My meme centers around the idea of the binge TV watching culture that we see today. It features a closeup of SpongeBob looking exhausted and nervous, and says “Watching your 8th consecutive SVU episode like”. This will certainly be viral in nature for many reasons. The theory behind the idea that this will be viral is that the meme is not only humorous, but it also touches upon something so common to our culture today.
Comedy is Key
The comedy aspect of the meme is sure to draw in engagements. The closeup image of SpongeBob with wrinkled, dried out skin, puffy red eyes, and sweat dripping down his face shows a dramatized version of what it’s like to watch the same series on Netflix for over eight hours. It generates humor because many people can relate to the feeling of tiredness, nervousness for what is about to happen next (especially in an overly-intense episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit), and the resistance to turn off the TV or stop the show. However, even though people may look or feel just as worse as this dried out, exhausted version of SpongeBob, they still continue to binge watch television shows on Netflix.
A New Kind of Binging
Can the mid-2010s be described as the years of binge watching TV and Netflix? Most people would agree that continuously watching the same TV show for hours is something that defines part of our culture these days. Therefore, the meme will go viral because people find interest in things that they can relate to. The text and picture within the meme perfectly depict something that is so common to many people in society, and for that reason many people will want to engage with the content and meme.
Even though the caption uses the example of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, virtually anyone can relate to this example. Many people find themselves unable to stop an episode of whatever their favorite TV show is. For that reason, this does not just pertain to SVU fans, but relates to every binge-watcher out there in the world. These binge-watchers will therefore like the meme whether SVU is their show of choice or not.
Strategy, Strategy, Strategy
In order to maximize the amount of engagements that I receive on my posts about the meme, I am planning on posting the meme to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and Tumblr. My plan is to post the meme a total of 12 times within the week of November 11 to November 18, and rotate between the numerous social media accounts. I also plan to optimize the amount of people who see the meme by posting to each account at different times during the day. For example, if I were to post in the meme to Twitter in the morning one day, I would post it to Twitter in the evening a few days later. Therefore, those who typically are busy in the mornings may see it the next time it is posted later in the day.
I am looking forward to this challenge, and believe that my meme will satisfy the requirements of being “viral.”
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