How to incorporate memes into your marketing strategy

By Nick Reese
Best practices
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Trendy, timely, and fun, memes are one of the most popular ways to communicate on X. The right meme at the right time can surprise and delight your followers, drive engagement, and broaden brand appeal — with the added bonus of being an easy piece of content to create. 

For example, let's take a look at how these different brands all around the globe put their own spin on the "Cultural Impact" meme.

Anyone can make memes a part of their content mix. The key is to have a solid understanding of your audience and business so that memes seamlessly fit in and resonate true with your brand's persona. As with anything in your X content strategy, articulate your meme dos and don'ts well ahead of time to ensure memes drive towards your overarching goals. Here are a few things to keep in mind when making meme magic:

Be timely

While a few memes are timeless, most memes have a “best-by” date that can be measured in days, if not hours. If you see a meme trending among your followers, you have a small window of opportunity where you can post your version and be relevant. 

Know the context

Don’t rush to Post your meme until you understand the context behind it. The very last thing you want to do is post a meme that is trending for the wrong reasons, has a dark meaning, or is associated with questionable sources. Make sure you have a process in place that allows you to create and Post memes quickly while still providing the time for any internal review. 

Understand your audience

Memes are incredibly popular with a younger audience, who will likely know the original meme and its variations. Brands speaking to a young audience can use memes almost like an inside joke, knowing that their audience will get it.

On the other hand, if your audience is an older demographic, your version might be the first time they see the meme. That means your approach will need to stand on its own as a piece of content.

Think brand, not promotion

Not every Post has to be an ad, and that goes double for memes. While your meme should be relevant to your brand, don’t feel like you have to squeeze in your value props, new features, or competitive positioning.

Instead, use memes as a way to engage and build a relationship with your audience. A meme about a shared interest will be more appreciated than one that has your logo slapped all over it. 

This post by @RUFFLES skips the hard sell to have a little fun with snacking habits. 

Be original

Internet culture moves faster than most brands can keep up. Rather than try to spin an existing meme, use meme tropes as inspiration for original content. Almost any image can be juxtaposed with the right line of copy to feel like a meme to your audience. 

@MontereyAq combined the popular Drake reaction meme with inspired puns to drive engagement during Shark Week.

Less is more

A meme is a wisecrack, not a work of art. If you spend hours working hard to carefully craft your meme, it’s likely to feel less inspired and more forced. At the same time, just because your audience is looking at hundreds of memes a day doesn’t mean they only want to see memes from you. Post memes only occasionally when inspiration strikes, not as a part of a content calendar.  

@MrPeanut skipped Photoshop to make an old-school meme with their keyboard. 

Know a brand making great memes on X? Share them with us @XBusiness.

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