Why is hearing about someone’s painful life experiences so damn funny? This occurred to me after enjoying my friend’s recent performance at a stand-up showcase.
The more humiliating and self-deprecating the comic’s routine, the more it seemed to make the audience laugh.
Each comic had their own jokes and stories, but they were all skilled at amplifying pain to the point of it being funny. They captured truths about the human condition that the audience could relate to on an emotional level.
Discover Your Inner Comic and Supercharge Your Business
A good comic knows how to leverage emotion to get laughs. And a good copywriter knows how to use it to get conversions.
Nielson research shows that persuasive advertising creates a strong impact in three areas: attracting attention, being memorable and emotional engagement.
- Attract Attention
As humans we’re wired to notice when something stands out. Whether it’s a saber tooth lurking in the bushes or a surprise ending to a story, unexpected information causes a quick and unconscious emotional reaction.
The slower rational side of the brain is forced to stop and judge if it’s worth dedicating energy to deal with.
Comedy defies expectations with a punch line, causing an emotional reaction to an information gap that has to be processed by the rational brain.
Once you understand your audience, you can use humor as part of the AIDA copywriting formula to increase attention for your product or service.
- Make a Positive Impression
Giving your customers a laugh can lower their resistance to being influenced to make a purchase. Laughter puts people in a good mood and th
ey’ll associate this positive experience with your brand.
While a positive association doesn’t guarantee a conversion, it does make it more likely.
- Build a Personal Connection
Humor can lend your brand personality, making people feel more connected to your company. But it’s important to understand the emotional state of your prospects when they experience your marketing messages.
If they’re arriving on your website to find a solution to a frustrating problem, using humor might trivialize their issue and repel them.
A good comic uses emotion to get laughs. A good copywriter uses it to get conversions. Share on XHow Being Too Professional Can Ruin Your Marketing
When your copy sounds “professional”, it’s faceless, boring and unapproachable. Even if humor is not the right fit for your audience, writing in a stuffy voice can alienate your customers.
Many businesses worry about creating marketing messages that scare away prospects. But by writing bland copy that tries to please everyone, you’re doing just that.
There’s only one opinion you should be concerned about — your customer’s. Before you write any copy, you need to understand how they think and speak.
If you don’t directly address your target audience’s needs, why should they do business with you?
The Middle Finger Project’s Ash Ambirge suggests sharing experiences and not just facts to sound more human in your writing.
When you connect on a personal level, it helps to emphasize your unique value proposition and make your business stand out from the competition. It also lets you join the conversation going on in your prospect’s mind, making it more likely that you’ll get them to convert.
If you don't directly address your target audience's needs, why should they do business with you? Share on XKathy Griffin and the Secret to Engaging Your Audience
Unlike comics, copywriters don’t have the tools of body language and vocal inflection to give context to their words. Marketing messages must rely even more on understanding and amplifying your audience’s pain to show how what you have to sell can help them.
One of my favorite comedians is Kathy Griffin. From watching her show My Life on the D List, I noticed that before some of her stand-up gigs, she visits with her audience.
She asks them questions about things going on in their lives, their concerns, etc. to help shape her jokes and connect with them better when she’s on stage.
Businesses should do the same with their target audience. Research is often the most neglected part of copywriting and marketing in general.
Through surveys, interviews, and going to where your customers hang out online, you can fine tune your messaging to make it resonate closely with their needs.
3 Ways to Avoid Bombing When Using Humor in Copywriting
Even the most successful comics have experienced “bombing” in front of their audience. Similarly, sometimes when companies try to use humor they flop.
Whether you’re standing on stage enduring a suffocating silence or your product or service isn’t selling, it’s definitely a cringe-worthy moment.
Here’s how to avoid the pitfalls of using humor in your marketing:
- Don’t Ruin the Mood
Maintain the mood of your copywriting by being consistent. If being funny is your shtick, be funny throughout your website.
You don’t have to pack your copy with one-liners, but if humor works for your audience make sure you deliver.
- Clear vs. Clever
Being clear is an essential aspect of copywriting and marketing. You can choose to be clear, or clear and clever, but not only clever.
If your customers get confused about what they can do on your website or what solution you offer, they’ll bounce without ever benefiting from your clever humor.
Once your marketing messages are clear, making your audience smile can keep them coming back for more.
- Avoid Going Over the Top
There is such a thing as bad taste, especially when it comes to using humor for marketing. In stand-up comedy all bets may be off, but not so much in business. You can go too far.
Randomly using explicit language, spoofing personal tragedies, and making discriminatory remarks can kill your credibility.
How to Add Humor to Your Copy Without Causing an Audience Revolt
Thinking about adding humor to your copywriting? You can start testing it on points of friction on your website. See if it relieves frustration for your visitors on:
- 404 pages
- popups
- confirmation pages
- checkout pages
- signup pages
- live chat windows
If you find that it works well in these areas, you can try testing it on your landing pages. Humor can help make your communications more engaging and impactful.
But ultimately knowing if it’ll work for you requires understanding your audience and testing.
Has your business used humor in your copywriting? If so, in what ways has it been successful?