If you are a marketer, you cannot ignore meme culture.
No, I'm not talking about creating tone-deaf corporate memes that scream “How are you, fellow kids?”
I'm talking about real, organic viral trends. They may seem silly on the surface but – when the time is right – jumping on the right meme can mean marketing magic.
Case in point: the Gen Z caviar bump. A TikTok trend that's helping brands tap into a $465 million global market.
A caviar now what?
If you're not familiar with the caviar bump, you'll be grateful to know that it has nothing to do with smelling fish roe.
Caviar bump refers to the growing tendency to lick a large piece of fish eggs off the back of your hand.
But while it may be trendy, it's not actually new. Culinary experts say that this is the favorite method of caviar connoisseurs, as it allows you to taste only the egg (and, of course, the back of your hand).
When you serve caviar on top of other ingredients — like toast, creme fraiche, or salmon tartare — you risk masking the flavor you're paying so much to taste.
What Is However, what's new is the traffic it's bringing. At the time of posting, hashtags related to caviar bumps were drawing millions of views on Instagram.
The word #Caviar alone accounted for 1.7 million posts. Not just thoughts. Post.
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So what should a marketer do with that information?
show me the money.
According to market research firm Fact.MR, global caviar sales were projected to reach approximately $465 million in 2023.
They estimate that this will increase to $975 million by 2033.
And while TikTok and Gen Z can't account for all of that, another market research study shows that caviar sales have increased 76% since 2020 alone.
It's hard to ignore those times.
And it's certainly not being ignored by restaurants, luxury brands and even…Pringles?
What are you waiting for?
My favorite example of a timely blend of marketing and memes comes from a popular snack food brand.
In July 2023, an episode of The Real Housewives of New York introduced the world to the pairing of Pringles and Caviar. Clips from that episode received over 10 billion views on TikTok.
That's Arab with a 'B'.
Later in 2023, Pringles teamed up with The Caviar Company to launch the “Crisps & Caviar Flight”.
The $140 tasting kit finally allows you to fulfill your dream of pairing fish roe and dehydrated potato discs.
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Result? Marketing Drive reports that the Pringles TikTok received over 21.8 million views shortly after its launch.
And yet, four months later, Google Trends is still showing “Pringles and Caviar” and enjoying a 950% increase in search volume.
What is the lesson?
If you're not in a market adjacent to caviar, what can you learn from it?
1. Don't ignore social media.
45% Millennials and 39% Gen Z Favorite To learn about products through social media, according to HubSpot research.
2. Don't ignore Gen Z.
64% of Gen Z consumers discovered new products on social media in 2023.
22% purchased a product directly from a social media app.
3. Pay attention to memes.
Predicting what will go viral can be as slippery as a fish, but you should keep your eye on what's already trending. You never know when you'll get your Pringles moment.
