Chat wasn't "expressive" enough

Before it's launch, Chat was being tested by various companies. A plethora of feedback came in on all levels. On the employee level, user's felt that there wasn't enough joy in the product. It was a bit too professional.

Expression wasn't the biggest priority for launch. However, GIFs were one of the most requested features by users, and thus the project was given the green light.

GIFs fullfill user AND business needs

GIFs help users communicate more effectively, are been proven to increase overall satisfaction and adoption rate by other communication tools, and help build individual and team identities.

When Allo was around, GIFs increased iOS retention by 10%, and 100% of our competitors had GIF features.  

Outcome

After the project was approved, it was backlogged in order to allocate ENG resourcing to securing a perfect launch.