Our Guide to GIFS for Business
GIFS are worth a lot more than just being funny snippets. They’ve become one of the most popular formats for people to express opinions in the digital world. Besides being entertaining to create and share, using GIFS for business is on the rise.
You may think GIFS look stupid and unprofessional, but businesses (even ‘serious’ companies) can use GIFS to reach their target audience. There’s a huge difference between a video of a dog doing something bizarre and a purposeful GIF; the latter delivers a powerful message that can push campaigns.
What Are GIFS?
A GIF (Graphic Interchange Format) is simply a soundless video, or a series of images. They aren’t usually very long; the content will be around 3 -5 seconds, but it will then play on a continuous loop.
Why You Should Use GIFS for Business
They’re Trending
The Internet, particularly on Social Media, has embraced the use of GIFS. They’re apart of the internet’s culture and businesses should monitor what’s currently popular and keep with the times.
GIFS are popular with millennials, so if your business is targeting them you need to speak their language and join in!
Keeping Your Business Relevant
Using GIFS for business will keep you involved with your audience, particularly on Social Media platforms like Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. GIFS are constantly circling around Social Media with many going viral. If your business creates, or posts an existing GIF, you’ve got the opportunity for brand visibility on a global scale.
They’re Incorporated in to Social Media Platforms
Sharing GIFS on Social Media has never been simpler.
On Social Media, GIFS are certainly attention grabbing. They automatically run on feeds, so users don’t need to press play. As they’re scrolling aimless down their feed and notice a GIF, they’re attention will be drawn to you.
- – Since GIFS are so popular, Twitter actually added a built-in GIFS search.
- – GIFS are an included feature on Facebook too! Interact with your customers posting GIFS and replying to their comments with GIFS too.
- – If you want to learn how to share GIFS on Instagram, visit Giphy’s website for guidance.
Liven Up Your Brand
Don’t be afraid to show your brand’s funny side; GIFS are not unprofessional! No matter the industry, using GIFS for business demonstrates a brand wants to be involved in what’s current.
GIFS are entertaining, you can share a product, piece of news or an update in a more interesting way than a standard image or video.
Whilst GIFS are great, they should be used in moderation. Don’t over do it, or their entertainment value starts to drop. GIFS are supposed to be eye-catching but using them all the time could make them boring and worn out.
GIFS for Email Marketing
Just like on Social Media, email accounts are cluttered with promotion emails from businesses pushing to get their message heard and conversions increased.
Email accounts can be hectic and receivers typically only scan business’s email communications. Unless, their attention is grabbed. GIFS could be the answer to sending engaging email campaigns.
GIFS are not only for Social Media, they can be used in Email Marketing too.
GIFS in email marketing isn’t exactly a new thing, but I have never actually received an email from a business containing a GIF?
Dell’s first ever GIF-centred email was a huge success, their results were pretty striking;
- – 6% increase in open rate
- – 42% increase in click-through rate
- – 103% increase in conversions
- – 109% increase in revenue
Since GIFS centred email marketing saw impressive results for DELL, there’s no reason why it couldn’t work for your business too. Give it a try and compare your CTR and conversions.
Creating Your Own GIFS
Existing GIFS may not be suitable to your business, you may want to add your brand’s personal touch. There’s plenty of GIF making tools, here’s a few to get you started;
GIFS for Promotion
GIFS are a brilliant way to share the features of your products or services. As we have previously mentioned, GIFS can be a sequence of still images.
For example, if you have a new product to share; you could show different features of the product in your GIF to highlight the different elements. Viewers will be get a better look at your product in a quick concise way.
Running Competitions
Making your own GIFS is extremely easy, so you can get your audience to join in too.
You could get your audience involved by asking them to create GIFS for your brand to be used in your upcoming campaign. You could push engagement by asking your audience to vote for the best GIF.
Our Quick Tips
- – Use them appropriately and in context
- – Don’t go over-the-top; use in moderation
- – To start, test using GIFS and monitor your audience’s reaction
- – Consider using text-based GIFS to get your message across
- – Make sure your GIFS are high quality and not blurry images
Wrapping Up
GIFS are an effective way to humanize your brand in a fun way; but you need to think carefully about using GIFS to represent your business. They’re promoting your content and illustrating your brand; so, they need to be accurate and tasteful.
GIFS for business will help your brand stand out and will aid making a strong connection with your customers. Good luck!
Why not check out our Digital Marketing Terms Glossary?
About the author:
Marie Harwood is a Digital Marketing Assistant at Different Gravy Digital, Hale, Cheshire.
Different Gravy Digital are a full service Digital Marketing Agency operating in the Hospitality & Leisure, Financial Services, Legal & Property sectors. Products and services range from; 3D & 360° Tours, Website Design & Build, Social Media, Video Production, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), Content Creation, Email Marketing, Online Feedback / Review Systems and Paid Advertising (Google, Bing and Social Media).
Contact Details:
marie@differentgravydigital.co.uk
0161 706 0004
120a Ashley Road, Hale, Altrincham, Cheshire, WA14 2UN