest information, including the YouTube thumbnail.
Conclusion
Troubleshooting is not easy, especially if you’re frustrated and in the dark about what is causing the issue. If one of these fixes doesn’t work for you, reach out to LinkedIn support. The website may be having problems that a technician can only fix on the backend.
