Multiple image posts: building brand and engagement with GIFs
Elevate your LinkedIn feed.
Attention spans are short, and content is abundant on LinkedIn. There is nothing new with that statement, but in what may seem counter intuitive to the “keep it simple stupid” rule we all follow, is the engagement impact of the more is more “multiple image post (MIP)” post format on LinkedIn.
Research conducted from January 2022 to December 2023 and published in 2024 by social media analytics provider SocialInsider found that MIPs generate the highest amount of likes and comments when compared to other post types¹.
The MIP format provides marketers with a way to create experiences and tell stories outside of the more traditional ways. They offer more room to play with than a single image post and are more budget friendly (and glanceable) than a video. MIPs can be a good middle ground for expressive storytelling in-feed when a single post just won’t cut it.
Read on for our tips for producing posts that cut through. Cue Road Runner gif. MIP! MIP!
1. https://www.socialinsider.io/blog/linkedin-benchmarks/#12multiimagepostsgeneratethehighestamountoflikescommentsonlinkedin
What can multiple image posts do?
They present information such as data, stories, or products in a grid style. Think of them as 3-4 static posts condensed into one (more story per pixel), or a document post without the need to swipe through pages (more chance of getting your point across in less time). Win.
They have been around for a little while but adding animated elements that ‘travel’ throughout each tile to guide the user through your story creates an extra level of thumb-stopping power. Win win.
Before diving straight into the creation process, we should flag that they can be tricky to produce. We’ve put together some tips based on our experience with them to help get you started on your MIP journey to elevated visual storytelling. Win win… (ok, last time, we promise) win.
Tips and tricks:
1. Keep important information in the first frame of your first tile
Not all internet connections are created equal, and just like video, gifs need to load to—sometimes painfully frame-by-frame-by-frame-by-frame. Get to the point by including key information in the first frame of the gif. You can fade it out afterwards to create the looping effect gifs are known for, but make sure your key point is on the first frame, then worry about animating it.
2. Five-seconds per image rule
Keep your animation short. No more than 5 seconds of animation per tile, we still have low attention spans to deal with. As we mentioned earlier the MIP format allows you to condense a lot of information into one post, but that doesn’t always mean we can show more.
If you are animating per tile, then a total runtime across all tiles of 20 seconds is a good yardstick. If you are animating elements between tiles, e.g., revealing the story as you go, then all tiles need the same run-time (e.g., 20 seconds) so that the animation between tiles loops as intended (see video sample below).
3. File sizes
Handy to know, any gif larger than 6MB will be rejected by LinkedIn’s post tools. You can keep files small by cutting run time, reducing animation complexity, or the dropping number of colours you use. See the point #1 about the first frame, file sizes impact load times irrespective of connection speeds.
4. Tile amount limitations
LinkedIn won’t show any more than five tiles in a post without covering the fifth tile with a prompt letting a user know there are more images available to see. So, now we know the acceptable limits of our storytelling. Get creative within 3-5 tiles y’all, though 3-4 is better—see the next point.
5. The science of art or lack of…
There is no exact set of dimensions to work with for your tiles. LinkedIn crops tiles across the top and bottom or the left and right to fit into the post frame irrespective of their original size. It does this differently on desktop, mobile, and tablet, and differently again if you are viewing in the browser or in the app. Yikes!
Always test in multiple browsers and across devices to make sure what you see is what you intended.
To work around the cropping issue, introduce a ‘safe zone’ for key content such as text, logos, and important imagery. The safest bet is 20px margin on each side of the tile.
Non-critical elements can sit outside this safe area if they animate between tiles which leads us into our next point.
There are three layout options we have found success with. They are three, four, or five tiles. Using five tiles adds extra cropping in-between the first two tiles, so we recommend dropping that additional tile and use the three or four tile layouts only.
6. Design with animated gifs in mind
Avoid animating text unless building hype to reveal something towards the end of the animation, but also keep in mind that people may not stick around long enough for that reveal, so whatever is on screen prior needs to hold their attention.
Stick with simple elements animating between the tiles like a dot traveling across a line that weaves its way across all tiles. Animate the dot or marker, rather than the line to keep file size down.
Keeping in mind the cropping issue, it is best to animate in straight lines (vertical or horizontal) between tiles and keep curves within tiles. Your motion designer may need to tweak time delays to account for the cropping, so the animated element transitions smoothly between cropped tiles.
Keep colours to a select few of contiguous colours per tile. E.g., shades of orange in one, and shades of purple in another. This keeps file sizes small but allows you to collectively show more colours across tiles. If your using photos, stick to images that include similar colours that don’t vary too much.
7. Design as a complete image, but keep the splits in mind
This is the advantage of the MIP format, combining multiple images into one larger one while retaining their individuality for smaller detail on click allowing for multi-layered story telling.
Do not rely on people clicking into each image individually, however. This is a potential draw back of the MIP format—the lack of a need to ‘click into’ the image to see more detail because it’s designed to be seen as a whole.
8. Accessibility
As with all posts on social media, accessibility should be top of mind. Follow best practices by posting clear and high-quality images and animations and ensure high contrast ratios for text on background colours. Always include ALT text. With animation it is important to describe the action taking place in your ALT text—not just the text on screen—so those experiencing your content via assistive technologies get the full intended experience too.
Multiple image posts provide a dynamic way for connecting with your LinkedIn audience. By pairing impactful imagery and data with the power of animation, the MIP format can increase the level of storytelling per post, boost engagement, create thumb-stopping experiences, and ultimately strengthen your brand.
If you need help with creating engaging social media content, we’d love to hear from you.
