Twitter’s #GIFparty: The good, the bad and the ugly

By Tanya Dua • March 4, 2016 •

A hot hashtag is a clarion call for social media managers — one barely gains traction before brands glom onto it, for better or worse.

That’s exactly what happened when Twitter started a #GIFparty Wednesday night to promote a new feature, which lets people add GIFs to any tweet. By Thursday, the party was out of hand: The hashtag#GIFparty has been used over 80,000 times, according to social analytics firm Brandwatch.

Drop your plans for today, we’re celebrating GIFs on Twitter! Tap the GIF button to join the #GIFparty. pic.twitter.com/5gTEeB1uWH

— Twitter (@twitter) March 3, 2016

Ellen DeGeneres, Domino’s, Denny’s and Coca-Cola were just a few that shared their favorite GIFs with the #GIFparty hashtag. Here’s the good, bad and the ugly.

The Good

Ellen DeGeneres
Ellen was so blown away with Twitter’s latest feature she did a spit-take. And given that her tweet netted over 1,700 retweets and 9,000 likes, so were her fans.

Trying out my new GIF keyboard on Twitter like… #GIFParty pic.twitter.com/6sPffjSqRd — Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) March 3, 2016

Game of Thrones
The HBO series’ sixth season bows next month, and its fans are clearly in party mode. Who better than Tyrion Lannister to toast occasion?

*CLINK*
Raise a glass. #GIFparty #GameofThrones pic.twitter.com/QzyUjUVHJp

— Game Of Thrones (@GameOfThrones) March 3, 2016

GoPro
Everyone knows that cats and dogs make the best GIFs. GoPro upped the ante with a daredevil cat skateboarding toward three befuddled dogs.

#TBT with Didga the skateboarding cat from Australia! #GIFparty pic.twitter.com/WTUz64vi53

— GoPro (@GoPro) March 3, 2016

Axe
If you’re going to show up late to a party, do it in style: With backflips and sweet dance moves.

We’re showing up fashionably late to the #GIFparty. And we’re bringing the heels. #FindYourMagic pic.twitter.com/ic1BiAv4r4 — AXE (@AXE) March 4, 2016

The Bad

PayPal
What do cats have to do with mobile payments? Nothing! Bonus points for making this horrible GIF is seizure-inducing to boot.

Here’s a cat having a ton of fun with a phone and some #NewMoney. Because #GIFparty. pic.twitter.com/VraVKzLSQp

— PayPal (@PayPal) March 3, 2016

Denny’s
If Denny’s isn’t on the latest viral hashtag, something is really wrong with the world. Calm down, Denny’s, four posts for the #GIFparty are a tad much, even for you.

#gifparty pic.twitter.com/ygLNsHGwkF — Denny’s (@DennysDiner) March 4, 2016

Domino’s
This fractal pizza is making us nauseous, not hungry.

You’re getting hunnngrryyy, verrrry hungrrryyy. #GIFParty pic.twitter.com/5AvafXad9a

— Domino’s Pizza (@dominos) March 3, 2016

The Ugly

Cambria Quartz
We feel you, Cambria. It’s hard to keep up with Internet hashtags and parties. But we’re not quite sure why a countertop company is talking about coffee.

When you need another cup of coffee to keep up with the #GIFparty. pic.twitter.com/iRhmPTFRl1 — Cambria (@CambriaQuartz) March 3, 2016

Coca-Cola
That’s a lot of enthusiasm for a fake party, Coke. Not everything qualifies as an opportunity to “open happiness.”

Got your invite to the #GIFParty, @Twitter, we’re super excited. Can we bring the drinks? pic.twitter.com/vRIFph1V3E

— Coca-Cola (@CocaCola) March 3, 2016

Yoplait
Not even sure if this is an actual GIF, or a high schooler’s graphic design project.