It’s a GIF life!
Why say it in actual words when you can just GIF it these days, right?
No, but seriously, having a good GIF game in this day and age is really important.
GIF, an abbreviation for Graphic Interchange Format, is a little more than 30 years old. Hell, yeah!
Initially, GIFs used to be in the form of a simple animated image that conveyed a message. Now, they are more popular than vines and short videos. There’s a reason you have that special little GIF button in your DM and messenger compose bars. Even social media is evolving to enable the GIF life. If you’re not using it already, you should and here are some reasons why you should use GIFs now.
Yes, it could take some time to understand how GIFs work and what is the right kind to use. But once you get it, there will be no going back.
Why use a GIF!
Intentions!
You have her attention, she seems interested, but you only have a few more seens before she’s done. You want to be cool without looking like a nincompoop.
Well, don’t freak out. So step out of your comfort zone and share a GIF that gave you a cramp like nobody’s business. Keep in mind that there could be different kinds of intent. You may want to convey a simple message, establish your brand or even do a quirky announcement. Whatever it is, there is going to be a GIF for it out there. It’s all about identifying it and adding it to your armory of communication.
Easy
It’s easier to convey in GIF what you can’t in words.
The fact that there are millions of GIFs to convey literally anything you want makes the process a whole lot easier as well. Most social media platforms have a GIF section from where you can access GIFs that convey things like an ‘I love you’ or ‘Lol’. You can even search for specific GIF thanks to this feature on Instagram.
Smart features and a whole bunch of websites have made it really convenient to use GIFs in everyday life. In fact, some things are better said in GIF, wouldn’t you agree?
So relatable!
We understand and respond better to GIFs. In fact, most people on social media prefer GIFs thanks to how visual and engaging it is. According to Jakob Nielsen, a Danish web usability consultant, users only read 28% of the words published when they visit a website.
So your efforts to read this blog in an effort to understand and catch up to the GIF generation makes a lot of sense. GIFs are setting a precedent for a more visual, less textual future. It’s definitely better to join this particular bandwagon.
Get emotional!
In the 1970s, psychologist Paul Eckman identified six primary emotions that he believed were universally experienced in all human cultures.
You will realize that there are thousands of GIFs that cover these. But we are living in different times now. It’s 2019 and our emotions are aligned to our dialect.
Here are a few more expressions expressed with GIFs to give you an idea:
Whatever!
Typically a go-to term for millennials when they’re feeling dismissive or cannot bother to continue an argument. You can identify the connotation behind whatever based on the tone of the person.
Freak out
Since most of this generation holds it in, a freak out is one emotion that is best expressed as a GIF. It communicates more effectively than all the words in the world.
Passive Aggressive
This emotion has been inherited from the older generations, but millennials have found a very creative way to express it.
Chill
Has someone ever told you, dude take a chill? well the term itself implies different things but they all sum up a feeling of relaxation combined with happiness.
TGIF
Few emotions are expressed as effectively in an acronym as TGIF. Just in case you have been living under a rock, it means Thank God its Friday.
OMG
Oh My God has become an emotion. Not just a single emotion, it’s meant to convey reaction to different types and levels of being utterly shocked.
LOL
Find yourself happy or amused? Express it with an apt laugh.
Where to find GIFs on the web?
So refer to this list in case you decide to look for a GIF the next time you want to use it.
But the best way would be to find it using the keyboard app you are using. Or download an app for this. You can go for the GIPHY or Tenor app.
GIFs have actually enabled us to express ourselves better. Even something as basic as ‘Let’s have lunch’ will a GIF for it. If you find yourself GIF less, you can always create your own too. Nevertheless, GIFs are here to stay, so it’s better to get in the know and explore how you can optimize them.
