Everyone from Google to Oreo to Starbucks is using GIFs in their marketing, so why shouldn’t you? Why should Google have cooler branding than you? It’s just not right. But let’s first take a second or two to define GIFs and understand why they are such an important part of the digital culture.
The History of the GIF
To make a long story short, GIFs are millennials. They want to be discovered, are transparent and definitely hang out on Twitter. Plus, they were born somewhere around 1987.
They are highly visual and dynamic, perfect for the hamster on the wheel in your head that can’t run longer than two seconds, giving us no attention span whatsoever. But it’s not all the hamster’s fault, our innate cognitive abilities are just more inclined towards visuals. There, there little hamster.
All jokes aside, They aren’t just digital eye candy to put on your Instagram feed to look pretty. They can be used in your newsletters, website, as email signatures, on landing pages, shared via Instagram stories, in chatbots and so much more. You can use them to advertise promotions and sales, introduce staff members, advocate for causes, showcase your work and pretty much anything you can think of.
The bottom line is...GIFs will always take the cake over stills, and a well-tailored, unique visually perfected brand presence will always steal the show. But if you’re still not sold on them, how about this?
- GIFs just pack a powerful punch. Think of them as a two-second information knockout. Nothing is as expressive and telling as a GIF in such a short amount of time.
- It also has the ability to snap the average digital native from their obsessive scrolling frenzy to observe and retain the message
- People who are not attracted by traditional advertising will love GIFs.
- They can personalise and humanise your brand, make it more relatable.
- GIFs are a budget-friendly solution too. You don’t want stills, but you don’t quite have the budget for a full-production video. GIFs come right down in the middle on this scale. Goldilocks-approved.
- They can help you drive more traffic to your website or socials, and they can even help you sell.
Think about it, if there are two equally wonderful products out there, somewhere (if you know the reference, you are a millennial, hence you are a GIF), but one is just sitting at the back of the shelf, catching dust, while the other has amazing packaging, a gorgeous display and is right there in front of you, asking to be bought, which one will you SEE first? Which one will catch your attention and send the right message to you as the consumer?
Send us an email or write to us on our socials if you’d like us to help you create GIFs that will set you apart from your competitors.
https://sixunderground.net.au/collections/graphic-design-made-to-order/products/gifs-and-animation
