Keep it Consistent, Make it Funny

To me, creativity is not a competition. Still, in a world where technology is advancing rapidly, it’s tougher than ever to grab and hold customer attention and build your own identity. If you want to be remembered, you’d better consider your digital presence.

It feels like there are a million things to consider when considering your brand’s digital presence, but I’d like to touch on a couple of elements that I believe are often paramount: consistency and humor.

Let’s start with an easy question: When you think of a brand you know, what is the first thing that comes to your mind? Is it the image of the logo, an advertisement for the brand, or the product that this brand is selling? I’d bet that, in most cases, the logo and/or colors for the brand are some of the first things that you recall.

CONSISTENCY

Starbucks, Nike, Coca-Cola, and Zara have all built their brand identities to command a large share of the market. These iconic brands can teach some great lessons in the importance of consistency.

Coca-Cola’s current logo looks immensely similar to its 1887 trademark, as do most iterations in the interim. Nike’s swoosh has been around since 1971 and, likely, isn’t going anywhere. Starbucks has also, coincidentally, been called such since 1971, and its logo has evolved only slightly over the years, leaving us with the green mermaid emblem we all know so well (since it’s seen on every shop and every cup of coffee.) Zara’s logo has always been in black and white—not preferred for every brand, but it’s worked for them and they’ve stuck with it.

Brand consistency takes you to the next level in the digital world. You're no longer convincing consumers to stop into your store or buy your product; no more door knocking or elaborate pitches. Now you create a brand, you make it visible, and then you provide the product or service to back your image. In our highly digital age, a brand can be so consistent—so synonymous with the product or experience it represents—that when a consumer sees its signature logo (or even colors or font) they are already thinking about making their next purchase without needing to be asked.

To put it another way, when we observe an individual over time, we start to formulate ideas and opinions about who they are. If a partner or family member makes a big change in their appearance or style, it will take us a minute to catch up emotionally. We may wonder if the physical change might also mean a change in their behavior—in who they are. We may even think twice about getting close to someone in the first place if they come across as entirely unpredictable to us. Consumers can feel the same way about your brand if you aren't careful. If your social media voice is whimsical and silly but your product packaging is sterile and plain, you're sending mixed signals that will confuse consumers and leave them feeling like your brand can't be trusted.

When it comes to trust, people like predictability. Why do you always buy the same brand of milk or the same brand of pens? Because it's predictable. You know what to expect and you know you will like the outcome. Giving consumers a dependable experience across all your channels of communication is just as vital as always putting out a dependable product.

Interacting with consumers through a consistent brand voice and aesthetic is also a major step towards letting consumers get to know you as an organization. When they know you, they will identify with you and your purpose. And when consumers feel like they know you and can trust you, they will be more likely to purchase from you and more likely to recommend you to others. I've heard so many people say if they could just get consumers to try their product they know they would like it and would want to buy from them again. Putting a consistent brand message in front of consumers is one strong step in the right direction to attracting new customers.

HUMOR

Another element worth examining in your digital presence is humor. Laughter is good for people; we all know it can reduce pain and stress as well as lower blood pressure. Getting people to laugh also makes them more inclined to think positively about a business and buy its products. But what makes something funny? One popular approach is for a joke to contain something that is not entirely expected. (While your brand image should be fully recognizable, you can make it fresh with humor.) Groucho Marx famously excelled at this when he said things like: “I’ve had a perfectly wonderful evening, but this wasn’t it” and “I wouldn’t want to belong to any club that would have me as a member.”?

That’s just one approach. In advertising, humor can also be situational, anecdotal or character-driven. The consistency necessary in these campaigns is to always have the product placed prominently just as the laughter occurs. This way, the brand is instantly associated with that good feeling.?

There have been funny advertising campaigns in every decade. Since the start of the 21st century, the following are some of the campaigns that have stood out:

State Farm

A man calls “Jake from State Farm” in the middle of the night and his wife thinks he’s up to something sneaky. But it turns out Jake is about as normal as you’d expect with an insurance agent.?

Geico?

Another insurance company that used humor in a highly successful campaign that originally had every commercial end with, “So simple, a caveman could do it” and an offended caveman. The commercials now have branched into often surreal humor. ?

Progressive (What is it with insurance and humor?!)?

Progressive’s funny commercials are character-driven and involve a spokeswoman named “Flo.”?

Old Spice?

The deodorant brand actually makes fun of advertising itself with a marketing campaign featuring a spokesman who is over-the-top perfect and eager to tell you about it. He even addresses the women in the audience, telling them that their man can “smell just like me.” And, of course, there’s that always-recognizable whistled tune at the end of each commercial.?

Many other brands use humor, including M&Ms, Charmin bathroom tissue, Dollar Shave Club and (famously) Poo-pourri, which depicts a woman using the product to mask the fact that, yes, women actually go to the bathroom.?

Humor doesn’t always work and isn’t always desired as an advertising technique, but when it does work it creates memorable marketing campaigns. The trick is finding the right kind of humor to connect with your target audience. (It turns out that dad-joke is not going to work on everyone. #saddad)

Without a doubt, there are tactics outside of consistency and humor that contribute to the success of many brands. Both originality and targeting your preferred audience, for example, are always going to be key. And, hey, a more sophisticated tone might be ideal for some brands. However, for those currently looking to increase and/or polish their digital presence, consistency is a must and humor is certainly worth considering.