Escaping Boredom: Applying Humor to B2B Marketing
In the world of B2B marketing, where serious, highly rational graphics and business jargon used to reign supreme, digital native technology companies and start-ups are challenging the monotony with a bold and fun approach to their campaigns. In search of a more modern, creative, and agile image to communicate who they are (and connect with their customers and employees), they have applied humor to their campaigns.
Following this new trend in young and modern profiles, Agência Sabiá has been showing that it is possible to laugh while closing deals.
What is fun B2B marketing?
Fun B2B marketing refers to an innovative and relaxed approach to business-to-business (B2B) marketing. Instead of adopting the traditional seriousness associated with the corporate environment, companies are incorporating humorous and creative elements into their marketing strategies aimed at other companies.
In this approach, companies seek to stand out in relation to their competitors not only through their products or services, but also through the way they communicate their messages. This may involve using relaxed language, funny content, and memes in campaigns, in addition to participating in social media in a lighter way and even incorporating fun elements into sales presentations and meetings.
Pleasant and memorable advertisements test likability and are a useful predictor of customer and employee engagement, which reflects on well-being, building brand memories that make relationships more authentic, thus generating opportunities and sales growth.
How to find humor in creative processes?
Humor has gained prominence in B2B marketing due to the evolution of the market itself, as explained by Pedro Braga, executive director and founder of Agência Sabiá. “Previously recognized for its highly rational approach focused on technical results, the B2B market has undergone significant changes with increasing maturity and the adoption of broader solutions, including start-ups and native digital companies.”
According to Braga, these changes were driven by the need for differentiation in a competitive market and the transformation of B2B companies themselves, now represented by young and agile teams that seek to communicate in a modern and creative way.
Thus, humor emerged as an effective strategy to connect with this new customer profile and meet the demands of an increasingly mature and diverse market. When discussing the communication strategy, Braga highlights the importance of understanding and adapting to different target audiences. He emphasizes the need to use a variety of emotional tools, including humor, to convey messages effectively.
To imagine how this model works, let us analyze how two companies, served by Agência Sabiá, position themselves in a humorous way in different communication channels.
Compelling humor on social media with Tsoft
The bold approach of Tsoft, an information technology company, stands out in the B2B market for its fun and human perspective on social networks. Mariana Murias, director of the company’s services department, shares how the use of humor has become an act of empathy, bringing the brand closer to its audience and creating a positive atmosphere in digital interactions.
The company realized that humor is not only welcomed, but also valued by business customers, highlighting the importance of a bold, intelligent, and respectful approach in the business world.
Tsoft faced challenges when embarking on this new approach. However, with the guidance provided by Agência Sabiá, it managed to find the balance between creativity and professionalism. This cooperation has resulted in consistent and organic growth for T-Soft, with a stronger digital presence and a more solid brand image.
“We have observed that the increase in engagement generated by our relaxed approach translates into an improvement in conversions. A clear example is when some customers relate to this fun or “outside-the-box” approach, which results in more meaningful interactions: they share our publications, actively participate in the conversation and even give us ideas about how to expand it”, said Mariana Murias, director of the services department at Tsoft.
Humor integrated into the daily lives of teams at NTSec
NTSec, a Brazilian company from the information security segment, innovated in its marketing strategy by using memes and personalized stickers, developed by Agência Sabiá, as tools to generate engagement in the exchange of internal messages and break the austerity of the security area.
These pieces of creative content were carefully designed to incorporate the company’s employees, giving them a recognizable identity and establishing an emotional connection with the target audience in the company’s internal communication, which brought positive results, as observed by Eduardo Silva, marketing director at NTSec.
“We want to humanize communication, and we did so from the inside out, seeking to use more comfortable tools in our daily routine. The fact is that WhatsApp is the most agile and interactive channel, and today we use it for all communications. Stickers, memes, and the like are popular and often reinforce important messages that few would access on another channel, such as email, for example. In addition to making communication lighter, it inspires creation and interaction between regional offices, bringing together employees who are physically distant”, said Eduardo.
By integrating its own employees into humorous messages, the company was able to create a relaxed and authentic environment in its communications. This resulted in greater interaction and involvement on the part of employees, contributing to a more pleasant and productive environment, which ultimately reflects on customer service. This approach strengthened the sense of community and belonging in the company.
“The most important thing is to understand the language of your market and adapt it with common sense and wisdom. I believe we are on the right path, combining lightness, creativity, and intelligence”, he concludes.
The future of B2B relationships is fun
As B2B marketing embraces fun, experts predict a lighter, more engaging future for the business world. Companies that dare to be different, like Tsoft and NTSec, are reaping the benefits, creating more authentic relationships with their customers, and breaking down the barriers of formalism.
Looking at Latin America, Braga highlights the good-humored and fun nature of the Latin American people, suggesting that companies should incorporate these elements into their communication strategies.
He emphasizes that humor does not compromise the seriousness of the company’s value delivery, but rather the way this delivery is communicated. And he highlights the importance of humor in connecting with young audiences and attracting talent to fast-growing companies. “The Latin American people are people who have humor as part of their DNA. It is only natural for companies to also look for this,” he says.
If life is short, why not make business more fun? B2B marketing is proving that humor is not exclusive to B2C. It is time to laugh at the office and close big deals!