Video and GIF's are Social Media Kings

Video and GIF’s are Social Media Kings

Just like 3D movies, animated GIF’s (Graphics Interchange Format) had a little bit of a bad reputation. They were poorly drawn, or just overall cheesy… and they did not render very well on a dial-up connection since they were famous for slowing down websites. However, with the rise of audiovisual interaction on our social media networks, GIF’s have made the most outstanding comeback of them all, populating our feeds with really imaginative sequences!

Since we’re all about innovation and integrating the latest trending topics into our workflow, we’ve decided not only to show you how video and GIF’s are groundbreaking when it comes to social media, but also how to make your own!

Let’s start!

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Youtube, Vine and Snapchat are some of the platforms that we use daily to enjoy different audiovisual content (behold the birth of cat videos), but these are not exclusive. More and more networks such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram seamlessly integrated this format to attract more users and create more engagement.

Here’s how you can use it for your social media strategy:

1. Make it short: The shorter the better. Do not exceed 30 seconds and make sure to communicate the main concept within the first 20. Instagram videos are up to 15 secs. and Vine videos are up to 8 secs — and there is a reason for this. The attention span of people on the internet is very short, so you want to ensure you capture their attention within the first few seconds.

2. Show how to do something. Tasty, a project by the same creators of Buzzfeed is one of the most viral forms of engagement nowadays when it comes to social media. These short videos explain how to create delicious recipes in a quick, concise manner. Just as they use this as their edge, you should too! How-to or tips videos are one of the surest ways to increase engagement and make your content interesting.

3. Reveal a new product: Make it fun and appealing to your audience! Showing your product in action can guarantee almost instant success.

With the rise of Giphy more and more people are using GIF’s to express their ideas, and brands have been taking advantage of that for some time now using these animations as ways to communicate with their target market. Here are some of the ways you can integrate this format into your content strategy:

1. Educate: Show a demo of your product or a step-by-step guide. The amazing part? It loops forever, so your users can watch it as many times as they want.

2. Images > words. React to different situations utilizing GIF’s, after all, you know what they say: “A picture is worth a thousand words”.

3. Tell a story: Or better yet, create a motion of change over time to present evolution.

Great, right? Now, you must be wondering… “How can I make my own GIF’s”? Well, you’re in the right place! Open Photoshop, and let’s do it!

First: Create your layers