If you aren’t already using gifs as a part of your social media content strategy, what are you waiting for? Gifs are a fun and creative way to incorporate an interactive piece of content to your current mix. They’re visually appealing, engaging, and can be found on almost every digital platform out there. Even though there are a ton of gifs available for you to choose from, you still might not be able to find the *perfect* one to use. Have you ever tried to create a GIF on your own? 

That’s where gif makers come in handy. Can’t find exactly what you’re looking for, but know exactly what you want? Then make your own! Let’s get started!

STEP ONE: CHOOSE A GIF MAKING  WEBSITE

There are a TON of gif maker websites to choose from. The most notable is giphy.com, but there are other options, such as gifmaker.me, ezgif.com, and gifmaker.org. For this example, I am going to use giphy.com, since it is my personal favorite when I want to create a gif.


STEP TWO: FIND YOUR VIDEO

To create a gif on giphy, you’re going to need a link to the video you want to create your gif from. I like to search through Youtube videos to find the video clip I want to use, because it’s an easy site to search through and has a huge selection to choose from. For this example, we’re going to use a dancing clip from The Office, because who doesn’t love a dose of Michael Scott on their timeline?

STEP THREE: COPY & PASTE YOUR LINK

It’s that simple. Take the link to the video of your choosing, and paste it to the top box on giphy. The video will take a few seconds to load, and eventually you will see it pop up below.

STEP FOUR: CUSTOMIZE YOUR GIF

Here’s where it gets fun! At this point, you can scroll through the part of the video you want to turn into a gif, and customize its length. You can even add a caption to make it more specific and in tune to what you want the gif to express.

STEP FIVE: PRESS CREATE & ENJOY YOUR NEW GIF

Congratulations, you just made your first gif. Post it to your Facebook page, Twitter or wherever your heart desires (just make sure you give it a killer caption)!

And, by the way, this is how you’ll feel after creating your first gif: