Make 'em laugh.
No, we’re not mocking your state of mind here. We’re just suggesting what could be the next best thing to do when it comes to making content interesting. The brilliance of content marketing comes from the fact that it’s all about making content more about the audience than about the product itself. And we all love a good laugh don’t we?
Automobile brands tend to go all out when they’re promoting their latest variants. Big budgets, larger than life campaigns, celebrity endorsements- all of it and more. But how about getting a cartoonist to make a fun comic reviewing your car?
Oatmeal’s review of the Tesla Model S is a fun way to review a car that’s bound to get the attention of comic lovers and car lovers alike. The comic takes you through the different aspects of the car like features and details of the mechanics of the car. It feels just like any other review, except you actually would laugh as you read it. This is using humor to take something beyond the boundaries of what it really is and making it entertaining enough for everyone. Quoting Cisco’s Tim Washer, ‘Every brand should learn to be funny’. We couldn’t agree more. When you start making people laugh, you just increase your own product’s relevance in their eyes.
Source: http://theoatmeal.com
Every World Cup gives football fans and brands more than a few reasons to be glued to the television. The last one made sure that marketers got a ‘bite’ of that action too and quite literally at that! When Uruguay’s Luis Suarez used his famous teeth to get a bite of Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini, brands across the globe were having a field day. It didn’t take too long for McDonald’s, Snickers and a host of other brands to join in on the laugh turning out cheeky messages that were bound to grab a few eye balls.
Source: https://twitter.com/snickers
We’ve all seen those horrific road safety advertisements that would put the fear of death in the bravest of the brave. They’re high on shock value and tend to leave the viewer reeling from the after effects, and even from venturing outside in some cases! So when Australia’s Metro Trains decided to make a film promoting rail safety, they decided to take the road less travelled- the fun one.
Dumb ways to die is a short 3 minute animated video filled with cheeky characters and giggle worthy lyrics that would get your foot tapping and your head singing. But it does more than that- it looks at safety from an angle that hasn’t been explored much as yet. But the shock value here is clearly from the use of clever lyrics. It shows how content can make something relevant without taking away the meaning of what it sets out to achieve, and giving some light laughs along the way. Its popularity resulted in even being translated into a game version that has high ratings on both Google Play and Itunes.
Source: http://dumbwaystodie.com/
To close the post on humor, we saved the best for the last. We’ve all marvelled about the miracle of birth and how it’s the most wonderful experience ever. But truth be told, the endless diaper changes and heavy duty cleaning tell a different story! That’s exactly what Clorox decided to talk about when they thought about what content would be relevant to them and their audience. With a shared affinity for diapers and all things ‘icky’ they decided to create a page that could see the lighter side of things and make people laugh. Their website has a ‘Laugh’ section that chronicles funny words, instances and experiences for all things ‘icky’ and even has an ‘ick-tionary’ that gives you a daily dose of ‘icky’ words! Now, that’s called using content to reach your audience.
Source: https://www.clorox.com/
So go on, be bold. Use humor in your content to reach out to your audience. At the very least, someone would get a good laugh out of it!