Is there sense in humour?

Will RollsDigitasLBi

Humour rules the internet.

What would the Internet be without funny things?Cat pics, multiplayer games, porn and LinkedIn endorsements

These were the most shared videos on YouTube 2013

Dove Evian K-Mart

Budweiser Pepsi Ram Trucks

Three H&M Audi

Source: Unruly Media

These were the ones that were funny

Dove Evian K-Mart

Budweiser Pepsi Ram Trucks

Three H&M Audi

Source: Unruly Media

They’re good ads. They make you smile. But despite having deeper pockets, brands aren’t making the truly funny stuff; the stuff that makes people laugh.

The comedy gold is being made by people you’ve never heard of.

Why?

LOL

Lesson number 1:Don’t try to make everyone laugh

Humour is difficult to research

Fear is a near-universal response

Sex is a near-universal response

Hunger is a near-universal response

And the funny thing about funny?

For every person amused by something…

One is not amused

Humour is complex, and so brands experience barriers to being funny

One is not amusedLet’s watch this baked beans ad

Unlike fearBut imagine you’ve got to sell the idea in here.

(That ad was never sold to the brand, as the brand doesn’t exist)

The barriers that brands experience

• Things only become funny in production, not at concept level

• It‘s tricky to test humour before production starts

• Funny single executions are easier than funny ongoing ideas, and brands want to buy the latter

• Social media is tricky enough without needing to make people laugh at the same time

• There’s a risk of offence

• There’s a risk of no one laughing

So people play safe, adapting proven concepts

Der Tourist: ‘Supergeil’A proven cult phenomenon on YouTube

Edeka: ‘Supergeil’Based on a proven phenomenon, this was not a risky move.

Adapting a concept works, but then where can you take it?It’s not yours to ‘take’.

Creating original humour is worth the pain. And the gain is enormous.As long as you realise that the best humour has never appealed to everyone.

Success in comedy is like anything else:If you try to be to everyone’s liking, you’ll be to no one’s taste.

According to Millward Brown, using distinctive themes allow brands to outperform the competition by up to 300%.

Example: A small flower company sets its up its own Twitter account and its own brand of surreal humour. Not everyone gets it, but 20,000 people do.

Lesson number 2:Work with funny people

Money is always an issue…

Can a brand ‘own’ a subject in the digital age?Which brands have managed this, and which models can we learn from?

We have identified three potential approaches to this subject.

And creating content can seem daunting

Yet funny content can have rock-bottom production costs.

Oreos were spontaneous and nimble

Sainsbury’s gave us an ‘aaah’

But don’t mistake low production cost for low cost.

Talent costs money

Work with professionals.Your agency is a group of professionals; for many things; your strategy, your co-ordination, your brand guardian, your creativity.

And if we’re hiring professionals

There are professionals who make people laugh*.

*comedians and comedy writers

If humour is part of a long-term strategy, make managing comedy talent a challenge, and ensure that you invest solidly.Funny professionals create funnier stuff, and are better at selling it in.

Lesson number 3:Ideas must work in more than just the one channel.

It’s #ITBBerlin, so let’s look at some travel examples

Travel is about either:a) getting to a destination orb) the destination itself. With destinations, you can play to stereotypes…

Comedy gold?

Whereas getting there is a logistical matter of price, safety and peace of mind.

Could, say, an airline be funny?

JetBlue Airways can

Air New Zealand can

YouTube Video – 11m views

Air New Zealand keeps things amusing across the board

Facebook Cover Pic

Air New Zealand on Twitter

Tweet re new plane

Even with a change of subject, Air New Zealand maintains its twinkle in the eye

An idea has to be strong enough to work across all your channels.

And not just your own channels.

Genuinely funny stuff begins its virality on channels like this. They can’t be bought – it is simply survival of the

most entertaining.

Case study: low production

Insurance isn’t entertaining.But we have to find a way to get people to think about their premiums.

Asstel Insurance

Take Bruce Willis in Die Hard, a man with potentially high premiums

See the film through the horrified eyes of an insurer

Make it interactive

Case study: zero production

“88.2% of statistics are made up on the spot”

Vic Reeves

Get inspiration from a comedy genius

0 0 1

Create a Twitter account with an absurd idea of no practical use to anyone.

Made-up stats@madeupstats

0 0 1

Spread made-up statistics that contain a grain of real-life truth.

Made-up stats@madeupstats

3,696 2,434 61.4K

Over 60,000 users later, draw some lessons.

Made-up stats@madeupstats

Smaller lessons

• Observational humour that people can relate to gets shared.

• Be topical, which works against rigid editorial plans.

• However: a 24-hour incubation period works for funny content. If it survives the night, post it.

• Don’t re-style and repeat a joke – move on.

• Get a brand seen more by dialling it down.

• Don’t adopt a tone of voice you can’t get out of.

• Form alliances. Funny isn’t an arms race.

The final word:Be brave, honest, original, and if you’re laughing...

(it’s probably good)

DigitasLBiwww.digitaslbi.de

@willrolls