A meme is an image, video, phrase, or some combination of a visual and bolded, capitalized text that is virally shared across social media networks and blogs. They typically have a somewhat hidden meaning that speaks about a popular culture reference. Memes are meant to be funny and most importantly, a piece of satire.
The term “meme” was coined by Richard Dawkins, a biologist. Dawkins believed that cultural ideas are like genes. He thought that our concepts as a society spread from brain to brain, multiplying and mutating as they went. The resulting trends were his definition of a “meme.”
Memes are an easy way to connect with known loved ones and strangers across the world through unique, instantly recognizable photos. They are the "inside jokes" in modern culture. Memes make it easy to communicate without saying anything. You haven't heard the term, "A picture is worth a thousand words"? That's exactly what a meme is.
Who can use memes?
Anybody can use a meme. It doesn’t matter who or where you are in the world. The beauty of memes is how flexible they are. You can be any kind of business in any kind of industry—as long as they align with your marketing goals and make sense for your business, meme marketing can work to your advantage.
Businesses in these industries thrive the most successful when they utilize meme marketing in their strategy:
- Retail
- Food and Hospitality
- Pets
- Cannabis/CBD
- Financial institutions
- Yoga studios
- Computer shops
Benefits of meme marketing for brands
Meme marketing is a very helpful and effective way to get a good response from social media sites. Here are some of the additional benefits of using memes in your business marketing:
- They’re free AND easy to make. Creating a meme is as easy as flipping a light switch. There are lots of online websites that provide free service to generate memes online. The most famous and best one is (memegenerator.net) where you can generate any kind of meme according to your business nature and needs.
- They're already viral. Memes are already famous and recognizable. It’s no surprise there are top Instagram and TikTok accounts with the best memes. Don’t even get us started on Facebook memes. So they're not anything new. Why not try the marketing method that has one of the highest chances to improve your growth?
- They help you with your blogging efforts. Say you're writing a blog post and decide to add a fun meme in there. Not only will the reader be pleasantly surprised to see a relatable meme in the post, they'll get interesting content and quotes out of it.
Important Notes About Memes for Marketers
- Memes don't last very long. Memes get pretty old after you see them over and over again.
- Memejacking is something you need to be aware of. Memejacking is where brands take memes created before in their own marketing strategy. It doesn't sound like a big deal, but brands tend to do this when they want to reach a younger audience. That only makes sense if they're completely rechanging their branding.
- Memes are “supposed” to be funny. At least that's what most marketers think. Many memes, however, deliver a satirical or sarcastic approach. It can be difficult to interpret that through a laptop or mobile phone screen. If you're not sure if memes will work for your business, ask yourself the most important question: Are you actually that funny?
- Making memes should be fun and enjoyable. If you’re making memes for the money, there are important lessons to remember that can give you the highest ROI. But for the most part, brands creating memes should be fun! Don’t stress too much about making the “perfect” meme. There’s no such thing. Just enjoy the process of creating a meme. Your target audience will tell if you’re trying too hard. You don’t need to.
