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Jif or Gif, How Do You Pronounce It?

By March 4, 2020 July 27th, 2021 No Comments

Call it the great Jif jaffe – or Gif gaffe!

Go ahead, pronounce “GIF.”  OK, now pronounce “Jif.”

If you used a “soft G” like in “jelly” to pronounce the popular peanut butter brand, you got it right. And if you went with a hard “G” like in “graphic” for those frequently shared looping videos, you got that right, too.  

That’s according to Giphy, the database most of us tap for that perfect image to punctuate our thoughts. 

Now, back in the day, the computer scientist who created GIF, Steve Wilhite of the popular online service CompuServe, indicated otherwise: GIF was meant to be pronounced as “Jif.”

Sticking to its effort to set the GIF-JIF record straight, and, er, spread the news, from their revisionist point of view, Jif, the peanut butter brand that is part of the J.M. Smucker Co., partnered with Giphy on a marketing campaign as part of National Peanut Butter Lover’s Day on March 1.

In his own statement, Giphy founder and CEO Alex Chung said, “whether you like your Gs hard or soft, let’s all share some fun and let peanut butter unite us in saying GIF and eating Jif.”

This  crunchy debate has been going on since 1987, when GIFs burst onto the scene.

In 2014, President Barack Obama famously went with the hard G himself in deciding how to pronounce GIF. “That is my official position,” he said at the time. 

As part of the marketing campaign, Giphy created a suite of GIF versus Jif .gif files. The companies are also promoting the #JifvsGIF hashtag.

However, you choose to pronounce it, the shorthand GIF is a more palatable name than when it is spelled out as Graphics Interchange Format.

Brands All in on Black History Month

More companies and brands are getting into the business of Black History Month but trying not to leave the impression that African American consumers are important just once a year.

Some businesses are using February to show off the diversity of their year-round product lines or to draw attention to the creative talent of their African American employees.

Target rolled out a Black History Month assortment that spotlights black-owned brands such as Honey Pot feminine products, Lip Bar cosmetics and Scotch Porter, which specializes in men’s grooming. The collection includes books, music and food that are favorites among Target’s African American employee resource group, which has more than 1,000 members. The company has been promoting the products through blogs and commentary from its staff.

H&M features a new street wear collection designed with Ruth Carter, the Academy-Award winning designer behind the costumes for films including “Black Panther,” “Malcom X” and “Amistad.” The clothing features the pan-African flag colors of red, black and green, and debuted in February.

While companies have been marking Black History Month for years, the events are getting bigger, and more brands are joining in, seeking to connect with increasingly diverse generations of consumers

Target launched its Black History Month assortments five years ago and has since increased the number of products to more than 100, carried in more than 600 stores. Melanie Gatewood, director of multicultural merchandise, said Target was able to tap into black-owned businesses that it has been working with for years. More than one-third of the products in the assortment this year are from black-owned or founded businesses.

Nike introduced a special edition shoe 15 years ago for Black History month with the pan-African colors. This year, it has an entire collection modeled by young black leaders including artist Shani Crowe and McKinley Nelson, founder of Project sWish, a Chicago foundation dedicated to inner city youths.

Michaels, the arts and crafts retailer, has a collection of black heritage products this year, a project that originated with its African American and black employee resource group. The products include printed vinyl rolls that have proved so popular that the chain plans to include them in its permanent collection.

Electric Mic: Former GE Leader Jack Welch Was Bold, Brash & Dynamic

Jack Welch was a megawatt leader for a truly electric – and iconic brand – and led General Electric Co. through two decades of expansive growth with a bold and brash style that magnetized the brand!

During his tenure, he leveraged an audacious style that electrified the conglomerate and changed the corporate scene in America. The icon died last Sunday at age 84.

He exuded an uncompromising strategy to slash less profitable businesses and unproductive employees – cementing his celebrity in the 1980s and driving GE to become the most valuable company in the 1990s.

Welch mentored an entire generation of visionary business leaders who marched in his footsteps to run such titans as Home Depot Inc. and Boeing.

After retiring in 2001, he began belting out bestselling books, continuing to shine his growing legend. But GE didn’t fare so well after his exit. His handpicked successor, Jeff Immelt—raised questions about Mr. Welch’s management methods and whether he pushed the conglomerate too hard.

GE traces its roots back more than a century to Thomas Edison, but the modern GE was built by Welch. He was nicknamed “Neutron Jack” because he eliminated some 100,000 jobs in his early years as chief executive and insisted that leadership systematically fire their worst performers. He also pressured GE employees around the world to drive themselves to constantly rising efficiency standards.

Welch joined GE in 1960 as an engineer in the plastics division. Early in his career, he gained a powerful lesson in management when a Massachusetts plant under his supervision accidentally exploded. No one was hurt but the damage was substantial. A dreaded follow-up visit to his bosses in Connecticut turned out to be supportive, helping the young Welch learn from the mistake.

In 1980, when he took over, GE’s revenue was $27 billion. It vaulted to $130 billion two decades later, when he retired. The market valuation of the company rose from $14 billion to $410 billion during that period. Now that’s electric!

Each week, The Spin Cycle will bestow a Golden Mic Award to the person, group or company in the court of public opinion that best exemplifies the tenets of solid PR, marketing and advertising – and those who don’t. Stay tuned – and step-up to the mic! And remember … Amplify Your Brand!

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