5 Tips On How To Use Emojis In Marketing

Did you know that 92% of people use emojis in their daily lives?

Whether it’s in an email, a text, a social media post, or a Tweet: emojis have become a huge permanent in our life.

In fact, in 2015, The Oxford English Dictionary’s ‘Word Of The Year’ was the crying laughing emoji!

But how have they gained so much power?

Well, emojis are great because they can convey meanings without having to use words. They can carry tone and language very easily. As such, it’s no surprise that we’ve become dependent on them. 

So, what about emojis in marketing? How effective are they?

Well, according to a study carried out by You.Gov, using an emoji in an Instagram post will increase your engagement by 48%.

And, 57% of Facebook posts see an increase in likes if they’ve got an emoji in them. With 33% of these posts being shared.

What’s more, 25% of Tweets that use emojis see better engagement too.

The numbers don’t lie! Using emojis in marketing can lead to higher engagement, lower costs per engagement and better brand association.

But, that doesn’t mean that using emojis in marketing doesn’t come with pitfalls.

It can be difficult to figure out what they mean, how to use them fluently, and if they’re right for your business. 

So, we’ve put together 5 tips on how to use emojis in marketing.

Continue reading if you want to find out what they are.

This sounds like a very easy question, and it may be very obvious, but it’s true!

If you’re thinking of using emojis in marketing, you need to decide whether or not emojis are right for your business at all.

Nobody wants to see their bank using flirty emojis, or a hospital using funny emojis. It just doesn’t seem appropriate.

Because of this, you need to assess what type of emojis you think are suitable for you. And, you also need to assess why it is you’re using emojis in the first place.

If you’re trying to engage with a younger audience, then using emojis in your marketing campaigns can be a great idea. In fact, according to Hopes & Fears, 72% of people aged 18-25 prefer using emojis to communicate over actual words!

Meaning, that emojis certainly resonate with younger audiences. Because of this, it can be a great way for you to attract a younger target audience.

But, you have to be careful in the ways you use them.

Sometimes, a brand or business using an emoji can seem out of touch or awkward. If anything, it can be a little cringeworthy!

Especially if it’s not relevant to what they’re saying, or is inappropriate considering what they’re discussing.

Because of this, think about whether or not you should be using emojis for your business. Ultimately, it’s okay if emojis aren’t right for your brand. There are plenty of other tools you can use to boost your social media engagement.

I’m sure we’ve all been sent a text with an emoji by someone who doesn’t know what it means. Whether it’s your Uncle or your Grandparents, it can be slightly awkward or embarrassing. Especially when you’re having to explain to them what that emoji really means – and why it probably wasn’t very appropriate for a text about your job.

So, when it comes to using emojis in marketing, make sure that you know what they mean!

The meanings behind emojis can vary for several reasons.

Whether it’s because you’re using different operating systems which display emojis differently, you’ve personally been using emojis to carry different meanings, or even that the intention behind the emoji has changed over time: it’s something you need to consider.

In fact, according to a study from the University of Minnesota, they found that miscommunication through the use of emojis is more common than we think.

The results from participants rating the emotional relevance of an emoji found that there was a 2.04 difference in meaning between users using different platforms. And, a 1.88 difference in meaning for those using the same platform.

Because of this, if you’re thinking of using an emoji for marketing, be mindful of how it can be interpreted by people on different operating systems and how some emojis may even have hidden meanings.

A peach emoji doesn’t necessarily mean ‘fruit’.

A crying emoji can be used to convey sarcasm, not sadness.

And a grin can actually be a grimace depending on who’s viewing it.

When brands rush to the ideas of using emojis in their social media marketing or email marketing, they sometimes can overuse them.

In an attempt to come across as friendly, or engaging, or approachable, they end up looking confusing and disingenuous.

You can feel like you’re trying to decipher hieroglyphics!

So, how do you make sure that you’re using emojis correctly?

Firstly, make sure that your emojis add to what you’re saying and are contextually relevant.

If you’re making a Twitter post about a discount available on your products: a money emoji is appropriate. Or, if you’re sending a marketing email about Christmas offers, a snowflake emoji or Santa emoji makes sense.

Similar to making sure you know what the emojis mean, make sure that you’re only using them if they add to your meaning.

Secondly, realise the limitations of emojis.

Twitter only allows you only 280 characters, and every social media marketer will tell you that there’s a finite number of words you should use on a social media post.

Because of this, lots of marketers will look towards using emojis to convey meaning and communicate instead of words. Which, can be done. But it can also be overdone.

Realise that emojis can be hard to decipher. Whilst they’re great for adding to captions and replacing the occasional word, we’re not at the place yet where emojis can be used instead of words at all.

Emojis can be a fantastic way of marketing your brand or business. So much so that there have been several marketing campaigns launched solely based on an emoji or that heavily feature emojis.

So, how do they do this?

If you’re going to be featuring emojis in your marketing campaign, make sure that they’re relevant to your brand.

Take Taco Bell, for example.

In 2014, Taco Bell called to attention the lack of a taco emoji on mobile phone keyboards and social media platforms around the world.

So, in an instance of excellent marketing, created a petition demanding that a taco emoji be created. The petition gained 33,000 signatures! And, ultimately, was successful. In 2015 the taco emoji was launched, and Taco Bell fans all across the world were able to finally share in their joy.

But the marketing campaign doesn’t end there.

Taco Bell decided to go one step further, and partner with an agency called Deutsch LA. Together, they created a ‘Taco Emoji Engine’ that was built directly into Twitter. Meaning, that users didn’t have to download or install anything if they wanted to take part in the next steps.

Then, Twitter uses could Tweet @ Taco Bell, with an accompanying emoji, and would automatically receive a reply from the engine. The reply would be an image, gif, or graphic of the taco emoji mashed up with whatever emoji was sent to them.

Ultimately, the campaign was a huge success. Within 5 days the original tweet received over half a million tweets.

It’s a great example of how a brand can launch a social media campaign based solely on one emoji associated with their brand and business.

Using emojis in marketing isn’t necessarily limited to only on social media.

Emojis can also be used when it comes to email marketing also.

And, one of the best ways to use emojis in email marketing is through subject lines.

Using an emoji in a subject line can often have the same effect as using the name of the recipient of the email. It can trigger a sense of urgency and importance and can force the recipient to open the email.

In fact, using specific emojis in your email subject lines can have different effects.

A red siren in your subject line can highlight the importance of the email. If you’re talking about a sale, or a limited time deal, for example.

A pumpkin or ghost emoji could be used if you’re sending a Halloween themed email. Seasonal emails often go hand in hand with seasonal emojis, and using a Christmas or Valentine’s emoji is a great way to add context and be relevant.

On the other hand, an email about a discount could use a money bag emoji or dollar sign emoji.

They’re great ways of grabbing your consumer’s attention and standing out amongst the rush of all other boring emails.

Secondly, when you’re using emojis in email marketing you should always send test emails.

As mentioned earlier, emojis can appear differently depending on the operating system used. And the same can be said for emojis being sent through different email services.

Sending test emails is a great way to see how the emojis appear, and if they don’t, how confusing it may look to consumers.

Emojis, unlike images, don’t have alternative text. Meaning that if the emojis aren’t showing on the email, it can be confusing or off-putting to the consumer.

Using emojis in marketing is a really great idea. They drive up engagement, can be done entirely for free given that emojis are universal, and are a great way of conveying meaning when you don’t want to or have to use words.

Hopefully, now you’re aware of the pitfalls to avoid and how you should be launching your emoji marketing campaign, you’re better prepared to take on the world of emojis and start making the most of them.

So, after reading this, will you be using emojis in your social media and emails?