You may think that marketing consists of vanilla content that needs to be corporate and ultra professional. That may have been the case 50 years ago but in today’s digital age, marketing has a wider scope.
Companies are always trying to find an edge over their competitors when it comes to marketing campaigns. Using humour can be a way for marketing campaigns to stand out and resonate with potential customers. As long as it is used in the correct manner.
In today’s post, we’ll discuss ways you can implement some humour into your marketing strategy and also what to avoid.
Let’s get into it!
Why Humour is Used in Marketing
Marketing is all about tapping into the emotions of your customers. You want to get inside their heads and find out what makes them tick. After all, your fantastic product or service could very well be the answer to their problems.
If your product or service is then you need to market it effectively. Humour is a great way of evoking emotion, and people buy on emotion not logic.
So if you can filter humour into your marketing strategy then there is an opportunity for you to sell something without seeming like a sleazy salesperson.
No one likes the sleazy salesy look!
Ways to Use Humour in Marketing
Let’s look at a few different ways you could implement some humour into your marketing strategy:
Storytelling
Storytelling is one of the best ways to market anything. That’s because everyone loves a good story. Storytelling has been around for thousands of years and it’s how information has been passed down through the ages.
This is the reason why storytelling is so crucial in marketing, if you can convey a great story then it will resonate with someone. Implementing humour into your story gives it a chance to stick out more and be remembered.
Just think about it, remember that funny story your best mate told you all those years ago?
If you answered yes then we’ve just proved our point.
Utilise Visuals
Visual content is a massive contributor to today’s online space. Every piece of written content usually comes part and parcel with some sort of picture or video. Having a comical visual to go along with your hilarious punchline could be the difference in turning those unsuspecting viewers into raving fans.
You can’t go on social media these days without coming across a funny meme or reel. And let’s face it they would brighten up anyone’s day.
Especially the cat videos!
Funny visual content is extremely popular and attracts millions of viewers. Incorporating a similar strategy into your business could allow you to capitalise.
Branding
When we talk about branding in marketing things can get a little confusing. Branding is everything about your business.
From the content you publish on your social media, to the emails that you send your customers. A brand is a perception and everyone will have their own perception of your business’s brand.
So the opportunity to incorporate humour into your branding is practically limitless. By crafting a well thought out branding strategy you will spot opportunities to add some humour in there. Which can really make you stand out from the competition.
Think of the big brands right now that are at the forefront of using humour in their branding? They are always relevant and most importantly, they are memorable. Just think of companies such as Paddy Power, Ryanair and Greggs.
How Not to Use Humour in Marketing
We’ve discussed the ways in which you can use humour in your marketing. Let’s look at what to avoid:
Be Mindful of Your Audience
It’s very important to always keep in mind who your target audience is. We know this might sound obvious but when it comes to humour this is even more important. If you own a business which is meant to come across professionally then comedy elements in your marketing probably aren’t going to serve you well.
I mean, imagine you needed some security to work the reception of your office building. I highly doubt you will hire the security company who thought it would be a great idea to post Lord of the Rings memes.
Even though they are hilarious, it’s not going to give off the safe and secure vibes that a security company should be.
Or maybe you’re a massive LOTR’s fan and this actually draws you more toward that particular company. Either scenario proves the point we’re trying to make.
Don’t Over Do It
As discussed, humour in marketing can be a real hit if used correctly. If you’re a business that is able to drop a little comedy gold into your marketing then happy days. We’re sure that with the right care and attention it will go down a treat with your audience.
What you need to be mindful of though is not to over do it.
Don’t get us wrong, we love a bit of humour in our marketing (have you noticed?). But we know that providing value and solving the customer’s problem comes first.
Overdoing the humour side of things could compromise the main message you’re trying to get across as a business.
Your customers could start to view you as a comedy channel as opposed to a real business which is offering a fantastic service or product.
Stay Clear of Highly Contentious Subjects
There’s no need to go too much into this point. There are many examples of companies who took a humorous approach to sensitive topics which ended up going down like the proverbial lead balloon.
Our advice is to just stay clear of these contentious issues altogether.
There is very little margin for error in today’s day and age. Once you post something online it’s very hard to erase permanently.
Blaze Media – Where Marketing Meets Humour (Sometimes)
We hope you enjoyed our informative and slightly humorous take on using humour in your digital marketing strategy. We’re a digital marketing agency which offers a range of services including web design, content marketing, SEO, copywriting and much more.
We like to add humour into our content as you can see but when it comes to our clients we work with a wide range of businesses. So whether you want a professional website which instils confidence, or light heated social media content for your audience to enjoy, we’ve got you covered.
Please get in touch with us, our team would love to help you out!