Emojis have become extremely popular due to their widespread use on social media! in chats! in emails! and in other forms of digital communication.

The history of emojis dates back to the 1990s in Japan ! when Shigetaka Kurita ! an employee of the telecommunications company NTT DoCoMo! created a set of 176 small images to allow users to express emotions and concepts in a more visual way! even via text messages. 

These early Emoji sets included smiley faces! weather symbols! activity signs! and more.

Emoji first gained popularity in Japan and later spread globally! with the increase in use of cell phones and social media. 

In 2010 ! Emoji were standardized by the Unicode Consortium ! allowing for greater interoperability across different devices and digital platforms. 

Since then! new ones have been added regularly! to reflect cultural diversity and new trends! until the number has grown to more than 3600.

Emoji or Emoticon?

Emojis and emoticons are NOT the same thing! 

They are both used to express emotions bc data hong kong and concepts in digital communications! but there are some important differences between the two.

• Emoticons are composed of a sequence of alphanumeric characters! such as 🙂 for a smile or 🙁 for a sad expression (and similar variations). They have been used since the dawn of the Internet and online chat as a form of visual communication! in which combinations of symbols and letters represent human faces or expressions.

• Emoji are small predefined images or symbols! which represent a wide range of emotions! objects! animals and more. They are digital graphics that can be inserted directly into the text of the communication. 

So! while Emoticons are composed of alphanumeric characters! Emojis are small graphic images. Both are used to express emotions in digital patricia spears director of development communications! but Emojis offer greater variety and possibilities for expression.

Emojis and SEO

So let’s get to us…

If Emojis impact the way we communicate on the web! do they also impact SEO and positioning?

Emojis have no direct connection to SEO per se! but rather to User Experience and UX Design ! which in turn can indirectly impact SEO as well.

Let’s remember that Emoji and Google have had contrasting relationships over time:

Additionally! since 2016 it is also possible to use Emojis in the query to generate a SERP .

We tried searching for the  emoji! although the results didn’t seem that interesting (they were mostly related to sites that talk about or show emojis).

Emojis therefore impact the user experience of users! attracting attention and offering opportunities for diversification.

It follows that Emojis can influence – positively or negatively – the overall CTR in Google Search.

Emojis can also be inserted in the Title europe email and Meta Description! although from our point of view these meta tags do not really need emojis! given the limited number of available / recommended characters.

The common sense line to follow is therefore that of knowing how to use this form of “alphabet” coherently and contextually and knowing how to predict and understand the public’s perception! 

It goes without saying that – in addition to the specific context – the choice of whether or not to use Emojis and! if necessary! how to do so! depends on the tone of voice of the brand or website in question! and on the target of the communication.