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More than thirty years after they were first developed, GIFs have proved that they’re here to stay. These looping animations have become a major part of modern Internet culture. In fact, 36% of American millennials think that GIFs, emoji and stickers allow them to communicate better than words.

It’s clear that GIFs offer a unique way to enrich content and express ideas that is engaging to today’s Internet users. But did you know that you can add GIFs to your digital publications on Calaméo with our Editor? In this article, we’ll explain how to insert GIFs and suggest a few ways to use them in your publications.

GIFs are a simple but mighty technology that compresses multiple images into a short animation. The file size is smaller than a video, which makes GIFs practical for displaying clips that are just a few seconds long.

Including a GIF in your digital publications is easy. You can either use your own or embed one from a GIF sharing service like Giphy or Tenor.

If you wish to add your own GIF, make sure the file is hosted online and available through a secure URL (https://…).

Once you have decided on the perfect GIF, open your publication in the Calaméo Editor. Navigate to the page where you want the GIF to appear and select the images icon. Move the blue image zone to position your GIF and resize the zone as you like.

Next, enter the URL of your GIF in the “Image URL” field. When using a GIF hosted on Giphy, click on “Copy Link” and choose the “GIF Link” option to get the correct URL.

To see how your GIF looks, save your publication and select the eye icon to view.

Adding GIFs to your publications on Calaméo is a breeze, but using these eye-catching animations well can be a little harder. To help you get started, here are some possibilities we recommend:

• Decoration. Whether you prefer a trendy reaction clip or subtle animated effect, GIFs liven up your page. Avoid including too many to balance visual spice with focus on your content.
• Advertising. Businesses are producing GIF ads as the format becomes more and more popular. With Calaméo you can insert advertisers’ GIFs into your digital publications for a twenty-first century experience!
• Instructions. Does your publication have recipes, fashion tips or decorating ideas? How about charts, graphics or information specific to your industry? Creating a GIF to animate any of these examples transforms your content from words on the page to a dynamic illustration that is fun and easy for your readers to watch.

The sky’s the limit when it comes to using GIFs to enhance your digital publications. This engaging and versatile format is a great way to get creative on Calaméo.

See what else you can do with the Calaméo Editor by checking out our Help Center. Have questions? Write to us at contact@calameo.com and we’ll be happy to help.

The smartphone turned ten in 2017 and in just a decade it has had an enormous impact on everything from banking to ordering takeout. Digital publishing is no exception. Now more than ever, making sure your content looks great, works perfectly and offers maximum appeal on mobile devices is key.

In this post, we’ll discuss why getting it right on mobile matters in today’s digital publishing landscape.

Mobile majority

First things first: more people than ever are using their smartphones to go online. That means that if your publications aren’t optimized for mobile display, you risk missing out on a big chunk of your audience’s time and attention. Globally, mobile usage overtook desktop in November 2016 and climbed to 54% of total internet usage by July 2017. Users across the world averaged 86 minutes a day on their phones to access the internet in 2016, compared to 36 minutes on their desktops. Those figures are even higher in the United States: Americans spent 52 minutes a day online on their desktops, and 145 minutes online on their phones.

Responsive design

By making your publications easy and attractive to view on mobile screens, you can reach readers who prefer to use their phones to browse online. With Calaméo, you never have to worry about how your document will look beyond the desktop. Our powerful technology automatically optimizes your publications for cross-platform viewing. Links always stay right where you put them and your documents keep impeccable image quality on all mobile and tablet devices.

Social content

Smartphones open up an ideal avenue to bring your digital publications into the social media ecosystem. Mobile users spend a lot of time on apps—fully half the total time that they devote to digital media—and social networking apps play a big part. It has been estimated that the average person is on Facebook for 35 minutes a day and will scroll through 18 entire days on Twitter over the course of his or her lifetime.

It’s essential that sharing your publications is simple for your readers, even on smartphones. The share button on Calaméo’s viewer lets readers post about your publications on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and more from their mobile devices in just a few taps.

The next step is to share your own publications on your business’s own social media accounts. Up to 47% of Facebook users access the service exclusively through the mobile app. You can maximize your ability to engage mobile users by adding your publications to your social profiles, so that readers can easily find and view them on their smartphones.

💡 TIP: Looking for social inspiration? Our Guide to Social Strategy is full of smart ideas for digital publishers.

What’s next

Responsive design and smart sharing allow your digital publications to shine on mobile devices. Go further with the biggest trends in smartphone usage: video content and mobile shopping.

Our PLATINUM plan has everything you need to take full advantage of your content’s mobile potential. Start by using the Editor to add Shopping links and embed videos directly inside your publications. Then, consult detailed statistics to find out what engaged your audience most and how they click on mobile. The results just might surprise you!

📲 Calaméo’s publication viewer got a new look in 2021, including an awesome mobile update. Check out all the details and browse the 2021 theme!