Should B2B Brands Be Funny?

While comedy is a tactic used often within B2C marketing, it’s much rarer to see it utilised within B2B. While the view that B2B is more functional and straight laced seems like the obvious, debate-ending reason, I think there’s more to it.?

My belief is that people do business with people. Just because an individual working within B2B is engaging with content in a work capacity, that doesn’t mean they don’t want to be entertained. However, that isn’t to say that every brand can get away with being funny. They can’t.

The case for…

A well-timed joke can be a great icebreaker in a real-life conversation, and it can work similarly well in written content. It can add a human element to your brand, bringing people into the tent in a way that just presenting the straight facts sometimes can’t.

It’s also a great way to create distinctiveness. Most B2B brands don’t feel comfortable using humour, so frame it correctly and it can be a great way to help your brand stand out in a competitive marketplace.

Genuinely funny content that taps into the experience of your target audience is shown to create greater reach and engagement in a content-saturated market. Alongside showing your brand's human side, humour breaks down walls, making it easier to start those difficult sales conversations.?

However, you wouldn't go into a stakeholder meeting and instantly start joking around. Remember, there’s a time and a place for humour, and more often than not you're better off edging it in, rather than going full throttle from the get-go.?

The case against…

Firstly, it’s really hard to be funny (as evidenced by the majority of this article). Done badly, attempts at jokes can - at one end of the scale - be so unfunny that they don’t even register as a joke at all, or - at the opposite end of the scale - be crass or downright offensive. It’s clear that a careful, considered approach is required.?

You’ve also got to consider your existing brand. If you just start throwing out the funnys on LinkedIn, will it look and sound like you, or will it come completely out of the blue??

Most attempts at humour in content are heavy on the use of idiom and metaphor, both of which can alienate an audience if too meta or niche in their references. So does that mean you just need to ditch the Peep Show deleted scenes quotes in favour of more popular references to whatever the latest celebrity got themselves in the news for??

Unfortunately, like a certain Mr. Smith found out last month, being too (*ahem*) heavy handed with the puns or playing on well-trodden phrases can make your content seem a bit passé or throwaway. The use of meme formats can also be equally divisive, especially if your target audience is the kind of person who has to Google “what is a meme?” after reading this sentence.

An example of good humour in B2B - Mailchimp or MailKimp?

In 2014, Mailchimp partnered with the true-crime podcast Serial to create a 20-second audio ad. However, one of the voice contributors was not so familiar with the pronunciation of the company's name.?

This led to #Mailkimp, followed by the Twitter campaign “Did you mean Mailchimp” in 2017. This simple slip-up in pronunciation resulted in a whole series of humorous content being created, increasing brand awareness for Mailchimp and bringing two distinct audiences together - along with every other Twitter user who found it equally hilarious.?

Mailchimp embraced the mispronunciation and had a little fun creating nine campaigns centred around nine name variants relating to Mailchimp - such as my personal favourite, “Failchimp”. This leg of the campaign featured a web page whereby 200,000 bags of crushed potatoes were shared with snack shops and given away to customers.?

This sparked discussion around pre-crushed crisps and whether they are a real thing. Again, this led to increased brand awareness, all because Mailchimp took advantage of an opportunity to use humour authentically.

To funny or not to funny: the verdict

Despite the clear potential pitfalls, I still believe there is a place for humour in B2B marketing. By showing your brand's personality you can engage more with your audience, building brand awareness and retaining loyalty.?

Appropriateness is the key factor in whether or not to include humour in your B2B content. You have to ensure the humour you are using is in keeping with your brand's tone of voice and is appropriate for the audience you are targeting.?

Don’t make jokes that divide your audience. Make jokes that unite them.?

By showing your audience you understand that you are laughing together - be it with strangers, contacts or clients - you may just have given them a reason to smile on a stressful day in the office. At the very least, you’ll have given them a reason to stop scrolling and pay attention to your message.

However, guaranteeing your content portrays the fact that you are laughing with them and not at them is an important factor to keep in mind.

In short…?

If it feels right for your brand to be funny, do it.?

If it doesn’t, don’t.