3 min read
GIFs are, in many ways, a language of their own. In recent years, they have become increasingly popular across internet forums, messaging apps, and even internal business communications. What is it about GIFs that stand out to the people who use them most? Take a look at these key benefits and how they can improve your internal messaging, whether you’re working with students who need a little fun and a few uplifting notes in their messaging or adults who need a break in the monotony of their day.
Make messaging fun.
Sending a GIF is like sending a little surprise to your recipient. They almost always bring a smile. They’re short, to the point, and offer more insight into what you’re really thinking and feeling when you send a message, all of which can improve the overall quality of the message and enhance your communication with that individual. There’s a GIF for nearly every occasion, whether you want to send a cute animal doing something funny or a fandom or movie-based GIF that perfectly expresses the thoughts you want to share at that moment.
GIFs help improve culture when they’re a regular part of your group messaging.
Group culture is important–and building it is more difficult when your workers are communicating remotely, rather than getting together in person. GIFs are a great way to help improve the overall company or classroom culture. They help inject a note of humor into nearly every discussion. The GIFs your team members choose can also tell you a lot about their personalities and help them bond. What shows and fandoms do they choose to represent in the GIFs they select? Which ones get the best reactions? Sometimes, a single GIF can start an image-based chat that lasts for the rest of the day. The time spent looking for those GIFs is certainly not time wasted. Rather, it’s time spent connecting–and that time is vital for your group culture.
GIFs help make content more memorable.
When people read a text post alone, they will only remember an average of 20% of that text. An image, on the other hand, can help make the entirety of the content more memorable. GIFs are an excellent tool for boosting memory retention. If you’re sending out a reminder about an important meeting or event, a GIF can help call it to mind and increase the odds that your employees will remember it. Sharing a new standard or procedure? Add a GIF to help employees remember the new content and implement it daily. The GIF can also make it easier for employees to find that vital information in their message feeds later since they stand out from the usual walls of text.
GIFs speak a different, often more understandable language.
Messaging, especially text-based messaging, can be awkward. You know what you want to say, but you may second-guess the way you put that language together. How will your recipient perceive that information? Did you say that thing correctly, or did you create problems that will be a challenge to solve later?
GIFs often speak a universal language. GIFs can inject a note of humor or show your lighthearted intent, which can help prevent your coworkers or students from misreading your intentions. They also help showcase personality and give your employees, coworkers, or students a better idea of who you are, which can help bridge the gap and prevent future misunderstandings even in messages that do not necessarily use that type of content.
Help increase overall engagement in the discussion.
Employee engagement is an ongoing challenge–and when your employees are connecting remotely, it can feel even more difficult to get them to engage with a discussion. GIFs, however, naturally draw their attention. Moving images capture the eye and encourage the viewer to actively connect with the content. Not only that, people genuinely enjoy choosing and posting GIFs to share with others. When you start to share GIFs in your messages, you offer permission for others to do the same. They will then be naturally more engaged with the discussion at hand, which may translate to greater overall engagement in the work environment.
If you aren’t using GIFs in your internal messaging, you’re missing out on a great opportunity to make the most of those virtual connections. Fortunately, Pronto makes sending GIFs simple. Contact us today to learn more about our communication solutions and options, including how you can inject GIFs into your messages and use them to connect with your audience.