When a meme turns into merch, who gets paid?

It’s hardly ever the person who took the photo or actually created the meme.

Now, crypto platform Coinbase has figured out how to make sure the original creator benefits when their work is monotised. And their hilarious new campaign featuring a cat called Mister Miggles points out how important that is.

In today's newsletter:

• Coinbase helps creators get paid for cat memes (their new campaign highlights how original creators can monotise their work using onchain tech)

• Goodbye, cookies. Hello, contextual ads. (everything you need to know about how you can use contextual ads effectively)

• Trend plug - Gives you hell

• Ask the Editor - Is it ok to totally change my content style after finding a niche?

- Charlotte, Editor ♡

p.s. If you're reading this and you want to start creating viral content for your brand, our cohort program is set up to help you do that. Lucky for you, registrations for our August intake are now open! Learn more.

Cat memes. The original viral content.

I remember coming home from a long day of school and scrolling through pages like ‘Crazy Cats’ and ‘I Can Has Cheezburger?’ laughing my head off.

The internet and social media have come a long way since then. But cat memes remain. A beacon of human hope, they may very well be the last thing holding us all from falling into our demise.

Anyone chronically online knows that cat memes are still a large staple of internet culture.

No pet photo uploaded is safe from becoming a meme-able moment that can generate thousands of likes and engagement. And we all know these can lead to monetization.

Crypto platform Coinbase hones in on this phenomenon in a new hilarious campaign. The brand is encouraging creators to launch projects 'onchain' or as NFTs in order to reap the benefits of any replication, alteration and meme-ification of their images.

The ad stars Mister Miggles, a fluffy, very grumpy-looking cat, whose photo goes viral.

[Keep reading]

-Sophie, Writer

Goodbye Cookies. Hello Contextual Ads.

The question on marketer’s minds right now: is where as effective as who?

If you’re wondering what I mean, I don’t blame you.

Once again, we are forced to adapt to the ever-changing marketing landscape and adopt a new form of our craft. As soon as we do, they will probably move the goalposts again and render this one irrelevant.

BUT we are not there yet! And we still have work to do, young soldiers.

Contextual advertising is not new. But we need to reimagine it to fit our current landscape.

You know in apocalypse films, when all the new age communication technology becomes obsolete, and the characters have to go back to using things like radio. Well, this is kind of like that.

In the cookie-pocalypse, advertisers will have to reimagine their data strategies.

And contextual advertising is a privacy-friendly ad targeting technique that fits right into this world. Hence its popularity right now.

To get an understanding of what the hype is all about, let’s unpack what exactly contextual advertising is, how it works, and what its benefits are.

So what the heck is contextual advertising?

[Keep reading]

-Sophie, Writer

Trend Plug - Gives You Hell

EMO MUSIC IS SO BACK.

Today’s trend originates from TikTok user gxnnlvr's daily series of posting iconic emo/ alternative songs everyone should know. Day 10 features the track 'Gives you hell' by The All-American Rejects.

People are using this trend in one of two ways. One is showcasing the happy vibes song when talking about something that puts you in a good mood. Another is talking about someone you hope feels like hell when they see your face.

How to jump on this trend:

Using this sound, lipsync the song, and add onscreen text. This could be something that makes you happy or referring to someone feeling like hell because of you. 

A few ideas to get you started

• ‘The song that plays in my head when it's the end of the work week’

• ‘When my exes can't escape my LinkedIn presence‘

• ‘When an ex-bestie blocks you but still sees you through other people's posts’

-Carter, Intern

Ask the Editor

Q - I've been just posting trend content on TikTok and it's what my audience knows me for. I want to start make content around the music I write. How should I introduce it into my content? - Ezra

Hi Ezra!

Think about how can you work your music into your existing content gradually.

Do you sing your next post? Do you randomly give a sample of your work on a live (online) show? Drip feed your audience and gradually let them know you make music without actively making it what your content is exclusively about.

You can also partner with other musicians and try to get yourself on their platform. Over time, you’ll shape your audience to be a combination of people who know you for your music and people who are sticking around from your previous work but love what you produce musically. Do this slowly and respect both sides of your work.

You built a platform based off a niche, so keep nurturing it. Over time, you’ll be able to work in whatever kind of content you want to!

- Charlotte, Editor ♡

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