Publicis Groupe Reignites the 'Is it Jif or GIF' Debate in a Farcical Linguistic Initiative

'If you’ve ever called a GIF a Jif, we forgive you.' That’s the word from Jif peanut butter and GIPHY as they team up to settle the great debate over how to pronounce GIF (hard-G please), in a playful new initiative created by Publicis Groupe.

The #JifvsGIF lineup includes a limited-edition ‘GIF’ peanut butter jar available immediately on Amazon, a suite of custom Jif GIFs created in partnership with GIPHY, as well as a satirical video written by PSOne and produced by Funny or Die, featuring linguistics ‘Professor’ Gary Goodman (pronounced Jary Joodman) angrily (pronounced anjrily) refuting Jif’s stance.

Are you team Hard-G or team Soft-G? Just in time for National Peanut Butter Lover’s Day on March 1st, Jif and GIPHY invite you to fuel the #JifvsGIF debate and proclaim your stance.

The initiative is from Publicis Groupe’s Power of One solution, PSOne, a bespoke agency for The J.M. Smucker Company.

“We’re teaming up with GIPHY to put a lid on this decade-long debate and prove there is only one Jif… it’s creamy, delicious peanut butter, not a looping picture you can send to make friends and family laugh,” said Rebecca Scheidler, vice president, marketing of Jif. “So spread the word like Jif on bread - Jif is peanut butter, GIFs are animations!”

“At GIPHY, we know there’s only one Jif and it’s peanut butter. If you’re looking for all the GIFs, there’s only one GIPHY,” said Alex Chung, founder and CEO of GIPHY. “If you’re a soft G, please visit here. If you’re a hard G, thank you, we know you’re right. 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.”

“We’re always looking for ways to inject our brands into cultural conversations,” stated Andy Bird, chief creative officer, PSOne. “But in the case of Jif vs. GIF, the brand is the conversation. It’s a debate that’s been going on for a decade, and I’m so proud of the team for finally harnessing the power of this social conversation in such hilarious ways and making it Jif’s own.”

“Since last year’s launch of the That Jif’ing Good campaign, the brand has truly embraced its new-found irreverence,” said Erica Roberts, executive creative director, PSOne. “This is what gave us the permission to meaningfully jump into the #JifvsGIF debate after nearly a decade. It’s really the first time in the brand’s history, where hijacking a conversation like this is actually on-brand. I’m so proud of the PSOne and GIPHY teams for tapping into the absurdity of the debate and ratcheting it up to the next level.”

#JifvsGIF Initiative Overview

Jif and GIPHY Partnership: Jif believes wholeheartedly that GIF should stick with the Hard G and let us have our rightful Soft G. But we’re just a mere peanut butter—who would listen to us when it comes to a file format? So we partnered with the big guns: GIPHY –the world’s largest GIF platform. Just like us, GIPHY agrees that GIFs are most definitely pronounced with a Hard G. Together, we crafted a pronunciation proclamation that lives across media and commerce. While Jif and GIPHY stand in agreement, the fun is in the debate, which has been going on since the GIF came on the scene in 1987; even a former US president weighed in. Learn more about the 'Jif' vs. 'GIF' debate here, and join the conversation on Twitter.

Limited-Edition, Collectible GIF Peanut Butter Jars

To illustrate how Jif and GIF differ, Jif and GIPHY have created a limited run jar that helps explain the difference between a GIF and Jif. The special jars are now available on Amazon at just under $10, while they last. With a tongue-in-cheek label unlike anything found on Jif jars sold in stores, these collectibles can help Jif fans spread the word that Jif – with a 'Soft-G' – should be all about the peanut butter.

Custom Jif GIFs

It’d be great if everyone was on JIF and GIPHY’s side of the debate, but they’re not. So GIPHY and PSOne made an entire collection of more than 30 branded Jif GIFs, as well as two GIPHY Videos to help add humor to whatever side of the debate you’re on. There’s team Hard-G GIFs and team Soft-G. There are GIFs that teach you how to pronounce GIF and ones that perfectly illustrate the frustration you feel when people pronounce it wrong. To find the Jif GIFs, just search #JifvsGIF on social media or view the entire suite of 'Jif vs. GIF' content here.