How to use humour in your copywriting
Using humour in copywriting can be a risky strategy. Sense of humour is very personal and subjective. What may seem playful and gently provocative to one person, might appear cocky and offensive to another. Popular brands push boundaries with their use of humour, because they are established enough to take the heat if they misfire. However, if you’re a newer kid on the block or operating in a corporate market that might not be the smartest move.
So why use it? Well, hit the tone right and humour can a be powerful tool to command attention, and create memorable copy that adds a touch of personality and most importantly, influences behaviour. Plenty of copywriters are also comedy writers too like Dale Shaw and Kady Potter who both use humour as their USP.
You don’t need to be comedian to be successful at writing funny content, although it is clearly an advantage. Here are a few things to consider when you want to inject humour into your copy.
Know Your Audience
The goal is to make a connection with your audience, and find out what makes them tick. So get a feel for whom you’re talking to first before you decide how you want to speak to them.
Consumer Researchers use NFH (need for humour) as a personality trait that marketers use to target audiences. It’s no real surprise that humourous content goes viral so often. People like to laugh, it makes them feel good. The power isn’t just visual either. Posting on Social Media is the perfect place to hone snappy writing skills, especially Twitter. Ellen Degeneres’ simple Oscars selfie quip became the most popular Tweet of all time. Another significant advantage to comic writing for social is the instant feedback. The RTs, likes and replies will let you know if the audience is into it or not.
Always stay on message
One of the biggest challenges copywriters face is creating engaging copy for corporate audiences or on serious subject matter. Zingy one-liners might seem inappropriate for writing about finance or health, but they have their place. Adopting a humorous tone sparks a dialogue for important issues people struggle to talk about, like the strategy behind Balls To Cancer to raise awareness.
Corporate branding can get a boost from a little funny too. Just look at ZenDesk, a global tech provider with a tone of voice that mixes tech know-how with a playful personality that sets them apart from typical software providers.
Some of the best About Me pages combine professional credentials with entertaining insights into their story using wit and personal tone of voice.
Irrespective of the style, comedic devices have to be used to deliver a message. They can’t just be amusing for the sake of it. You may not be in the joke business, but you can use jokes in your business.
Dialling it down
We are used to seeing broad, gag-led humour in traditional advertising. Visual gags create memorable, award winning Television ads. Nearly ten years on, the Cadbury’s Gorilla ad is still a favourite among fans and the industry. However, TV advertising has a different job to do; there are no drumming gorillas in copywriting. So what do you instead? Use wordplay wisely, puns can be perfect for headlines and slogans but are also divisive (full disclosure, I am a big fan) but there are other ways play with language to comic effect that are a little less ‘on the nose’. A few simple tricks will deliver subtle, impactful and persuasive humour. Small riffs on popular quotes, ad tropes and everyday life can be seamless when they relate to the product or service you are writing about.
Soften the hard sell
When it comes to measuring effective copy, the big ‘C’ word is conversion. Humour relaxes the consumer and let’s them forget they are being sold to. Need more proof? Read this study from Rimbaud University in the Netherlands for more analysis on how humour breaks down our resistance to influence. By applying a little misdirection, we can drive home the point we want to make.
Show me some action
Last and by no means least, use humour it to create a strong call to action. After all, the purpose of copywriting is not just to elicit an emotional response from our audience, but to encourage engagement. If we can achieve both, we increase our chance of getting people to come back for more.
