Using humour is a great way to capture the attention of your audience. Just how much business copy do you think the average person reads each and every day?! It’s likely to be around the 3,000 mark according to Houk ads.
If your audience is seeing 2,999 other messages, it’s imperative that your message stands out from the rest. One way to do so is to make use of humour. Humour is incredibly under-utilised in advertising and when done well, can be your strongest tool to capture the attention of your audience.
Business-oriented copy can be exceptionally dry. Your writing can instead be funny, warm and friendly — it doesn’t have to be cold or starkly to-the-point.
I’ve collected some funny and warm advertising copy below which never fails to make me smile. Take note of the below examples and see if there’s something you could do similarly in your own writing.
Sleeky Web Design & Print ‘Hello’
Leading Newcastle web design agency Sleeky Web Design & Print make use of a humorous reference to pop singer Lionel Richie on their website. The site features a charming graphic of the man himself alongside a pun which makes humour out of the brand’s name.
Sleeky Web Design & Print offer a variety of creative and marketing solutions to clients in the North East of England and throughout the UK.
NYC Taxi
Cheeky New York City taxi company make use of the gesture for hailing a cab (raising your arm) to make a statement about the easy availability of their service — it’s practically everywhere in the world’s busiest city.
Trello
Trello’s direct and no-nonsense copy cuts straight to the point: this is our product and this is how it will help you to work better.
Innocent
UK drinks manufacturer Innocent have long been known for their quirky and creative copy. Their communication is always honest and helpful.
Eat24
Food delivery experts Eat24 have an incredibly warm and friendly communication strategy. By quirkily referring to humour in their copy, they are ensuring that they stand out from the rest.
Even their metadata is full of humour, certain to give your Google search some flavour.
So take heed writers young and old alike: you too can write fun, humorous and joyful copy for your project or business. I hope that you’ve learned from the examples laid out here. It’s not difficult to stand out, you just need to take a step backwards and approach your writing tasks from a more unique position.
