🧠 Steal Their Money

Hey there,

Welcome back to the 57th edition of Brandish,

Your guide to crafting an iconic brand.

Want to hear a joke?

“Knock Knock,”

{Who's there?}

“Cow says”

{Cow says who?}

“No, cows say mooo!”

🦗🦗🦗😐 

Anyway…

Even if I might not be funny 😔

Brands like Dr. Squatch, Dollar Shave Club, and Ryan Reynolds are STEALING your money by making you laugh.

And we’ll discuss how they do it and why it works in today’s newsletter.

So kick back, 

Relax,

Take a sip of your Brez,

And let’s get into it.

Ryan Reynolds???

You’re probably thinking…

Ankit, how in the world does Ryan Reynolds have anything to do with humorous branding???

If you didn’t know, other than him playing the role of Deadpool…

In 2023, Ryan Reynolds sold a brand for 1.35 Billion Dollars.

And you’ve probably seen an ad or two, or three…

Any guesses?

Mint Mobile

In today’s world where Verizon and AT&T dominate the service provider market, Mint Mobile has unsurprisingly been able to hold its ground.

And it’s all because of one man…

Ryan Reynolds

Known as the mastermind behind their unique and hilarious ads the majority of his wealth comes from building business – not acting.

Ryan understands something very important about business that many people miss…

The funniest brand (often) wins.

The Psychology of lol

Just like how a good laugh can be used to lift your mood or de-stress.

Businesses also take note of this and use a good laugh to their advantage

A lol can be very good for businesses.

And that’s not just my opinion. It’s backed by smart behavioral scientists from Harvard.

“Humar activates parts of the brain associated with happiness and fulfillment,” says lina patch

Research shows that funny emails increase trust and satisfaction, and that 87% of buyers take reputation into account when buying.

So in short, a lol = trust

And the more trust you create between you and your prospect, the more likely they are to convert into buyers. 

Solving the lol Equation

I don’t think anyone here wants to do math, especially on this fine Sunday evening.

Or ever… 

But bear with me,

So now we understand that a lol = trust and trust = money in your pocket.

But why does that work?

Buyers will pay more for brands they love.

Simple as that. 

An impressive 73% of buyers stated that they’d willingly spend MORE if they had a soft spot for that brand.

Bringing out a good laugh is extremely powerful – it shatters barriers and serves as emotional gold.

But a laugh does more than build trust – how many times have you shared something that made you laugh?

Probably more times than you can count…

And that means that if one of your ads makes someone laugh hard enough, you bet they’re sharing it.

Even “boring” businesses, like dentists, can use humor to go viral and get millions of dollars worth of free advertising.

So, if you want your brand’s name to spread like wildfire, make your audience laugh out loud.

The Million Dollar Joke

Now we understand how it works and why it works.

Here’s how to put it into action by following some of the GOATS when it comes to humor marketing.

Dollar Shave Club does a great job at doing this. 

Take this ad for example - watch it here

Their ad performed so well, it caused server meltdowns.

And overnight, (literally) they gained 12,000 new customers and grossed $144,000.

But what’s the secret sauce behind this ad’s success?

Not only is it frickin’ hilarious.

It’s relatable.

When something mirrors your thoughts, it resonates.

It validates your opinions and makes you feel seen.

So when people relate to a brand’s message, they become fans.

Poke fun at your competitors

There’s a difference between poking fun at competitors and making fun of your competitors. 

PLEASE DO NOT MAKE FUN OF YOUR COMPETITORS.

Hopefully I don’t have to explain why, but there’s a fine line between destructive behavior and playful banter.

Brand wars are a real thing. Coke and Pepsi have been beefing for decades and customers love to sit back and watch.

We see a lot of tech companies talking smack, but in super boring ways like feature comparison charts 😪

Not Mint Mobile. With Ryan Reynolds in the driver's seat, it’s no surprise that their Twitter/X account is downright hilarious.

Posts like this one go viral and position Milnt Mobile as an alternative to fed-up Verizon customers.

So, take a page from these humor marketing legends.

Be bold, be relatable, and keep it light-hearted.

When done right, humor isn’t just a marketing tactic.

It’s a great way to connect, engage, and build a loyal fan base.

Tool of the Week

In 2024 why on earth are you still taking a manual approach to analyze competitors?

The only thing I can think of that comes with a fully manual approach is…

Wasted resources…

Wasted time…

And inaccurate data…

But without danger, heroes would have no purpose.

So we’re thrilled to introduce Particl - our hero in the battle for superior competitor intelligence.

Here’s how Particl is coming to Obvi’s rescue - 

• Monitor Enemy Movements: Keep track of our biggest competitor's price changes and sales trends.
  

• Staying one step ahead: Alerts us for new product launches from rival collagen sellers, so we’re always prepared for what’s next.

• Tactical Advantages: Deploy their AI copilot to uncover untapped market opportunities, guiding our next product innovations.

So if you spend hours combing through another brand’s websites, catalogs, or social proof, then Particl is going to change your life.

This isn’t just another “here’s your data, now have a nice day” solution.

Their dashboards and reports provide actionable insights that are built to guide you every step of the way.

And with cutting-edge databases, easy reporting, and AI-informed analysis, you can’t even put them in the same conversation as the other competitive analysis platforms.

But Particl isn’t only saving us, SKIMS, Hexclad, and AWAY are also getting ahead of the competition with this groundbreaking tool.

And you can too, with instant access to 20k brands’ sales insights with Particl’s 14-day free trial 

Wrapping Up 

Building a good business means building good relationships.

And what better way to do this than by sharing a good laugh with your customers?

They’re having a good time, you’re having a good time, everyone’s having a good time. 

Moral of the story is, if you wanna get more brand awareness, more trust, and ultimately more sales, make people laugh.

That’s all for this week,

As always I appreciate you,

And until next time, 

Ankit