Emojis. You've seen them in your teen's texts. Twitter and Instagram are full of them. You've probably utilized them yourself in personal communication. But what about professional communication, and even marketing - are they appropriate, and if so, how do you use them well?

via @DanMentos

Emojis are tiny images used to depict an emotion, thought, or idea. They come preloaded on most smartphones today. As companies continue to embrace new technology and social media in their marketing strategies, more and more brands are starting to incorporate these into their communication.

When used correctly, emojis in your marketing content can be a great way to make your company seem more interesting and accessible, and can help increase engagement. When used poorly, however, the results can be disastrous – your brand will seem out of touch and you could find yourself needing to apologize for an embarrassing emoji gaffe. Here are some tips for using emojis wisely and effectively.

1. Know your audience

If you’re thinking about using emojis in your content, make sure that it’s going to appeal to the market you’re trying to reach. Most companies are seeking that 18-25 demographic that emojis might appeal to, but that’s not necessarily the target market for every brand. While a clever tweet with emojis from Pfizer might be good for a couple thousand amused retweets, it’s probably not going to help them sell any Viagra – middle-aged men aren’t generally interested in emojis. Make sure that you are creating content that is relevant to your market.

via NBCUniversal

2. Know what you’re saying

Emojis don’t always mean what you think they mean, or even what they were intended to mean when they were created. They often have taken on alternate meaning that may or may not be readily apparent, and if you use one earnestly in a way other than the way they’re perceived by the millennial crowd, you could find yourself in an embarrassing situation. If you want to make the edgy joke, feel free – sometimes a perceived mistake in meaning can get your brand in front of a lot of eyes when followers share your content. But if you’re really just trying to sell eggplants, stay away from the eggplant emoji. Trust me. 

3. Don’t get carried away

When if comes to incorporating emojis into your content, stick to the KISS rule: Keep It Simple, Stupid (somewhat related: don’t use any kissy-face emojis – that’s kind of creepy). A few uses here or there can be great, but don’t make your content a busy mess of random emojis. Along those same lines, make sure you’re not just sticking them in willy-nilly; you should have a focus and a purpose rather than trying to force things. 

(This would be getting carried away, Chevrolet. Just because you're targeting millennials does NOT mean you should remove all clarity - or words - from your press release.)

Sensing a theme, here? You should. Like all inbound marketing, emoji use should be about a conversation - a relevent, 2-way conversation. It's literally about keeping it . Know your audience, and your content marketing - emojis and all - will reflect that.