For more information, contact John Bennett, (937) 775-3232. 
January 30, 2006 Wright State professor co-authors book on humor in advertising As the Super Bowl approaches, many viewers will be anticipating the ads more than the game itself. Viewer surveys taken after the game usually rank the funniest ads the highest, and people expect the Super Bowl to have plenty of humorous ads.“The Super Bowl is unique in that people watch it for the ads,” says Charles Gulas, Ph.D., associate professor of marketing in the Raj Soin College of Business at Wright State University and co-author of the upcoming book, Humor in Advertising: A Comprehensive Analysis. “It’s often watched as a social activity, and humor tends to work better in a social setting.” Gulas advises advertisers who are considering humor in their ads to make sure they know their audience will be receptive to it. “If they find the story you’re telling to be not funny, you’re better off not telling it,” Gulas says. “You don’t get credit for the attempt.” Gulas finds that humorous ads are much more common in broadcast than in print advertising. “You have a lot more tools available to you in broadcast, such as timing, inflection and tone of voice,” Gulas says. “That’s harder to get across in print media.” The type of product also determines the effectiveness of a humorous ad. Gulas and his co-author, Marc Weinberger of the University of Massachusetts, divide products into low-risk functional products, such as paper towels; low risk fun products such as soft drinks and snack foods; high-priced functional products such as washing machines; and high-priced fun products such as sports cars. Gulas believes humorous advertising is least effective in the last category. “People don’t make fun of their sports car or sailboat,” Gulas says. “They don’t make fun of their high-priced toys.” Pub signs in 16th-century England may have been the first time marketers tried to use humor in their messages. As advertising developed in the centuries since, the use of humor remained constant. “It’s always been there at some level, and it’s always been controversial,” says Gulas. Humorous ads can make a company look foolish, offend customers, or make a product look silly, according to Gulas. “On the other hand, it can cut through the clutter,” he says. “It can promote likeability and build positive attributes toward the company and the ad itself.” Studies have tried to determine if humorous advertising is more effective when targeted to men, women or particular age groups. Gulas believes that humor is in the eye of the beholder. “If you have an ad that makes fun of old people, old people aren’t going to find that as funny as teenagers,” he says. “If the advertiser is making fun of someone, to what extent does the audience already have a negative view of that person?” The book cites several examples of companies who have positioned themselves through humor, including Federal Express, Pepsi and Budweiser. The late Senator Paul Wellstone also used humor effectively in his first U.S. Senate campaign, which was unusual for a political campaign. “Wellstone’s humor was unexpected in that context and probably got more impact for his marketing dollars than the typical political ads would bring,” says Gulas. A political candidate who uses humor risks the voters not taking him seriously. For more information, contact Gulas at charles.gulas@wright.edu or (937) 775-3047. 
Communications & Marketing
Open Monday - Friday 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. 106 Allyn Hall Wright State University 3640 Colonel Glenn Hwy. Dayton, OH 45435-0001 (937) 775-3232 Fax: (937) 775-3235 Com_Marketing@wright.edu |
