These precious pixel pictures are practically part of modern language, but are they right for your business?
Whether you like them or not, emojis have slowly crept into all aspects of communication. Over 10 billion emojis are sent daily, and more than 92% of global online consumers use them, according to Ad Week.
Until recently, many people may have perceived using emojis in a business setting as unprofessional. But with the emergence of social media, it has become more commonplace to include them in posts, emails and other forms of marketing. Since last year, there has been a 777% increase in emoji use for branded campaigns.
So you may be wondering whether your business should use emojis. After all, they instantly appear friendly and current, but if used wrong can bring your professionalism into question. Every business is different, but as we approach World Emoji Day 2022, there’s never been a better time to learn about them. You may find that learning the emoji language is beneficial for your business.
What are emojis?
If you don’t know the answer to this question, you’ve likely been living under a rock. Emojis are small graphical images often reflecting a certain facial expression, but have been expanded to include people, food, general objects and locations. They’re used to represent emotions, add expression to statements and can also be used singularly as their own language.
Emojis have gained particular attention for being widely universal, regardless of age, culture or language, most people can understand them. It’s in this respect that they’ve gained large popularity as they can aid communication and help make online writing more concise. After all, a picture speaks a thousand words.
What emojis can I use?
There are seven main categories of emojis, all very different to each other:
Smileys – These are what most commonly comes to mind when the word ‘emoji’ is mentioned. They reflect facial expressions depicting a variety of emotions/acts, such as laughter, crying and anger.
Humans & Animals/Nature – As well as facial expressions, there are a few full-bodied emojis available, often depicted doing sports or striking a pose. There are many animal and nature ones too, from common animals to rare wildlife and scenery.
Food & Drink – There are many foods and drink emojis available from a variety of different cuisines and cultures.
Travel & Places – There are several transport emojis, as well as a number of locations, ranging from cultural landmarks to banks and churches.
Objects – There are numerous general object emojis, ranging from clothing to entertainment and sport. These can be used to depict various hobbies and niche interests.
Symbols – There are many traditional symbol emojis, such as red crosses, green ticks, Zodiacs and more.
Flags – The emoji catalogue contains almost every flag for most countries in the world, as well as others like the Pride flag.
Can emojis be used in marketing?
As mentioned, Emojis can make your marketing appear current and add a touch of creativity to text. They can also help you grow your audience and connect more with them, so if they’re being used wisely, emojis can and should be used in marketing.
Consider which emojis match the direction that your marketing campaign is heading in. This can be done by considering the colouring and aesthetic of your brand, as well as your specialities.
It’s important to remember when using emojis, less is more. It may look unprofessional or in poor taste to use a long stream after every post or title. Try to stick to a small range that can become your go-to emojis, as this will help your audience become familiar with a few specific ones and consciously link them to you.
What are the benefits of using emojis?
Emojis can help your brand improve awareness. Like many other online fashions, emojis are a trend, and they have just achieved great staying-power. Being seen to be current with trends is a good thing for businesses, and emojis are creative and eye-catching.
They can also help to increase your user engagement. Like creating a hashtag, making an emoji have a connection to your business is a great way to connect with your customers. For instance, asking online consumers to ‘comment’ which emoji reminds them of you, or using emojis to communicate a secret message, can be great for social media engagement.
Emojis are also great for opening up your market. Most are universal as any language can understand them, so communicating with new customers just became so much easier. They’re also easily identifiable. Posting a single icon will alert your audience of your message, regardless of who is or where they’re seeing it.