How memes influence society and our lives

In recent years, it has been impossible not to notice memes; they are everywhere and have become a major communication tool with a considerable social impact.

Produced and distributed on the internet, a meme generally takes the form of an image, more rarely that of a text or a video, allowing for a very concise expression of a message.

According to the Oxford Dictionary, a meme can be defined as: "an image, video, piece of text, etc., typically humorous in nature, that is copied and spread rapidly by internet users, often with slight variations."

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Memes are most often images, for example accompanied by an offbeat caption written in a brief text. They can also take the form of animated GIFs, parody videos or hashtags.

@FindThatMeme

The images used can come from a wide variety of sources: political news, extracts from films or series, royalty-free photographs, portraits of well-known people, photomontages, etc.

@knowyourmeme

Regardless of the topic and medium chosen, memes are almost always humorous, generally serving to make fun of a personality or current event.

@FindThatMeme

Memes are democratic since everyone can create and distribute their own memes in a few clicks. It's up to you to let your imagination run wild!

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This possibility of expression is increased tenfold by the viral nature of memes, enabled by their distribution on social networks which quickly makes them visible to millions of people.

The very first meme dates to 1996. In the following decade, more viral content appeared notably improbable photos of cats (the famous “lolcats”), which flourished on the 4chan platform.

But massification took place in the 2010s, thanks to the 9gag site and the Giphy platform. From 2015, memes have become a mainstream medium of expression on the internet.

As explained by the Canadian academic media 'Digital in Questions', this means of communication is appreciated "because it is humorous and because it plays on the feeling of belonging to a group".

The same media adds that memes “make us laugh, but they also comfort us by giving us the impression of being understood by others."

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For Nicolas Nova, researcher and co-author of the book “The Internet Meme Culture”, cited by 'Les Échos', “the meme remains a counterculture because there are and always will be very cryptic memes which will remain incomprehensible to many of Internet users”.

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One of the most famous and widely used memes is that of the “distracted boyfriend”. We see a young man admiring the physique of an unknown woman in the street, under the indignant gaze of his girlfriend.

@knowyourmeme

Also very well known, the “woman yelling at a cat” meme shows a woman screaming and crying in the image on the left, and a cat sitting at the table in the one on the right. It is generally used to illustrate debates or conflict situations.

@knowyourmeme

One last meme among the most famous is called “Drakeposting”: we see the Canadian rapper Drake in two superimposed images. It is used most often to express a preference or to illustrate two contradictory possibilities.

@knowyourmeme

Often created for humorous or entertainment purposes, memes can also have a political significance: they are in fact a very effective instrument for mocking the opposing camp, or for revealing the contradictory or absurd nature of an argument.

@knowyourmeme

But memes can also be used for business communication: “If brands succeed in using memes in an authentic way, they can be a powerful tool," as the director of an advertising agency told 'Bloomberg'.

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The challenge for brands is to generate commitment from their target audience: if they manage to speak the same language, they can generate considerable support thanks to memes.

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As the economic media 'Business AM' notes, "where influencer marketing on Facebook and Instagram reaches an involvement of 1 to 15%, that of memes easily climbs up to 30%." »

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Furthermore, the meme gives an impression of greater authenticity to young audiences, who increasingly shun influencers saturating social networks.

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An example of success: the ready-to-wear brand Maje used an Instagram account to promote a collection that uses fashion images. Entitled #MajeDoesMemes, the campaign allowed the company to rejuvenate its image.

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Be careful, though: memes must be funny or evocative to work. Without a minimum of inspiration and understanding of audience expectations, failure will almost always be expected. It's up to you!

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