Great Ways to Use Humor in Your Marketing

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum

The great 19th Century Irish playwright and humorist Oscar Wilde uttered these last words: “Either this wallpaper goes, or I do.” Why some adventerous wallpaper company hasn’t used this is beyond me, but it does go to demonstrate the reality that humor sells. Humor essentially disarms people, often by getting them to see your point in a way they hadn’t looked at before, and initiates a connection that you might have had a hard time creating some with your latest PowerPoint filed with facts. Art Linkletter told us that laughter is the best medicine, and he was spot on. It might be the cure for what ails your company as well! Let’s take a look at 4 ways to use humor in your small business marketing.

4 easy ways to use humor in your small business marketing!

Use pop culture to your advantage – Jon Stewart and the rest of the late night crowd made careers around this, so don’t be afraid to use current events to spice up you offerings. It’s not necessary to be totally relevant to your products or services, (but the ones that tie it in well are rock stars!) but simply to get your reader/watcher smiling and in a good frame of mind from the get go. Sharing events in a humorous way will get your posts shared faster than Lindsay Lohan skipping rehab.

Make humorous videos – It only takes a few moments on YouTube for sufficient evidence to persuade anyone that a funny video gets loads of eyeballs! Even the lamest concept, presented in a quirky way will get views and get shared widely. It doesn’t require a degree in cinema to accomplish it either. Many simply shoot them using their phone, o if you want to go whole hog, use an app like GoAnimate or Xtranormal to make quick and visually interesting animated videos.

Create a visual mashup – One way to make the most of both humor and the wicked hot photo-sharing world is to create a humorous meme. These are almost required on Facebook, and can be a great ice breaker and are also capable of being shared far and wide though Pinterest, Instagram, Tumblr and other sites.

Connect with humor in your content – Don’t be afraid to be a bit unique or scandalous in your content. People relate to humor as it is a shared experience. We’ve all been through it, and humor is an excellent way to engage on a level deeper than your average marketing message!