Why Effective Radio and Audio Ads Often Have a Touch of Humour

At last year’s Radiocentre’s Tuning In event in London, I was invited along with Magic Radio’s Tom Price and the brilliant Diane Morgan (of Philomena Cunk and Motherland fame) to talk about comedy, creativity and the power of voice.

The event is basically the commercial audio industry’s annual get-together where everyone from radio station folk and media buyers to marketers and ad agencies gather to celebrate, debate and dissect all things related to the commercial radio and digital audio sector.

We had the pleasure of creating the audio ads for the Radiocentre's Advertising Amplified campaign - which were voiced by the fabulous Diane Morgan. It was a project that involved plenty of laughter along the way and a shared obsession with making audio ads that are engaging and entertaining.

In our session the three of us reflected on what makes people laugh, what makes them listen, and why a bit of well-judged humour in advertising can do wonders for a brand.

You can catch the session here:

Finding humour in the everyday

When Radiocentre briefed us on this campaign, they already had their broader Advertising Amplified positioning in place and wanted an audio campaign that would sit within it. From the start, we felt it was important to produce a campaign that not only appealed to our core audience (i.e. people working in advertising) but was also something the general public would enjoy listening to (given that the vast majority of commercial radio listeners are Joe Public) - so we felt we owed it to them.

We landed on the idea of using humorous reflections on everyday life – little moments that everyone could relate to. And to tie it back to the Advertising Amplified theme, we focused on situations where sound and voice play a key role. Things like shouting at football matches, or the classic British habit of continuing to speak in English when on holiday abroad, just more loudly (as if increasing your volume might somehow translate your words into a different language)!

Once we found this angle, it proved to be fertile ground for recognisable, relatable and funny moments.

While the specific business objective of the campaign was to encourage advertisers to invest more of their media budget into radio, the overall objective was to hold people’s attention and make them smile - whether they were media planners, marketeers or just someone on the school run with the radio on.

Why Diane Morgan?

Casting Diane was an easy decision. She’s a master at deadpan humour and perfectly suited to the kind of observational comedy we had written. She’s also brilliant at delivering witty perspectives on everyday behaviour and the absurdity of the human condition. And, quite frankly, her voice has become a kind of sonic shorthand for comedy. The moment she opens her mouth, you know something funny is about to come out…!

We didn’t want it to be overplayed. We felt it would be funnier if it was delivered in a dry, matter-of-fact way, and there are few people in the UK better at this kind of thing than Diane.

Also, let’s not forget everyone loves Diane Morgan - so casting her would appeal to the wider commercial radio audience (not just people in AdLand).

Making radio ads that actually work

The campaign we did with the Radiocentre reminded us of a few truths about what makes for an effective audio ad:

• Always start with a clear and minimalist brief. If you try to cram every benefit, product feature and brand message into one script, you’ll end up with nothing but ignorable noise. One strong thought per ad is much more impactful than five half-baked ones.
• Don’t be afraid of having space. Avoid the temptation to cram every second of the ad with words. Pauses, breaths, sighs and silences are all subtle, yet powerful elements that improve the overall outcome of an ad…especially when it comes to funny ads. After all, we all know that humour is often found in what is not said!
• Write with people, not marketing metrics, in mind. Real people care about things that resonate. We lose that human connection if the starting point in the creative brief is ‘how do we improve the bottom line?”. The starting point should always be “what’s the best way to connect with people about this proposition?”. Do this, and achieving your business objectives will follow. Building your creative brief around marketing metrics is akin to Tottenham Hotspur hiring Thomas Frank to bring silverware to the club…it’s not going to work!**
• The human condition is pretty universal. The best ads often come from leveraging a truth that a majority of your audience can relate to. And if you can present that truth in a way that makes them smile or laugh, then even better. People tend to remember things that make them feel good. And having a laugh makes us humans feel good. (One way to guarantee Spurs fans not feeling good is to watch their team play!)**

Humour gets under the door

As someone once said “Humour can get in under the door while seriousness is still fumbling at the handle”.

Humour works because it disarms people and encourages them to drop their guard.

Well-pitched wit builds connection with your audience. After all, who doesn’t like to laugh? Robots, that’s who!

However, humour in advertising, and especially in audio advertising, should never be gratuitous. It needs to serve a purpose. The best ads use humour as the device to carry the core business message (as opposed to shoehorning the business message into a gag your writer has been dying to tell!). Also, the humour needs to ring true and resonate with YOUR core audience. Not all funnies always work. Your objective is for YOUR target audience to say “Yes! That’s exactly how I see it!” or “I’ve never looked at it that way but it’s so true!”

When people laugh, they feel good. And when they feel good, they’re more open to your message.

Craft matters

When brands treat audio as an afterthought, it sounds like one. But when they give it the same attention as TV or online video, the results speak for themselves. Some of our humorous campaigns have delivered a 30% increase in revenue… and we know it was the audio ad campaign that drove those results because it was the primary advertising activity running at the time.

Effective comedy ads aren’t just about the script. Care and consideration needs to be given at every stage of the process. Choices made when it comes to talent casting, choice of sound engineer, studio direction, and the final sound mix all contribute to how good the final outcome is.

Feel-good advertising is better than average

There’s a lot of average radio out there, which means you don’t need to be great to stand out. You just need to care about it a bit more than most.

Audio ads present a fantastic opportunity for brands to connect with people in ways visual ads simply can’t. The visuals in ads can be a distraction. (Yes, I know, I know! As an audio ad dude I’m bound to say that!). Viewers can be put off by messaging if they don’t like what they’re seeing. Of course, it’s also true that listeners can be put off by what they hear in audio ads - so give them something worth listening to…and at least you don’t also have to worry about what they’re looking at as well! (Yes, I know, I know! As an audio ad dude I’m bound to say that! #2). With audio ads, listeners visualise their own images - which makes it personal/relevant to them, so it’s more likely that an emotional response will be triggered. Audio ads speak directly into people’s imaginations… without having to go through the eyes. And if you can tickle those imaginations and emotions with humour - even better.

As our work with the Radiocentre shows, when care and a degree of humour are applied, even a campaign primarily aimed at a niche audience (i.e. advertisers and ad industry folk) can make the whole country smile.

Don’t just be heard. Make people feel good while they’re listening and you’ll be even more memorable. And, as we all know, an effective way to make people feel good is to make them laugh…and a perfect way to make people laugh is to have them watch Spurs play!**

**Apologies for the repeated references to Spurs. At the time of writing this Spurs have just scrapped a draw against Burnley and I’m still smarting!