MEET THE MEMELORD: The Guy Behind Facebook Page ‘Yes/No?’

Welcome to the first in our series of interviews where we get to know the memelords behind social media accounts fuelling the memeolution. Today we’re chatting to the Brisbane dude behind the growing force of Facebook Page ‘Yes / No’.

The fresh page made its debut only six months ago but in that time it’s grown spectacularly, now pushing 30K followers with thousands of comments on each post. Its success comes down to it’s binary simplicity. Somewhere between 1-3 times each day the admin asks its fans for their opinion on a basic, yet contentious daily subjects and braces for the reactions.

Case in point:

https://www.facebook.com/yesnooriginalpagethisisthewebaddress/posts/327969667616475

The ‘About’ section on the page boasts two basic rules:

1. No qualified answers that reduce the topic into some sort of sub-sects (eg. ‘Yes, but only ______’ or ‘Yes, although not when_____’.)

and…

2. Answers must be given as either yes or no (or worded equivalent). No maybe’s

On the back of all this success we checked in with the admin behind the page to ‘meet the memelord’ and here’s what we discovered.

How long have you been running ‘Yes/No’ and why did you start the page?

The whole thing started in early December 2016 and for almost a month it was only me posting, commenting and liking.

I really wanted to know if people were a ‘yes or no’ for Kenneth Branagh, in fact that’s all I’ve ever wanted to know.

I don’t repost old questions so now I don’t think I’ll ever actually know people’s opinions on that first post.

https://www.facebook.com/yesnooriginalpagethisisthewebaddress/posts/239181659828610

How many admins are there?

There is only me, although generally people address the page in PM’s as ‘hey admins’.

Nothing wrong with that obvs.

https://www.facebook.com/yesnooriginalpagethisisthewebaddress/posts/314609468952495

Where do you get the inspiration behind each post?

Initially each post was taken from conversations I’d had at the time.

Nowadays I get submissions. Although the things I face each day always have preferential treatment. While I appreciate every submission I receive, a lot of them don’t make sense or they miss the point of the page. I still love all my followers and am humbled by their interest!

What was the most helpful Yes/No question you have asked?

I wouldn’t describe any of the posts as helpful but some of them have been vaguely entertaining.

The post about ‘water before toothpaste’ seemed to ignite a lengthy discussion at some Melbourne college I think. Among my favourite posts were:

https://www.facebook.com/yesnooriginalpagethisisthewebaddress/posts/288596701553772

“7’s with dashes through them” (quite a good submission)

https://www.facebook.com/yesnooriginalpagethisisthewebaddress/posts/314926485587460

“hyphen noses on emoticons”

https://www.facebook.com/yesnooriginalpagethisisthewebaddress/posts/314029169010525

“rivers”

https://www.facebook.com/yesnooriginalpagethisisthewebaddress/posts/321602244919884

,,,but “Kenneth Branagh” remains the first thing I think of when I am reminded that I am the legal guardian of the page.

You have reached 30,000 likes. Did you ever think the page would come this far?

And what are the plans for the future?

I was amazed when the page had 500 followers; that was back when it was mainly a bunch of Brisbane people. I still can’t believe that such a stupid idea has been so well received.

I’ve always made jokes at my own expense and this page was just another. The idea of someone stubbornly carrying out a stupid idea by himself despite having no audience is something I always found funny. It was like a private joke where I was the comedian, the subject, and the object of the joke. If nobody had liked the page I’d still be posting, but it would be funnier. Now it’s kinda serious.

I’m pleased to have the audience but it makes the whole thing a little surreal. You have to admit that although it’s kinda fun, the page is pretty stupid. As for the future I’m just going to keep on doing what I do. I don’t like monetising comedy; I doubt anyone would pay much money for that very niche platform anyway.

You control a platform which can divide friendships. How does It feel to have that power?

It’s like having a superpower that you know is quite effectual but on the outside it looks really pathetic. Like some sort of superhero who has the power to demolish buildings with his mind but only when he makes idle chat about his favourite Masterchef contestants or something. That’s a terrible analogy but it makes sense in my head. I’ve been drinking.

Would you call yourself a Yes person or a No person?

I’m definitely a yes person! I love everything pretty much, and if I don’t like something it’s probably my fault anyway.

Are there any other meme pages you could recommend?

I wouldn’t recommend any other pages really but I can say I take slightly guilty pleasure in Trolley Problem Memes. I follow a range of pages but there’s very few with a consistent level of quality. There’s a comedic writer who I think lives in LA called Tom Oatmeal who I find hysterical. He has pages on a few platforms. He’s worth a gerns too. I hope if he ever comes to Australia I can have a drink with him

This interview: Yes/No?

Yes! I’ve never been interviewed, this was fun!