For brands, the key emoji is the new “bae.”
MasterCard used the emoji last night, co-opting a trend made famous by social media power user DJ Khaled and his fans for the past few months. It did not go well, as evidenced below:
Major Alert: If you need ID Theft alerts, we’ve got you covered. #blessup
— MasterCard (@MasterCard) January 11, 2016
“STOP,” tweeted a follower. Like “bae” and “on fleek,” brands are trying once again to talk like your cool aunt. And the Internet has had enough.
Until now, for example, the key emoji was a distinctively DJ Khaled marque. For the past few months, the music producer, who has 2.7 million Twitter followers, has made the key emoji an integral part of his personal brand.
On Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat accounts — the latter of which he used to document getting lost at sea on a jet ski in December that went instantly viral — he’s used the symbol to dish out “major keys to success,” like humblebrags or words of wisdom.
Happy bday !! My sis ! @maryjblige MAJOR !! https://t.co/NnXCkUxK3C — DJ KHALED (@djkhaled) January 12, 2016
Since he’s been peppering his messages with the key emoji to his 5.5 million combined followers on Instagram and Twitter, it’s taken off in popularity. Searches on Google for “key emoji” jumped 800 percent in December, Quartz says, and his usage of it is noted on the ever-expansive Emojipedia.
Other brands and even the White House have jumped on the craze, too:
Uber when it’s raining—major — Uber (@Uber) January 6, 2016
@jakeeypsabs Major : $0.50 grilled cheese TODAY #blessup https://t.co/KRJ7huGYdj — Sonic Drive-In (@sonicdrivein) December 30, 2015
Dad’s on Snapchat pic.twitter.com/5pxb7W6A0I — Brett LoGiurato (@BrettLoGiurato) January 12, 2016
wow MAJOR to success @djkhaled pic.twitter.com/VysLp2Ea1x — Denny’s (@DennysDiner) December 30, 2015
Monday motivation #BlessUp pic.twitter.com/pcJi7FcF2J — Wingstop (@wingstop) December 21, 2015
As evidenced by the reaction to the MasterCard tweet, brands risk alienating their followers by appearing to look like a “cool mom” at the party.
“Consumers would prefer a brand to deliver something useful and engaging or connect them to others who share the same interests or needs rather than artificially attaching a bit of cultural ‘flotsam’ to appear to be in the know,” said Jamie Gutfreund, CMO of Wunderman.
For brands, the key to success is to stick their message and not try to look cool.
More in Marketing
Chasing U.S. growth, Tony’s Chocolonely focuses on a retail media and social blend
Premium chocolate brand Tony’s Chocolonely is focusing on retail media and paid social as it targets U.S. growth.
The year the memes took over reality – and marketing followed
Subcultures aren’t niche anymore — they’re the culture. And for marketers, that changes everything.
How to expand programmatic advertising up the funnel, with TripAdvisor’s Matteo Balzani
TripAdvisor marketing exec Matteo Balzani broke down the company’s plans for broadening its programmatic strategy during a live recording of the Digiday Podcast at the Digiday Programmatic Marketing Summit.