Laughter sells because everyone loves a funny joke. Now, and ever since the advent of the internet, people have been able to connect to their favorite brands through humor—should your business jump on the joke bandwagon?

Humor on social media is not always appropriate, but when it is, brands can use it both to reach out to their current audience and expand to new audiences. In fact, many people list humor as one of the top 5 reasons they put something in their newsfeed on social networks. 

By using appropriate humor, businesses humanize their brands. For example, Juicy Fruit capitalized on the “Dad Bod” joke that became popular among younger internet users by tweeting a picture comparing the two of the different packages in which it sells gum. When brands positively connect themselves to things going on in their followers lives, they become more human, more real.

Humor also has the power to introduce a business to a new audience.
By bringing your product to life—no matter what it is—you will expose your business to people who truly care. In doing so, you create a highly engaged social following which gives you access to better leads in the future because you are connecting with people who actually want to see your content. Clorox, a 100 year old detergent company, introduced itself to the millennial generation by making its product more palatable to those raised in the 21st century.

When actually writing humorous posts, remember your audience. As with all other social media posts, your audience’s tastes come before your own. In effect, you cannot be offensive or opaque. Remember the three components of any post—fun, help, and information—and pick the two best suited to your particular post. Then, remain consistent.

It’s as simple as this: people like to laugh, and funny stuff tends to go viral. If you can incorporate your business’ message through a tasteful joke on social media, by all means, go for it.

See Sendible for more.