Weird, Wild and Wacky: Engaging Fans through Absurd Content

What does a language learning app have to do with Taylor Swift? Nothing, until?Duolingo made this TikTok?of their owl mascot crying to Taylor Swift's "Enchanted" against a glass door about their users opting for Google Translate.?Sounds like nonsense??

Brands like Duolingo have seen success engaging not only fans but new audiences by being funny, unexpected, and absurd, with the language learning app amassing 4.8 million followers on TikTok thus far. RC Cola?made a film?about a mother tearfully confessing that she's a giant bottle of RC Cola, which led to a 67% increase in sales, reversing a dip caused by a sugar tax.?

However, absurdity is often considered to be the exclusive quality of select brands only (see?Cadbury), making it tricky for most brands to do so due to perceived brand incompatibility. Many avoid it because of potential brand risk, and some don't do it because it seems to be?just?"a TikTok thing."?

Absurd content is not new or just "a TikTok thing." It utilises time-tested comedic techniques, such as self-referencing, anthropomorphism, irony etc.?

In this article, we'll focus on:?

1. Trying to understand why absurd content works for brands, and?
2. The myths about creating absurd content.

Why absurd content work for brands

TikTok made less polished content more widespread.

TikTok influenced a shift from polished images on Instagram to raw and unfiltered videos on TikTok, evolving what "authentic content" meant.

Unfiltered content feels more transparent to a discerning audience.

The audience developed a nose for inauthentic reviews from exposure to cookie-cutter reviews and photos of influencers dryly posing with a product, which makes them more likely to reject or dislike blatantly sponsored posts.

Speaks more like a consumer than a brand

Similar to trend jacking, using the same tone of voice as your audience makes them feel like the brands are part of an inner circle with them.?

So why don't more brands do it?

There are many myths surrounding absurd content. Brands perceive making jokes to be too risqué. However, the critical ingredient in humour that hits the sweet spot is?benign violation. We want to avoid being too risqué (making the joke too close to the heart or aggressive) but not hold back too much (making the joke too tame and, therefore, not funny).?

And many brands are doing this well. Let's look at some examples in the context of some myths:

Myth: It's only for "fun" brands?

• Works for serious brands and messages too:?A serious public service message about staying safe around trains paired with an awfully cheerful tune and animated characters resulted in Melbourne Metro's viral?Dumb Ways to Die campaign. While the violation is in making "ways to die" cute and light-hearted, making a fair point that "being careless is a lousy way to go" helps to justify it.?
• Content creators can help circumvent this issue.?Here's an example from Singapore: when promoting the?Out Of Sight exhibition in the Civic District, there may be a worry that brand-created absurd content may undermine the gravity of the exhibition. However, they worked with?Preetipls to create a skit about a sleep paralysis demon, which sounds nonsensical at first thought but links to the exhibition theme of taking steps to achieve one's dreams.?

Myth: It's only for TikTok?

• Way before TikTok:?In 2013 (a few years before TikTok started), Samsung used?absurdity to showcase their washing machine?in this ad. Spoiler alert: the bear that surprised the film crew just wanted to wash its fur coat.?
• Works for static posts: Tapping on the?Star Wars meme trend, the Ministry of Sustainability and Environment (MSE)?anthropomorphised dustbins and kitchens?to teach people about recycling.?

Myth: It's only for Gen Z

• You can choose not to go all out with the absurdity.?IKEA Japan struck a perfect balance with their?Legend of BL?HAJ, which focused on showcasing IKEA's custom solutions for Tokyo's particularly?compact spaces. Keeping the absurdity to the execution (i.e. turning their beloved BL?HAJ into a property agent) helps to engage and entertain just enough to keep the spotlight on the brand's key messaging.?

Conclusion

In the climate of irony and absurdity on social media, creating absurd content as a brand offers a great way to?connect with the audience.??

Suppose all-out absurdity sounds too extreme for your brand. In that case, such content can be done well within reason, as seen from the above examples. Otherwise, brands can always start small and test how it does – think 2 or 3 social posts or working with a content creator.?

P.S. Want to see more? Check out Samsung's?galloping phone?("Join the flip side" campaign), or what could have been a?branded skit for Milo?by Fairbairn Films.

About the writer        

Written by Desiree Ng. Desiree is a social strategist, avid list-maker and bread enthusiast. In her free time, she also draws comics and photoshops things just for laughs.

Information accurate as of 5 September.