SXSW Feature: Brad Zeff

At SXSW ’19 Backslash led a panel called “Wacko World and the Rise of Memelord Brands.” The discussion honed in on a trend that Backslash has identified in culture (we call them ‘Edges’), named Wacko World: We’re all weird now. The absurd, inexplicable and plain silly have become common vocabulary in memes, fashion and marketing. This is a reaction to over-consumption and logic and signals a desire for the unique and irrational.

In Wacko World, people become brands, and brands become people. With many first impressions now taking place online, we’re seeing people curating their content and branding themselves in order to present a specific image, succinctly packaging themselves to the world. On the other hand, brands are trying to appear less curated and more relatable in the fight to remain relevant and resonate with Millennials and Gen Z. In practice this means big names are incorporating memes into their messaging, adopting first person tone of voice, and sounding like they are a single person tweeting at their friends. But does it allow them to do so? Yes and no: Brad Zeff of Giphy cautions brands to only jump on the meme bandwagon if its authentic and truly dialed into a brand’s identity: “Attention is fleeting, identity lasts.” — Brad Zeff, CSO at Giphy

Learn more about how Backslash can help you translate cultural blur into business opportunity: https://www.backslash.com/