Photos have an immense power over us. They evoke feelings, shift our perspective, and show us different worlds. But what happens when we see these images come to life? Movement adds a whole other dimension to what we experience and can bring your audience deeper into connecting with your content. Create an engaging experience for your audience by incorporating these three animations into your social media:
Cinema-graph
Let’s say you look at a photo of a girl on the beach with her hair caught in the wind. Your senses pick up on the emotion of being free and your eyes see that it must have been a beautiful day. Imagine that same photo except now the girl’s hair – only the hair – is moving; just like it would be blowing in the wind if you were looking at her in person. Since we’re naturally drawn to movement, this small change can make a huge impact on catching your audience’s eye. It also places your audience deeper into the photo, as if they were actually there. They’ll be able to experience your vibe, messaging, and brand in a completely different way.
Stop Motion Animation
This type of animation has a very unique look to it. It’s a cinematic process that makes static objects appear as if they were moving. Although this type of animation can take the longest – and the most patience – it’s definitely well worth it. For example, to show all of the things that you can put in your brand’s makeup bag, you could create an animation that shows your brushes, powders, eye shadows, and more moving across the floor and into the makeup bag. If it’s for a holiday party, you could even have a pair of heels come dancing out next to the bag along with a dress to show how your audience could get ready for the night with your products. Yes, you could do a flat lay photo, but throwing in this type of animation every now and then will give your content a little flare.
GIFS
Although we all know GIFS as the humorous animations we use in texts and on Facebook, they can actually serve as a great tool for creating unique content. Say you have a video that you want to put in your monthly newsletter. Since videos can’t be directly embedded, experiment with making a GIF from a clip of that video. You can even make it look like the video by placing a ‘play’ button on top of it. By utilizing this type of animation, you’ll be giving your audience unexpected content that allows them to interact with your brand in a unique way.
Once you’ve tested out different animations, find out how to incorporate effective video content into your social media.
