But the real reason why memes are so effective is because they’re almost impossibly straightforward. The meme format is perfect for taking a single idea and expressing it in a clear, clever way in a format that is perfect for sharing on social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and more.

All of which, by the way, happens to be exactly what you’re already trying to do with the types of visual content that you’re creating as marketing collateral.

What’s In a Meme? Turns Out, Quite a Bit

But just how popular are memes as a format? In a word, very. In October of 2016, Google Trends reported that earlier in the year searches for “memes” had literally outpaced searches for “Jesus” – which itself had been the most widely used search term consistently since 2011.

Take a look at some of the following meme-related statistics and see how many of them overlap with the results you’re already trying to generate with your marketing collateral:

• According to one study, 87% of page interactions on Facebook happen on posts that have photos. Not one of the other types of content receives more than 4% of post interactions.
• Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest drive most traffic to external websites like your own domain. What they all have in common is the fact that their users value visual content among all other types.
• YouTube has become a particularly powerful avenue for meme propagation, particularly when it comes to viral videos.

Memes are nothing if not simple, clever, catchy and shareable – basically, all of the boxes you’re already trying to check when you create a piece of content and send it out into the world.

So from that perspective, yes – memes absolutely have a place in your visual communication and marketing efforts. They’re a tool, the same as anything else. It would be a shame not to at least attempt to make use of every last tool in your proverbial tool belt at some point during your day.

Memes are also inherently tricky, however, which is why they also require you to keep a few key things in mind.

The Art of Memes

Many people look at memes as a purely innocent or creative endeavor, which can make the act of actually using them for something as “business-centric” as marketing somewhat difficult if you don’t approach it from the right situation.

People are willing to put up with a meme being co-opted for marketing purposes provided that you’re using the meme correctly. There is no better, more efficient way to find a large group of people laughing at you and not with you than to use a meme in a way that is completely oblivious to its original intention.

Use sites like KnowYourMeme.com to research memes that you’re thinking about using from a few different angles. Not only can this be a quick way to make sure that you “get the joke,” but it’s also a perfect way to see which memes are hot right now and which are far past their expiration date.

Meme culture evolves incredibly quickly, so an image that is popular today may be totally forgotten by the end of the week.

If you’re going to attempt to create a meme and use it as part of your marketing efforts, make sure that A) your intention matches the original joke at the heart of the meme, and B) make sure that you see it as more than just a tool to sell your product or service.

The same is true with the types of Infographics that you create with a tool like Visme (which I founded), but people tend to view Infographics from a bit more of a cynical angle than they do memes.

You would never use something like an Infographic to just visualize your product’s spec sheet and call it a day. You would use it to tell a larger story or to hit at a larger point, creating an emotional response within your audience along the way.

The same is true with the types of presentations that you’re designing – they’re less sales tools, more educational and informational tools.

You need to look at memes from the same perspective. You’re making your own comment about a larger trend and idea not to create a sale, but to provoke a feeling or to start a conversation. Once that conversation has begun, then you can worry about that eventual sale.

Luckily, tools like Visme are also great for creating social media graphics, memes and other types of visual content.

Because memes are just another extension of your visual marketing efforts, you also don’t need to be a graphic designer in order to make the best impression in this format. Take a look at this free eBook that we designed about how non-designers can create compelling presentations and other types of visual collateral for more information.

The Once and Future Meme

The thing that Infographics, presentations and memes all have in common is that they’re a way to make your brand much more approachable to a modern audience. It’s not the equivalent of a cold call or a face-to-face interaction at a trade show and viewing it that way is a recipe for disaster.

It’s a way to tag someone’s joke, or to show people that there are real humans with real sense of humor behind the brand that you’re representing. It’s not the type of thing that is appropriate for every last situation, certainly – but when you do have an idea that would be best expressed in the meme format and you have selected the right meme, it would be a shame not to take advantage of it.

The post Do Memes Have a Place in Your Visual Communication and Marketing Efforts appeared first on Diggiecorp Blog.

For those who are still doubtful about the right techniques or fear of spending an absurd amount of time and resources in creating content and planning campaign for different channels, we have put together this list of lead generation strategies.

Email marketing

One of the few online marketing channels that have sustained any type of competition is email marketing. Email has turned 25 years this year, and it still holds the first spot on many of marketers’ lists and lead generation strategies.

The trend most marketers are adopting (due to great results) is marketing automation. Marketing automation tools are hybrid email marketing tools that connect with your CRM to send out effective / highly targeted emails to prospects.

The era of traditional newsletters and email marketing is still here, the race of capturing more data on users and checking user-behavior has made marketers smarter and more capable of capturing a user through their inbox.

Content marketing: Blogging & microsites

Recent statistics by WebDAM’s revealed B2B marketers who blog consistently generate 67% more leads than those who do not.

Take a hint by this stat that no matter what your business model is, content will always RULE, so plan your marketing strategy keeping content as the primary goal.

To reach the customers directly and to leave an impact on them, these steps can help –

• Identify the content user wants
• Create successful content headline
• Gather data and statistics
• Write your content and make it in-depth

Next step is- concentrate your energy on promoting your content on the right platforms.

In 2012, Xerox created a campaign, which offered relevant tips for businesses owners.

The results showed that 70% more businesses interacted with the microsite, which led to 300-400% increase in readership. This campaign also added 20,000 new contacts out of which there were 1000+ scheduled appointment. In all, this campaign yielded $1.3 billion in the pipeline.

Given the broad areas of content marketing, a good question is what type of content should B2B marketers concentrate on to generate maximum leads. Look below to know the answer.

That said, let me tell you that a good marketing strategy requires a high level of diversity and experimentation to figure out the best opportunity for your business.

Search marketing

According to a survey in 2016, 93% of consumers begin their shopping journey on a search engine, out of which 73% purchase the product/service. Organic search marketing is undoubtedly the best long-term strategy for generating B2B leads.

Here is one case of Hauser-Ross eye institute, Illinois, that invested in local SEO strategy and observed humongous results. Illinois-based keywords were researched to appeal patients, and were strategically embedded in various parts of the site. The overall results were –

• Revenue boost of over 333%
• Improvement in ranking for more than 400 keywords
• More than 50% organic traffic and boost in revenue

Reaching the #1 on Google has become challenging due to the huge amount of competition and content on the internet so search marketing is one feasible way to get there.

Social media marketing

In the 21st century, 40% people spend more time interacting on social media rather than face to face conversation. Exactly why marketing through social media channels is the perfect place to gather your target audience and turn them into leads.

Lead generation through social media is a piece of cake as people readily share their information on social media and these platforms have armed marketer with various promotion strategies. Promoted posts, ads in videos, live videos and a robust analytics system to gauge the difference between paid and free content promotion is there. Just choose a platform and see how quickly your brand image improves.

About choosing a social media channel- one of the biggest mistakes most marketers make while marketing on social media is they try to get leads from the wrong channel. For instance, it is assumed by most marketers that due to the number of users on Facebook, it is the best option, but that is not always the case. The investment must be made only after confirming presence of your potential customers on a platform. To know how brands can make their Facebook marketing campaigns more fruitful, click here.

Lastly, integrate your lead generation strategy

At the onset of a business, experimenting with strategies can help you decide what works and what does not work for your business.

Later, you can use the time and revenue of your business on specifics, to yield high returns and more leads.

The key to generating high quality and quantity leads depends upon the marketer’s inclination towards experimenting with different tactics.

The post Content Marketing Strategies For B2B Businesses To Generate Leads appeared first on Diggiecorp Blog.