The 4 ingredients to create humor (video)

Can’t tell a joke? You can still use the power of humor in your content by adding these four ingredients.

Transcript:

You may have heard me talk about humor and how it's a powerful communications tool. And when I talk about humor, I'm talking about more than just jokes or comedy. What am I talking about then? What is this humor thing that is such a powerful tool to connect with an audience?

Well, here's what I found:

Humor is a person,

sharing what they love,

by playing with size and place,

in a way that's surprising and truthful.

A person

Now the person doesn't even need to be an actual person. Like the Curiosity Rover here. It's not a human, but it has a human voice. So we can connect with the wonder and excitement of being on Mars.

Sharing what they love

And that person shares what they love about their product, about their work, about their audience, any or all of these. This guy, Jack Box, has been a successful spokesperson for Jack in the Box for over 25 years, because he's never been afraid to show his love for Jack in the Box.

Playing with size and place

And humor happens when that person shares their love while playing with size and place. Looking back at Jack, his head is the wrong size for his body. His clothes don’t go with his head. He's playing with size and place just by showing up.

In a way that's surprising and truthful

And that person shares their love in a way that's surprising and truthful, like the way Oreo surprised everyone by tweeting this gentle joke about the 34 minute blackout at the 2013 Super Bowl—which they posted during the blackout itself. That was a surprise. And the message? It was true.

The most important word

And you know, I've left out the most important word here. Humor is you sharing what you love. So who are you? And what do you love about your work and your audience? Tell the truth about that. Even if you don't make your audience actually laugh out loud, you will make them smile. And when they smile, they listen, they understand and they remember.

And that's the power of humor.

Questions?

Questions? answers? Well, let's talk over at cjamesgower.com.

Thanks for watching.