How To Make a GIF for Instagram in a Few Simple Steps

Learning how to make a GIF for Instagram is a fun process that requires a lot of creativity. In fact, you can make a brand-new GIF that many people will use. We’ll share the process for making GIFs so you can get started after reading this article. 

We’ll also provide the top reasons for how to make GIFs for Instagram from different content types. This includes Stories and Reel content. You can make the perfect GIF for your vision with the right source material. 

You’ll also discover the advantage of using GIFs in your Instagram content strategy. Play your cards right, and you can increase your Instagram follower count to new heights.

What Is a GIF?

GIFs stands for Graphics Interchange Format, and it’s a highly popular format for sharing basic images. It’s a bitmap image created back in 1987 and developed by computer scientist Steve Wilhite from CompuServe. 

Users on social media platforms like Instagram use GIFs to share memes and express themselves. Most messaging apps and tools have a built-in GIF tool that allows you to search a library to post in the message. Also, you can use third-party GIF websites if you want even more. 

How To Make a GIF from Instagram

Do you want to know how to make a GIF from Instagram? You’ll need to download the Instagram content you want to turn into a GIF. After downloading the content, you must use a third-party app or website. 

The process will vary from one service to the next, but the idea is to upload your video for GIF creation. Then, you can make edits, such as adding effects or words to the GIF. The options at your disposal will vary from one service to the next.

How To Make a GIF From Photos

You can also learn how to make a GIF from photos. This is a little harder since you’ll need a lot of photos to create a single GIF. However, it can still work and gives you a lot of control over the outcome. 

Like with videos, you must download the images and then upload them to your GIF creation app. However, you can also use photos that already exist on your hard drive. You’ll need to choose a service that supports creating GIFs from photos.

Add GIF to IG Story

Take the time to add a GIF to IG Stories to add a bit more spice to your content production. However, there’s no need to create your own GIF to add them to IG Stories. That’s because Instagram has a library of GIFs that you can use to add to content. 

During the IG Stories creation process, you’ll see a GIF button that allows you to add the GIF. There’s a search bar that you can use to find the specific GIF that makes the most sense for the content. 

Note that Instagram’s GIF library is always increasing, so search for the same terms again to find new options. The quality of the GIFs you add depends on the search terms you use.

4 Advantages of Using a GIF on Instagram

You can use GIFs in your content on Instagram, whether it’s Instagram Stories or Reels. We’ll share some of the top advantages of using GIFs on Instagram to understand their value. This can give you four reasons to give GIFs a try in your content strategy. 

1. Entertain Your Audience

GIFs are a fast and easy way to provide entertainment for your audience. They arguably take less effort to make than a regular video yet can pack the same punch. You’ll want to use Stories or Reels for GIFs since they are short-form content. 

However, to entertain your audience, you’ll need to understand their interests. This means you must do background research on your Instagram target audience. Then, you can figure out what kind of GIFs to share. You can also encourage your audience to share the GIFs to increase their virality. 

2. They’re Easy To Create

Once you get the hang of making a GIF, you’ll find they are easy to manufacture. Even the inexperienced designers among you can come up with many GIFs in one day. Therefore, it’s a beginner-friendly method of creating content. 

However, this depends on the specific software you select to make the GIF. Ideally, you will learn how to make GIFs for Instagram using top-tier software. This gives you more tools to edit and customize the GIFs to bring your creative vision to life. 

3. Use IG’s GIF Library

Instagram has a built-in library of GIFs you can explore to add to your content. Find the GIF button when creating a post and enter a few search terms. Here are some of the top ideas to consider when looking for a GIF to add:

• Niche-specific: Enter search terms related to your niche to look for relevant options. For instance, when creating food-related content, you can type the names of foods. This ensures that the GIFs stay on topic and will impact your target audience more. 
• Consider the emotion: You can search for GIFs based on the emotion you want to share. For example, if you’re going to share happy thoughts, then write the word happy in the search bar. You’ll likely see a bunch of GIFs that help you express this emotion and a lot of others. 
• Mix them up: Make sure you don’t use the same GIF too often. It looks lazy, and your audience will think you’ve run out of ideas. In fact, make it a rule to not use the same GIF more than once in a given time.

4. Drive Sales

Creating GIFs will help you produce more content that helps sell products on Instagram. Therefore, you can increase the size of your business on Instagram. This makes using GIFs a worthwhile process, and it’s a good investment of your time to learn them. 

You can add links to dedicated product pages on Instagram with a professional account. This opens up more options for you to sell products to a wider audience. Also, you can use Instagram Insights to view the performance of your content. This can help you analyze the impact of GIFs with A/B testing strategies.

How To Create a Sticker on Instagram

Instead of creating GIFs, you can also learn how to create a sticker on Instagram. This gives you a different way to produce your connections and meet goals. Stickers provide a different creative outlet that might better match the content you want to create. 

Instagram makes it easy to create stickers by using the Cutouts tool. Therefore, even beginners can create stickers without a steep learning curve. Here is the step-by-step process for creating stickers on Instagram:

1. Select the Story or Reel for which you want to create a sticker. 
2. Tap the Cutouts button.
3. Choose a photo or video with a clear subject. 
4. Now, the software automatically creates the sticker. 
5. You can choose another sticker if the generated one is not what you want. 
6. You can create the story or Reel and use the sticker later. 
7. To access stickers later, you simply need to select Stickers from the options. 

How To Make a GIF from a Video

Are you interested in learning how to make a GIF from a video? You can complete this process with free video-to-GIF conversion tools using third-party apps. Search for these on Google or a mobile app marketplace. However, the free version may be full of advertisements and nudge you to buy their products. Also, you may have limited users before buying. 

Each tool for converting GIFs to videos is slightly different, and you’ll need to learn how to use the user interface. However, in most cases, you must upload the video and then press a button to convert the file. Depending on the video size and your internet connection, this usually takes a few moments. 

Once you create a GIF, you can download the file to your computer or mobile device and use it on Instagram. The good thing about creating GIFs on your hard drive is the ability to use them on multiple social media platforms. 

How To Make a GIF for Instagram Without Making Mistakes

You must avoid mistakes when creating the best GIF for your target audience. Start by not copying the GIF other content creators in your niche use. That’s because your audience may notice the duplication. They may suspect you are copying the hard work of other creators. 

Also, don’t pay for GIFs since there are plenty of free methods to create one. Hence, you can save money on your content creation and increase the return on investment (ROI). Look for a software solution with a free trial or freemium account option.

Make sure the GIFs don’t break the Instagram community guidelines. That’s because it can lead to an Instagram shadowban, which limits your ability to grow your follower count. Hence, look at the guidelines to understand what rules you must follow. 

The Right Instagram GIFs Can Transform Your Content

GIFs are a popular way to add spice and creative flair to social media content. You can look at how your competitors are adding GIFs to their content. This gives you ideas on how to get started without making all the mistakes for yourself. 

Now that you know how to make a GIF for Instagram, try it yourself. You’ll see that they are easy to make and can even get addictive. You could find yourself creating GIFs for every piece of content that you publish on Instagram. 

GIFs are an excellent method of improving content to get more followers. However, if you’re still struggling to get the followers you need, then turn to Plixi. Our professional Instagram growth service focuses on matching customers with the right audiences. 

So don’t delay upgrading your following, and Start growing and gaining Instagram followers today!