Mobile Content is KING – The ever so popular GIF phenomenon
Being in the mobile content creation business, I ran across an interesting article written by Claire Fallon, writer for Huffington Post (click link to read her article). She discusses the recent phenomenon of GIFs, and how they’ve become so popular even though they have been around for quite some time. It was very interesting to read how she notes that how GIFs have survived since inception. The idea of using animated loops of 3-4 second clips to denote expression of mood seems to be catching a firestorm as of late. With the likes of GIPHY, who has become the all-to GIF content platform, GIF sharing and expression has become more and more the norm for everyday conversations. With mobile penetration rates continuing to increase, mobile content sharing will only increase as well.
Whenever I look at GIFs, I always think of how Stickers are the same thing. If you think about it, emojis and stickers were the first to be used in Asia. Stickers took Asia by storm, thanks in part to LINE, who has been growing revenue based off of selling virtual sticker packs to its users. Stickers are just as expressive or if not, even more. They do just the same; express one’s feeling or mood. However, the difference between to two is that stickers are static images, versus GIFs, which are animations. Nonetheless, both are going through a mass craze period.
For example, in Asia – LINE opened up its “Creator’s Market” an self-sustaining platform for artists to submit their designs for sticker packs for LINE to choose whether or not to release in their Sticker Store. If an artist gets chosen, they then share in the profits from LINE users purchasing their packs. In similar fashion, GIF artists too have become widely sought out here in the U.S. With the emergence of the GIF phenomenon, GIF artists are becoming more and more sought out by brands and advertisers, as they create a new form of branded advertisements.
Because of this, our company set out to create STKR.us, the first sticker platform meant for artists and users to connect. Our platform is 100% free to use for users, and free for artists to join. Our 2 co-founders sought out to build this platform as a means to allow artists to showcase their talent and work in the form of stickers, but also for users to enjoy them in the end result. Stickers express the same just as a GIF would.
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