What is emoji marketing?
FEELING PICTURES Smileys have conquered the world. Visionaries speak of the language of the future and teenagers can hardly do without them. A few days ago, new ones were added to Whatsapp and Facebook now also relies on the so-called emojis. How did this come about, and where do these emotional images actually come from?In addition to its well-known "Like" button, Facebook has now also [...]
To its well-known "Like" button, Facebook has now added the options "Love," "Wow," "Haha," "Sad," and "Angry" to give a post even more "feelings." This is because certain posts, for example a death, cannot be commented on with a "Like". Symbol images have long been part of everyday life in the popular messaging service Whatsapp, and it is hard to imagine life without them.Where do they come from?Emojis originate from Japan. They were developed around 1999 by Shigetaka Kurita for the cell phone platform i-mode. The word is composed from Japanese like this: "e" for Japanese and "moji" for picture. In the fall of 2010, the Unicode Consortium included the symbols in its internationally standardized character palette. Since then, there has been no stopping them.Why we love themBut why do we like to use these emotional images so much? Basically, a picture is worth a thousand words - so the saying goes. But with emojis it is additionally possible to take his written sentences to another level and give more expression to what is said. For example, with the symbols we can express irony, joy or sadness without words. This non-verbal factor gives a human touch to what are actually impersonal messages and suggests closeness between chat partners who may be miles apart. In contrast to the previously widespread smileys - for example :'( - the emojis are unmistakable for everyone.Emojis we use wrongNot quite! Misunderstandings still crop up in this "language" - at least in its use. We use some emojis differently than originally intended. For example, the "tired cat" is often used for fright or shock. This is obvious, of course, because it actually resembles the fearful face. However, in reality, the emoji does not show a scared cat, but an exhausted one. Another emoji that is used incorrectly is the one with wide open eyes. Many use it to suggest incredulity. But in fact, it is supposed to stand for an embarrassed facial expression. Or the emoji blowing steam out of its nose. For some, it may mean annoyance, but it actually means triumph. Emoji marketing really existsRecently, some companies have also discovered the symbols for themselves: the car brand Chevrolet, for example, sent a complete Press release in emoji language. Or the literary classic Mobi Dick, which was newly translated - "Emoji Dick"so to speak. And Sony Pictures Animation even wants to produce a movie about or with emojis in the near future - it's still unclear exactly what that will look like.Oreo went one step further and demonstrated how an entire campaign can be built with emojis:
