Looking For Laughs: 5 Tips for Marketers To Deliver Happiness
Learn from Rob Pinkerton how companies can deliver humor and happiness in their campaigns.
The article by Rob Pinkerton, SVP of marketing, Oracle, dives deep into what people are searching for to make them happy (i.e., experiences), how much they are willing to spend, reasons why many companies are scared to use humor, and how they can deliver humor in their campaigns.
If there is one thing that all of us can agree on, it is that these past several years have been rough. And if there is anything that “doom scrolling” has taught us, it is that we could all use a little more positivity in our lives.
Recent research on the state of happiness from Oracle and New York Times bestselling author and podcaster Gretchen Rubin surveyed over 12,000 consumers in 14 countries, including over 3,000 business leaders in marketing, sales, and customer service. The report found that 45% of people have not felt true happiness for more than two years and that 88% are looking for new experiences to make them smile and laugh.
Consumers interact with brands daily, providing a unique opportunity to deliver moments of humor and happiness. About 91% of respondents said they preferred brands to be funny, and 78% of customers believe brands can be more innovative to deliver happiness. This number increased even further among Gen Z (94%) and Millennials (94%). Whether reading funny subject lines in emails, appreciating a humorous presence on social media, or engaging with amusing chatbots, customers say these experiences can help strengthen their relationships with brands.
However, brands are falling short in delivering. Most brands state that the main reason why they have not incorporated humor into their marketing and messaging is that, frankly, they are scared. Only 16% of leaders agreed that they use humor to sell their brand, while 15% of business leaders stated their brand uses humor as a tool to grab attention on social media. Similarly, only 20% of brands’ offline ads, such as TV or billboards, and 18% of their online ads actively use humor.
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To better provide sources of light and happiness to customers, here are five tips for marketers to make customers smile and laugh.
Use Data and AI
Utilize data and AI to understand customers better. About 85% of business leaders stated that they do not have the data insights or tools to deliver humor successfully, but 32% of business leaders would be more confident using humor when engaging with customers if they had access to advanced technologies like artificial intelligence.
Humor is extremely difficult to get right — it has many nuances and requires a deep understanding of the intended audience. Therefore, it is important to know your customers and understand what content they enjoy engaging with the most. Brands have lots of data — the trick is managing it and turning it into actionable intelligence. By utilizing data and AI tools, brands can quickly analyze data (e.g., demographics, such as age, location, and more) to develop marketing campaigns that are personalized to the individual and contextually relevant.
Stay Relevant
Tap into current events and pop culture to deliver contextually aware and relevant advertising. People worldwide, especially millennials and Gen Z, are digitally connected and have a constant pulse on current events. By incorporating timely trends such as global events or pop culture into messaging and advertising, brands can help build a sense of community and connection among their customers.
For example, brands like Wendy’s have done an excellent job at delivering quick, witty comebacks to their competitors on their social media pages and participating in current trends to engage more customers. In recent years, Duolingo, the language learning company, has seen massive growth and popularity on TikTok, thus changing the voice of brands on social media. The company was able to go viral on the platform by engaging in trends, creating authentic and fun videos, and overall producing content that you would not expect a language learning app to produce. Being “in the know” about current trends also allows brands to become reputable, contextually aware, and relevant brands.
Use Catchy Buzzword
Get the punchline right across marketing channels. Online and offline channels provide some of the best ways to engage customers. By implementing playful and fun language across all channels — email, social media copy, video, etc. — brands can deliver enjoyable content that brings a smile to their customer’s faces.
This approach is also great for engagement and strengthening relationships. For example, 69% of consumers said they would open an email from a brand if the subject line were funnier, and 68% would prefer to engage with a chatbot or digital assistant that is funny. Similarly, 90% are more likely to remember ads that are funny.
Use Loyalty as a Tool
Offer loyalty programs to bring moments of joy. In recent years, consumers have been spending more, especially during the pandemic. In fact, 89% attempted to find happiness in online shopping during the pandemic. Furthermore, Amazon shoppers during this past Prime Day shopped for 300 million items this year, up from roughly 250 million in 2021, making it the biggest Prime Day event in Amazon’s history.
Loyalty programs are a great way to deliver happiness, reward shoppers for engaging with your brand and encourage repeat purchases. These programs are extremely beneficial for improving customer retention, gathering insights to understand behaviors, and improving personalization. By developing a loyalty program that provides exclusive perks for customers, such as discounts, brands can offer customers a unique, exciting, and valuable experience.
Create Meaningful and Fun Experiences Beyond the Product
About 60% of Americans took on a new hobby during the pandemic in 2021. Oracle’s findings also showed that people are prioritizing their health, personal connections, and new experiences to find happiness.
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Instead of solely focusing on selling products, increase efforts to create unique experiences for customers. For example, brands can leverage their apps or website to create a forum to increase social interactions and build a social community for customers. Gamification is another tactic brands can leverage across marketing channels. This allows customers to engage with brands through fun experiences, and elements such as giveaways or prizes can also invoke happiness.
In short, none of us are certain what direction the world could be going in in the next several years, so the best thing we can do now is to keep seeking happiness. Therefore, it is important for brands to continue to bring smiles or even a moment of joy to customers to build a positive relationship. If you are still unsure how to incorporate humor into your messaging and marketing, start small and see how customers react to your content. Then, go bigger. The outlined steps mentioned can help build your confidence as a brand and create a special bond with your customers they will not be able to find anywhere else.
Are you using humor in your campaigns? What steps have you taken to ensure positive results using humor? Share with us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
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