The basic premise of a joke is establishing an expectation or belief, then revealing a fact or a revelation that the person does not expect.

The same occurs in marketing. You play a role in creating an expectation in a customers mind, which you then exceed, or fail to meet. A well executed customer experience is analogous to a well told joke. It wouldn’t be surprising if they both lit up the same pleasure centers of the brain.

However, a more important lesson is distinguishing what makes a good joke versus a remarkable one. Although it will garner quite a few chuckles, the Holmes and Sherlock example is generic, meant to apply to the broadest sense of humor possible. If it were a marketing campaign, I would say it lacks any form of targeting.

Here’s a joke designed for a narrower audience:

This little gem courtesy of Crowcombe Al

The comedy in this joke may polarize a general audience. It will likely appeal to a broad swath of men, whereas some women may consider the humor questionable, or downright offensive. Yet, for those people who find it appealing, I will wager it has more impact than the Holmes-Sherlock example, you’re more likely to get a full throated warble than a meager chuckle.

What separates the mediocre from the remarkable comedian, is the tailoring of subject matter and delivery to different audiences. The same idea applies to marketing. Your marketing is not effective if it does not turn some people away from your product or service.

After reading this post, why do you think most marketing tends to error toward the generic, and not the remarkable?

What problems might marketers encounter if they choose to both delight and offend?

Update 6-3-08: Found an insightful post at Marketing with Meaning that relates to this post. Here’s a snippet, “in catering to your target audience, make sure you’re not destroying the rest of the world around you.”