Humor: The ultimate foot in the door.

As a creative, I’ve long known the power of building a meaningful emotional connection between a brand and its audience. Emotions make us (and our brands) feel more approachable. More likeable. More human.

There are many emotions in the creative’s quiver: laughter, empathy, heartstrings, to name just a few. The true genius, I believe, comes in understanding which emotion will best resonate with your brand. And respecting the role emotion plays in your message. Authenticity (a much-used but often-abused term) allows a relevant human truth to shine through. Because if a message comes across as insincere or borrowed, your intended moment of connection quickly devolves into a manipulative sales pitch. 

A lot of brands make the mistake of following current moods or trends. That’s why we’re seeing loads of stories about overcoming adversity, pain or seemingly insurmountable odds these days. Unfortunately, these messages are often “bolted on” to a brand rather than coming from an inner truth and pure connection. Beer through tears? Sure, it’s easy to jump on the bandwagon. But it’s also easy to trigger people’s “BS factor.” That closes minds—and doors—to your brand in the future. Which, for a new generation that is less likely to be brand loyal to begin with, could mean big trouble.

It’s interesting that in tough times, when we need laughter the most, the industry is shying away from it. But for many brands a smile is the perfect antidote to times like these. Of course, I’m not suggesting going full Kate McKinnon or Trevor Noah here (who are funny, don’t get me wrong) for just any brand. Relevance, important when weaving any emotion into a brand, is imperative here. It’s that relatable human connection between your brand and your audience that will endear you to them. Yes, comedy is subjective. My mom, my son and I often don’t see funny quite the same way. But human truths apply to all of us. Any age. Any time. That “oh yeah, I can imagine myself or someone I know here” feeling. It makes us feel good. And if we’ve woven that human truth into a meaningful connection with the brand, it’s a win for everyone. People like to laugh. People like to smile. People like to like brands that make them feel clever, not manipulated.

While all emotions are powerful, laughter is my favorite. Yep, comedy—done well— is the toughest. But human truth, grounded in your brand’s promise, is the ultimate foot in the door.

I’ve been lucky enough to work on several comedy campaigns in my career. Here are a few of my favorite comedy spots.

Which Came First: The Message or The Medium?

A long time ago in an industry far, far from where we are today, a professor/controversial philosopher/all around big thinker named Marshall McLuhan coined the phrase “the message is the medium” in his book Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man. (For the record, he is also credited with introducing the phrase “global village” and predicting the World Wide Web 30 years before its debut.) McLuhan said that a medium affects the society in which it plays a role not only by the content delivered over the medium, but also by the characteristics of the medium itself. Wise thoughts indeed.

These days you need look no further than the award show books to find stellar examples of media-inspired messages. (Or is it message-inspired-media?) From the heated bus shelters I am proud to have worked on a few years back for Stove Top Stuffing to a recent Tinder-inspired wallscape for Delta Airlines, ideas that marry media and creative get noticed by the industry. And consumers.

Of course, it’s one thing for a creative director to tout the importance of the teaming process. But it takes two to tango. Here’s what my co-collaborator/media director, Lauren Rose, has to say: “When we get Creative and Media into the same room, we talk it out and work together to think about what can be accomplished. It’s fun to be able to tie a specific message to a specific medium and makes it that much more impactful.”

This isn’t rocket science. But it does take partnership. And extra brain power. Both are reasons why I believe that it’s becoming increasingly rare to find media and creative not only under the same roof, but actively sharing ideas throughout the creative and planning process. Recently, we had the chance to put our process to work for our Seattle health care client, The Polyclinic. Tasked with attracting more patients to a downtown location near millennial-filled businesses like Amazon.com, our media team had the idea to buy space in 52 elevators within eight blocks of The Polyclinic’s downtown location. The creative group’s answer? We combined the potential germiness (and given awkwardness) of an elevator ride in a series of animated videos.