OK Boomer! Tell Me Which Emoji You Use and I’ll Tell You How Old You Are :-)
Some people never use them, some can’t do without them, and some prefer the old-school charm of emoticons. The use of little faces has changed the way we communicate. And it often serves as a generational marker.
The original, antediluvian symbols emerged four decades ago, in the emails of visionary computer scientists who used them to add feeling to otherwise cold written communications. Since then, smiley faces – colon, dash, parenthesis – have come a long way, ultimately becoming a language of their own.
The alphabet on its own isn’t enough anymore. We want to thwart the staid electronic filter through which we channel our communications by adding color and animation to our messages.
According to research conducted by Adobe in various countries around the world, the most in-demand emoji in 2021 was the crying laughing face, followed by the thumbs up and the eternally popular red heart. Research also indicates that people of all ages use these little faces and symbols.
Think Using Smileys Makes You Seem Younger?
Sorry to disappoint you, but no.
Cowboy hat emoji, person standing, cold face, a pair of eyes: Gen Z (and if you don’t get it, you’re old!)
Let’s Take a Ride
A train, a boat, a scooter, a bicycle… for motor scooters, just about all operating systems share a single, iconic image: the Vespa. No surprises there.
That same Adobe report found people distrust certain emoji, such as the eggplant, the peach and the clown face. To avoid embarrassment, best not to use the winking emoji, considered cringeworthy by the youngest generation and flirtatious among the older set. When in doubt, stop texting and pick up the phone.