Issue #003

The Harsh Truth About Meme Marketing

Memes have become the most shareable content on the internet across the globe. They drive likes, shares, sales, and brand awareness. They’re powerful. But why?

Well, first, what even is a meme? At its most basic, simple root definition, a meme is an imitated, spreadable idea.

In Greek, the root of meme comes from the word mimēma. Which quite literally means ‘that which is imitated’. Not only are memes just imitated ideas, but they are the most spreadable, and relatable form of content in the world bar none.

They have become synonymous with a play on cultural moments to relate to all different cohorts of people. The beauty of them from a business perspective is that no matter your industry, no matter what you deliver, or what you do, they can be used by you to generate trust and relatability with your audience.

Now I work with a variety of DTC brands, and each has its own unique brand identity, so while I don’t always run memes as ads, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t post them on your organic social.

You see, memes have one caveat, they need to be congruent. Congruent with your brand, your landing pages, and your content. So this is where things get tricky. ]

Creating the right memes for the right audience is the key. If you’re a luxury fashion brand, keeping that “luxury” identity when posting memes is tougher. But here’s the thing, if you can relate it to your audience on organic social, they won’t care.

Just don’t get too crazy and go way outside the lines. Again, relevance and congruency are key.

Meme marketing ads are especially touchy because you need to have the following align; brand, organic, ad, and landing page.

If you’re thinking of running a meme as an ad to drive sales and all 4 are not in sync, think again. At least align them all before you do it.

So let’s review, the key to meme marketing with ads, congruency + relevance.

The key to making meme ads work, having the 4 stars in sync.

Now that you have this knowledge, make some memes.

Stay mad,

-Carson 🧪