Welcome to the dynamic world where laughter meets commerce, and memes emerge as the unexpected heroes of digital marketing.
In our exploration of “From LOL to ROI: The Business of Meme Marketing and Brand Success,” we delve into the fascinating realm where humor becomes a strategic tool for building brand success.
Utilizing memes in marketing is a widely adopted social media approach that enables brands to establish a connection with their audience. Memes possess relatability, shareability, and contribute to enhancing a brand’s storytelling capabilities.
Memes, once relegated to the sidelines of internet culture, have now taken center stage in the marketing playbook.
What is Meme Marketing?
Meme marketing, also known as memetic marketing, involves the strategic use of memes in advertising and promotional campaigns to engage and connect with a target audience.
Memes are humorous, relatable, and shareable pieces of content that often take the form of images, videos, or text and spread rapidly across the internet.
Marketers leverage the popularity and cultural relevance of memes to create content that resonates with their audience, aiming to generate brand awareness, foster positive associations, and encourage social sharing.
Key Aspects of Meme Marketing
- Humor and Relatability
Memes typically carry an element of humor and relatability, making them more likely to be shared and go viral. Marketers use this to create content that not only entertains but also establishes a connection with the audience.
Here Dunzo makes use of the Met Gala Outfit as a creative meme for its marketing. It is humorous and witty.
- Cultural Relevance
Memes often reflect current trends, events, or cultural references. By incorporating these elements into marketing campaigns, brands can demonstrate an understanding of and alignment with popular culture, making their content more appealing to a wider audience.
- Social Sharing and Virality
Memes thrive on social media platforms due to their shareable nature. Marketers aim to create content that encourages users to share with their networks, leading to increased visibility and brand exposure.
- Authenticity and Connection
Memes allow brands to showcase a more human and relatable side. When done well, meme marketing can contribute to a brand’s authenticity and help build a stronger connection with the target audience. - Adaptability
Memes are versatile and can be adapted to various contexts. Marketers can use existing popular memes or create original content that aligns with their brand message and values.
How to Measure the ROI of Meme Marketing?
Measuring the return on investment (ROI) of meme marketing involves tracking key metrics to assess the impact of meme campaigns on business objectives. Here are some steps and metrics to consider when evaluating the ROI of meme marketing:
Define Clear Objectives
Clearly articulate the objectives of your meme marketing campaign. Whether it’s increasing brand awareness, driving website traffic, boosting sales, or enhancing engagement, having well-defined goals will guide your measurement efforts.
Track Website Traffic
Monitor the impact of meme campaigns on website traffic. Tools like Google Analytics can help you identify the source of incoming traffic and track changes during and after meme campaigns.
Social Media Engagement
Measure social media engagement metrics, including likes, shares, comments, and followers gained during and after meme postings. Social media analytics platforms provide insights into the reach and impact of your meme content.
Conversion Rates
Evaluate how meme marketing contributes to conversion rates. Track the number of conversions, such as sign-ups, purchases, or other desired actions, and analyze whether there is a correlation with meme-related content.
Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
Calculate the customer acquisition cost associated with meme marketing efforts. Compare the cost of creating and promoting meme content with the number of new customers acquired through those efforts.
Brand Mentions and Sentiment Analysis
Monitor brand mentions across social media platforms and conduct sentiment analysis to understand how the audience perceives your brand in the context of meme marketing. Positive sentiment can contribute to long-term brand loyalty.
Sales and Revenue Impact
If applicable, directly tie meme marketing efforts to sales and revenue. Analyze sales data during and after meme campaigns to determine if there is a measurable impact on your bottom line.
Survey and Feedback
Collect feedback from your audience through surveys or direct interactions. Understand how meme content resonates with your audience and whether it positively influences their perception of your brand.
Time-Frame Analysis
Consider the time frame for measuring ROI. Some impacts, such as brand awareness, may take time to materialize. Evaluate both short-term and long-term effects to get a comprehensive view of the ROI.
A/B Testing
Conduct A/B testing to compare the performance of meme-based campaigns with non-meme campaigns. This can help isolate the impact of meme content on key metrics.
Competitive Analysis
Compare your meme marketing performance with that of competitors. Analyzing how your brand stacks up against others in the industry can provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of your meme strategy.
Cost-Per-Engagement (CPE)
Calculate the cost-per-engagement for meme content by dividing the total cost of the campaign by the number of engagements (likes, shares, comments).
This metric helps assess the efficiency of your meme marketing efforts.
Regularly reviewing and analyzing these metrics will enable you to assess the success of your meme marketing campaigns and make informed decisions for future strategies.
Keep in mind that the effectiveness of meme marketing can vary based on industry, target audience, and overall marketing objectives.
Do’s and Don’ts of Meme Marketing
Do’s of Meme Marketing
- Understand Your Audience
- Tip: Tailor memes to align with the interests, values, and humor preferences of your target audience.
- If your audience consists of gamers, creating memes that reference popular video games can resonate well.
- Stay Culturally Relevant
- Tip: Keep memes current by incorporating trends, events, or pop culture references to maintain relevance.
- Oreo’s timely tweet during the 2013 Super Bowl blackout with the caption “You can still dunk in the dark” capitalized on a real-time event and went viral.
- Inject Humor Appropriately
- Tip: Use humor that aligns with your brand personality and is unlikely to offend or alienate your audience.
- Be Authentic
- Tip: Showcase the human side of your brand to build authenticity and connect with your audience.
- Wendy’s Twitter account is known for its sassy and humorous responses, creating an authentic online brand persona.
- Encourage User-Generated Content (UGC)
- Tip: Involve your audience by encouraging them to create and share memes related to your brand.
- Starbucks initiated the #WhiteCupContest, inviting customers to decorate their plain white cups and share the designs on social media.
- Create Shareable Content
- Tip: Design memes that are easily shareable to increase organic reach and engagement.
- The “Distracted Boyfriend” meme format is widely shared and adapted, illustrating its shareability and virality.
- Experiment with Formats
- Tip: Explore different meme formats, including image macros, GIFs, and videos, to diversify your content.
- The Drakeposting meme format, where users pair contrasting images with the rapper Drake, became a popular and adaptable meme format.
Be Responsive to Trends
- Tip: Stay updated on current trends and incorporate them into your meme strategy for maximum impact.
- During the “Area 51 Raid” trend, brands like Kool-Aid and Bud Light capitalized on the buzz with humorous memes related to the event.
Don’ts of Meme Marketing
- Force Humor
- Tip: Avoid trying too hard to be funny. Forced humor can come across as inauthentic and may not resonate with your audience.
- Pepsi faced backlash for a commercial that attempted to address social justice issues but was criticized for its tone-deaf approach.
- Neglect Cultural Sensitivity
- Tip: Be mindful of cultural nuances to avoid unintentional offence or misinterpretation.
- Snapchat faced criticism for a Juneteenth filter that was seen as inappropriate and insensitive.
- Overuse Trends
- Tip: While it’s essential to stay current, avoid overusing popular trends to the point of diluting their impact.
- Brands that latch onto every trending hashtag without relevance may appear opportunistic and insincere.
- Ignore Feedback
- Tip: Pay attention to audience feedback and be responsive to concerns or criticisms related to your meme content.
- DiGiorno faced backlash for using a domestic violence hashtag in a tweet, highlighting the importance of context awareness.
- Underestimate Context
- Tip: Understand the context of memes and ensure they align with your brand values. Avoid using memes inappropriately.
- Kenneth Cole received backlash for using the #Cairo hashtag during the Egyptian protests to promote its spring collection, demonstrating a lack of sensitivity to the context.
- Overlook Legal Considerations
- Tip: Ensure that your use of memes complies with copyright and intellectual property laws.
- The “Doge” meme was based on a copyrighted photo of a Shiba Inu dog, and unauthorized use could lead to legal issues.
By adhering to these do’s and don’ts, brands can navigate the dynamic landscape of meme marketing effectively, fostering positive engagement and avoiding potential pitfalls.
The 4 Best Meme Generators Online
The internet loves funny stuff, and memes are the kings of funny online. You don’t need to be an artist to make great memes. Here are the top 5 websites where you can easily create memes and share them to become popular online.
1. Adobe Express
Now you can create your own meme using Adobe Express! It offers a free online meme generator that makes meme creation accessible to everyone. Choose from popular meme templates or start fresh, then personalize them with your own text, images, and styles. With a user-friendly interface and no design experience needed, you can easily create funny or thought-provoking memes to share on social media, all for free.
2. Canva
Canva’s meme generator is free and easy to use. It has lots of templates, including popular ones, and you can also start with a blank canvas. You can customize your memes with text, images, fonts, and colors. Canva even lets you make funny meme videos with text, animations, and GIFs. It’s great for both beginners and experienced meme makers.
3. Imgur
Imgur offers a meme generator for creating memes. Users can choose templates or upload their images, add text, and customize it. The meme can then be shared or downloaded. Follow these steps to create a meme:
- Go to Imgur and hover over the “New Post” button.
- Click “Make a Meme” from the drop-down menu.
- Select a meme template or upload your image.
- Add text and click ‘make this meme!’ to finish.
Once the meme is ready, it can be shared on social media or downloaded to a computer.
4. Kapwing
Kapwing stands out as a free, online meme maker enabling users to craft memes from images, videos, and GIFs. It’s designed for collaboration, allowing multiple users to collaborate on projects. Kapwing operates around the clock, making it accessible 24/7.
To get started with Kapwing, users must first create an account. Once logged in, they can begin creating memes by uploading an image, video, or GIF. Users can then customize their memes with text, stickers, and other effects. Once satisfied with their creation, they can download the meme or share it directly on social media platforms.
To Conclude
Concluding our journey through the dynamic world of meme marketing, we’ve unraveled the powerful fusion of humor, relatability, and cultural relevance.
As brands continue to tap into the meme-sphere, bridging the gap between laughter and measurable ROI, we invite you to explore more insights on unlocking the full potential of memes in digital marketing.
Stay tuned for our upcoming content, and don’t miss out on valuable tips, strategies, and the latest trends by exploring DigiXL Media’s Blog. Your adventure into the realm of meme-driven brand success awaits!