When you start your VTuber activities, you have a mountain of things to do, such as character designs, logos, and streaming environments. Among these, the key visual is often unexpectedly overlooked. For fans, it is an important image that serves as an entry point to get to know you for the first time.

Whether someone thinks, “I find this person interesting” at first glance depends on the key visual. It serves as a signboard to let people know your existence before they watch your streams.

This article summarizes the basics of key visuals, how to create them, and options for creating them yourself or outsourcing, in a way that even beginners can understand. After reading this, you should find tips to refine your first impression using the method that suits you best.

What is a Key Visual? How is it Different from Character Design?

When you hear the term “key visual,” it’s easy to confuse it with character design. In fact, these two serve very different roles, even though they may appear similar. Here, character design refers to a full-body illustration facing forward without a background.

Character design is a front-facing full-body illustration. It can be used universally as a material, such as being inserted into a streaming screen or included in a profile section. On the other hand, the key visual is a main image used for promotional purposes that captures the world view and personality in a single shot. It conveys a strong impression of “what kind of person this VTuber is,” including backgrounds, poses, expressions, and props.

To make it easier to understand, think of celebrity promotional photos. Rather than everyday snapshots, it’s the carefully set-up photos taken in line with a concept that serve as the “face” reaching fans and companies.

A VTuber’s key visual occupies the same position. If character design represents the everyday look, the key visual can be seen as a special attire used for business cards, posters, announcement images, or channel headers. It’s effective for creating impactful first impressions.

Why Do VTubers Need Key Visuals?

Before people watch your stream, they make judgments based on visuals first. It’s the few seconds of impression when they see your social media header or channel page. Whether they feel “this looks interesting” or “I’m curious about this person’s world” greatly depends on the key visual.

Of course, you can carry out activities with just character design. However, character designs are merely basic materials. Because they are simple, there may be situations where they fall short in conveying the character’s atmosphere deeply.

That’s where having a key visual becomes powerful. By refining backgrounds and color schemes and incorporating poses and props, you can instantly convey “your uniqueness.”

Key visuals can be readily used for event announcement images or collaboration promotions, and they can also be applied to merchandise visuals. For fans, they are easily spread as “a representation of their favorite.” Additionally, they serve effectively as main images for channel headers and event announcements, becoming an asset that can easily be turned into merchandise.

Steps to Create a VTuber Key Visual

When you finally decide to create it, it’s easy to get lost in the question, “Where should I start?” Knowing the flow significantly helps in making the process smoother. Here, I’ll introduce the three basic steps.

Step 1: Determine the Target and Concept

The first thing to consider is what kind of impression you want to deliver to whom. For example, think about whether you want “same-age gamers to feel a sense of familiarity” or “fantasy lovers to enjoy the world view.” By defining your target audience concretely, and then translating concepts such as “bright and cheerful” or “mysterious and cool” into words, you’ll have a clearer guide for later design decisions.

Step 2: Choose Poses, Expressions, and Props

While character designs typically involve a straightforward standing pose, key visuals emphasize character traits through movement. By adding gestures like waving with a smile, holding a game console with a serious expression, or carrying a favorite item, the sense of “character” is greatly enhanced. Personality can be conveyed not only through expression but also through posture and silhouette, so it’s even more effective to be aware of what kind of persona you wish to communicate.

Step 3: Create the World View with Color Schemes and Backgrounds

Finally, color and background are crucial. Bright colors tend to create a lively and friendly impression, while darker tones often convey calmness and mystery. However, the perception of colors can vary based on culture and context, so it’s best to eventually have someone close to your target audience review it for reassurance.

The background serves as a supporting role that enhances the main character. By being mindful of contrast and spatial relationships, you can avoid confusing visual elements. Whether you depict a specific scene like a cityscape or sky or use a simple pattern can significantly alter the impression. Choosing combinations that align with your streaming genre and character traits will help you create an image that sticks in the viewers’ memory.

Methods to Create Your Own and Recommended Tools

If “outsourcing feels like too high a hurdle” or “I want to create it myself if possible,” then trying your hand at creating it is a good option. Nowadays, there are many intuitive tools available that can help you produce attractive key visuals even if you aren’t skilled at drawing.

How to Proceed with Self-Creation

Instead of jumping straight into drawing, it’s advisable to start with preparation. Begin by solidifying your concept and gathering reference images. Collect colors and poses that match the atmosphere you want to create from sites like Pinterest or free material sites; this will make the subsequent steps less confusing.

Next, combine character designs and background materials to create your overall layout. Whether you center the character or add movement to the background will change the impression significantly. Including a provisional font and text arrangement at this stage will also help you grasp the completion’s image more easily.

Finally, adjust colors and organize text to finalize your visual. The key here is to make fine adjustments based on “what atmosphere you want to convey.” Even without complex compositions or detailed illustrations, a solid key visual can be achieved as long as it resonates with your target audience.

Recommended Tools

• Canva
  A browser-based design tool that lets you edit a wealth of templates via drag operations, easily combining backgrounds and text. Just placing character designs and fitting them with backgrounds can yield a suitable visual. Perfect for beginners to practice.
• CLIP STUDIO PAINT
  If you want to create more detailed illustrations, this is the go-to software. It’s a standard illustration software that can handle everything from line art to coloring. It excels at producing manga or anime-style illustrations, making it suitable for those wanting to create art from scratch.
• Photoshop
  A staple software strong in photo editing and compositing. It’s useful for blending backgrounds with characters or creating detailed text designs. Especially handy if you already have character designs or materials.
• Mobile apps (such as ibis Paint)
  High-function drawing apps for smartphones and tablets. They are easy to start using for free and are helpful for minor touches or color adjustments. A significant advantage is that you can try it without a PC setup.

Points to Consider for Self-Creation

If you’re creating it yourself, it’s important to “avoid aiming for perfection and focus on finishing something first.” It’s perfectly fine if the first piece is simple. Try using it in streams or on social media, and refine it based on viewer feedback. Through that accumulation, you will get closer to your unique key visual.

Also, if you use templates, materials, or fonts, be sure to check each service’s licensing conditions. There may be restrictions on commercial use or secondary use.

How to Outsource and Market Rates

Many VTubers may think, “I really want to leave it to the professionals.” By outsourcing, the quality can rise dramatically, and you can acquire visuals that you can confidently use for your debut or events. Here, I’ll organize how to find places to commission, feel for costs, and points to pay attention to.

How to Find Commissions (Production Companies vs. Individual Creators)

Generally, you have two options: commissioning a production company or an individual creator.

• Production companies are appealing for their quality and stable delivery times. However, costs tend to be higher.
• Individual creators can be conveniently found through platforms like Skeb or CoFun. Searching tags like “#illustration_request” or “#commission” on X (formerly Twitter) is also effective. Always check past works to ensure their style matches your character’s vibe.

Factors Affecting Market Rates

The pricing for key visuals varies significantly. You can find offers for simple content around 10,000 yen, but pieces with more elaborate character designs or backgrounds generally range from 50,000 to 150,000 yen. It’s not uncommon for highly popular creators to exceed 100,000 yen. Four main factors significantly influence pricing.

• Creator’s popularity and track record
• Style of the illustration (anime style, textured painting, etc.)
• Amount of detail (simple backgrounds vs. complete backgrounds)
• Number of characters (one vs. multiple)

By clarifying which elements you prioritize based on your scale of activity and budget, it becomes easier to make your selection.

Points and Precautions When Commissioning

When commissioning, conveying “what kind of image you want” as concretely as possible is the key to success. Write down the character’s personality, image color, and any props you want to include in your request. Attaching reference images will also make it even easier to communicate.

Another crucial factor is the rights involved. Be sure to confirm conditions such as the viability of commercial use, whether credit needs to be displayed, whether copyright transfer is involved or additional fees apply, as well as the number of revisions allowed before you request.

Notably, Skeb allows resubmissions within deadlines, but it’s not structured for requests based on significant revisions. To avoid difficulties later when you want it for merchandise or collaborations, clarify the usage scope from the start for peace of mind.

Situations Where Key Visuals Can Be Utilized

You’ve gone to the trouble of creating a key visual — it would be a waste to only use it in your profile. There will be many opportunities to utilize it in your actual activities.

SNS and Channel Headers

Setting it as the header image for YouTube or X (formerly Twitter) greatly changes the first impression for visitors to your page. It instantly communicates a “world view” that character design alone cannot provide, enhancing credibility and expectations in your profile.

Streaming and Video Announcement Images

When setting up new streaming slots or announcing collaborations, using the key visual as a background will yield a more eye-catching announcement image. Cropping part of it for thumbnails is also effective.

Visuals for Merchandise and Events

Key visuals can also be adapted for merchandise such as acrylic stands or tapestries. They are useful for posters and pamphlets in official events or offline projects, making them a long-term asset to utilize.

For information on how VTubers can produce and sell merchandise, please refer to the following article.

How Can VTubers Produce and Sell Merchandise? A Beginner’s Guide to Methods and Precautions!

Business Cards and Profile Materials

Including your key visual when discussing corporate projects or collaborations boosts your professionalism. It allows you to visually convey “what kind of VTuber you are,” making interaction smoother.

If you’re curious about tips for writing profiles or creating them, check out the following article.

How to Write and Create a VTuber Profile? Tips and 12 Items You Should Include!

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In this way, once a key visual is made, it serves a wide range of purposes from streaming to promotion, sales, and merchandise. To enhance ease of reuse, separating and saving the background from the character will increase flexibility.

Conclusion

In VTuber activities, the key visual is “the face that sets the first impression.” While you can function with just character design, the key visual becomes a powerful tool for conveying your world view and personality at a glance.

There are two main paths to creating it.

You can self-create using tools or outsource to professionals for higher quality. Both methods have their advantages, and you can choose based on your scale of activity, budget, and schedule.

The important thing is to “clearly define the image you want to convey.” As long as that foundation is solid, you can create an attractive visual, regardless of the method.

The completed key visual can be widely utilized across SNS and channel headers, announcement images, merchandise, and event materials. By creating just one, you gain an asset that will be used for a long time, significantly enhancing the credibility of your activities and affection from fans.

Start with one step. Even something simple is fine; try to create visuals that express your uniqueness. That could be the catalyst to elevate your activities to the next stage.

If You’ve Polished Your First Impression with a Key Visual, What’s Next?

Once you’ve refined your first impression with a key visual, how about also enhancing your streaming screen? With the streaming screen design service “Alive Studio,” you can complete a streaming screen that reflects your character in no time with intuitive operations.

• More than 1,000 backgrounds and prop materials available for unlimited use, provided by the VTuber material production team “Usaneko Memory!”
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• Includes an on-demand roulette and counter function!
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If you want to effectively reflect your world view in your streaming screen or create a space that impresses your fans even more,
then definitely give “Alive Studio” a try.

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