Retail store Brand Factory and IdeateLabs India ace the meme game on social media
Brand Factory, that has always positioned itself as a ‘365 days on discount’ retail store, had its messaging always centered around various offers and brand promotions. In order to move away from only talking about offers while communicating the brand proposition and taking a stand as a ‘smart place to shop for brands’, Brand Factory revamped its communication approach. While ads like #DontGetFooled were launched in mainline media; on digital, meme marketing was the sought route.
The key to marketing to millennials is to understand the primary reason they are on social media – to stay connected, to be amused and to share a laugh or two. Memes, have become a rage and has often found its way from Facebook to WhatsApp messages. They have seamlessly become part of daily youth conversations. Brand Factory threw on the saddle and joined these conversations; by creating their own memes based on current events, trending TV shows, movies, news, web series, popular videos, and more.
“With memes, the key is timing. You’re not only trying to capitalize on short-lived trends, but you need do it before the other brands. That makes ‘meme making’ a 24/7 creative exercise. And it’s always either a big hit or a lost opportunity,” said Porus Jose, Creative Head, IdeateLabs
Memes aren’t restricted to just generic content. When it comes to Indian festivals and widely celebrated ‘days’ like the New Year and Valentine’s Day, among others, Brand Factory chose to greet their audience through memes instead of traditional greetings.
All the big promos which were previously transactional in communication, also adopted the meme theme. Besides, offline campaigns are no longer adaptations on digital. Every TVC was bolstered on digital platforms with a series of memes and interactive content.
Brand Factory’s wit and satire managed to capture the hearts of Indian millennials. In fact, it is the best organically performing content on the brand’s social handles.
“Going by our brand DNA of being smart our content strategy on social media has always been to be topical and quirky and be relevant to our TG, and memes have proven to be one of the most effective routes. We don’t operate as typical brand that like to play it safe, and thus we have given our digital agency the freedom to be as creative and take risks if necessary to engage millennials. A piece of content is successful when it’s shared without being offered freebies. Memes have been just that for us. The organic engagement rates are phenomenal and it’s a great way to ensure top of mind recall without spending big bucks,” said Roch D’Souza, Chief Marketing Officer, Brand Factory.”
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