They are funny, witty, short, easy to share, easy to understand, and highly relatable. What are they? Yes, they are memes. Memes have become an integral part of our digital world. Not only are memes an excellent entertainment tool, but if used smartly, they are a great way to engage the customer and increase brand awareness. Let us explore the power of memes and why marketers need to make them an integral part of their marketing strategy.
When marketers sit down to draw their content strategies, they have one question on their minds: how to reach the target audience, maximize the same reach, write a viral post, etc. And the one-word answer to that question is memes. Memes have become increasingly popular due to social media and internet penetration. Though memes are not a new concept, over the years, it is one trend that has matured, making them quite popular amongst the public. If we go back to history pages, the first meme was created around 1996, that of a dancing baby, popularly known as Cha Cha.
In one of the interviews, Michael Girard, the creator of the Cha Cha meme, said he had accidentally created the meme. And since then, memes have come a long way. However, despite years of evolution, many marketers are still wary of using memes as a marketing tool. If you are one of those yet to use memes as a marketing tool, this article is for you as we explore why marketers should invest their money in meme-based marketing campaigns.
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1. The Viral Bonus
One thing that every content creator or content marketer dreams of is content going viral. And what can be a more potent tool than memes? Memes have a faster reach than any other content. Besides having vast reach in a shorter span, memes are widely popular because they are more shareable. Compare memes with any other form of content like ads, long-form articles, etc. While there is no science behind why memes go viral, one reason that can be attributed to their viral nature is that they are generally easy to understand and relatable. And that is why they get shared more frequently than any other form of content.
Example of meme related to work
Source: Gracie Films/ Imgur
2. The LOL Factor
According to a study conducted by Oracle, 91% even preferred brands to be funny. And what can be funnier than memes? Funny memes help the audience relate to the brand or bring a human touch. The audience also generally has an easier recall when it is a funny meme. This will also help the audience quickly recall the brand, indirectly increasing brand awareness.
3. Meme-jacking
When it comes to meme marketing, meme-jacking is the most effective way to reach the target audience. Meme-jacking works like magic in favor of the brand because, as a brand, you are catching on to the popularity of something that many people are already talking about. By using these memes, brands also get to showcase great awareness about the social happenings around them. One more advantage of using this type of meme strategy is its easy availability. Since the template is already ready, it becomes easy to create a new meme.
Sources: Shopify/ Vulture
4. Battling Time
Thanks to the dominance of social media, human attention has gotten shorter. In fact, according to research, it has been found that human attention is now shorter than a goldfish. And that is why marketers need to be thankful for the rise of memes. They are handy, especially if you want to get your message through to your audience quickly. Memes can help marketers deliver in-depth content more crisply. And in return, it will only demand a little time from the audience but will leave a higher impact on the audience.
5. Pinch Your Pennies
Randy Frisch, co-founder and chief evangelist of Uberflip, discusses why financial experts believe the economic landscape in 2023 does not look pretty. So with the recession on set, there will be a cut in the marketing budget. For example, making a good video and having a well-designed website that is appealing, fast-loading, and bugs-free will require a large amount of budget. Not quite the case with meme’s making. Meme creation will save your marketing team fortunes.
Marketers can take advantage of various meme libraries, such as Memedroid, Membase, and Giphy, to name a few, to search for the trending meme, which is easy on their pockets.
See More: 5 Ways Outsourcing Content Creation Can Drive ROI
6. The Emotional Quotient
Today’s customers are very opinionated and desire to express themselves about the events in society. And memes give them this great platform where the audience can easily express themself. This work is like a charm for the brands, as the customers feel they are heard, and it helps the brand gain attention immediately. Memes also help brands emotionally connect with the customer, as by commenting or putting a meme, marketers indirectly comment about the social happenings around them. Thus this allows marketers to win their trust.
Get Set Meme
With the recession, cuts in marketing budgets, and clouds of uncertainty looming over their heads, marketers are looking for new and innovative ways to keep their audiences and customers engaged and win their trust. And therefore, there is no better tool than a meme to unleash on the customer.
So, get set, meme.
Have you used memes as part of your marketing strategy? What benefits have you seen? Share with us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
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