LIFE
Forget the hard sell. Advertisers have found that the best way to
lure you in is to double you over.
Funny advertisements pique people's interest, says Thomas Cline,
Ph.D., professor of business at West Virginia Wesleyan College. Elevated
attention leads to more thoughts about the ad, leading to better recall
of the ad's arguments.
Cline has found that humor elevates mood, and that people may then
associate their good mood with the product shown. Advertisers certainly
hope so: about 30% of all ads and 50% of TV ads are funny--or, at least,
are intended to be so.
Whether you find them amusing or not depends partly on your
personality, says Cline. He's devised a measure called the "Need for
Levity Scale" (see modified version at right) to predict what kind of
humor will tickle what type of person's funny bone.
Test-takers who score high on "internal humor" tend to be jokesters
who make others laugh--and are disproportionately male, says Cline. Those
who are strong on "external humor" are likely to laugh at other people's
punch lines and are just as likely to be female. Other dimensions of the
scale are concerned with the ability to be spontaneous and the
appreciation of that quality in others.
Advertisers can use this framework to hone their humor to their
target audience, says Cline. They can also gauge how important it is to
surprise their viewers. When the humor in an ad is unexpected, "people
really pay attention and remember it," says Cline.
There's one thing everyone agrees on: it's off-putting to combine
light-hearted humor with a serious sales pitch. Better, says Cline, to
let the laughs speak for themselves.--A.M.P
The Need-for-Levity Scale
3 STRONGLY AGREE
2 AGREE SOMEWHAT
1 STRONGLY DISAGREE
1. I can often crack people with the things I say.
2. I often feel compelled to make other people laugh.
3. I prefer situations where people are free to express their sense
of humor.
4. I like to be around people who tell jokes or funny
stories.
5. I often act on a whim.
6. My behavior could be described as free-spirited
7. I take every opportunity to be with easy-going people.
8. I prefer my life to be filled up with surprises.
Questions 1 & 2: If you score over 5, you're high on internal
humor.
Questions 3 & 4: If you score over 5, you're high on external
humor.
Questions 5 & 6: If you score over 4, you're high on internal
whimsy.
Questions 7 & 8: If you score over 4, you're high on external
whimsy.
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