HOW TO USE COMEDY IN RADIO ADVERTISING
So much radio advertising is wasted because most copywriters never have been taught how to create an effective radio commercial, let alone an entire campaign of radio commercials.
The model that most people follow when creating commercials is: I’ll do a little song & dance to entertain them, and then I’ll try to sell them something.
And it USED to work that way. In the 1800’s, a stranger would show up in a town’s public square and put on a show. People would gather around. Then the entertainer would conclude his performance, and the “drummer” would step forward to sell the snake oil.
And they sold an awful lot of snake oil that way.
But that’s not how it works with electronic media advertising in the 21st Century.
Remember, ADVERTISING IS MASS SALESMANSHIP.
If you happen to a Sales Manager:
Do you instruct your account executives to conduct sales calls by telling 27 jokes and then asking, “Do you want to buy some commercials?” If you own a business, do you train your sales people to tell every prospect a dozen jokes and then to ask, “So, do you want to buy something?”
If you entertain in a commercial, the entertainment has to be inextricably woven around the sales message. The entertainment and the sales message should be intertwined.
And that’s a very easy and extremely effective test to apply to your commercial: “Is it possible to remove the entertaining elements without also removing the sales message?”
Many copywriters seem to think if they create a funny situation, they don’t need to establish a strong connection between the comedy and the sales message. Your characters must be involved with the product or service: Perhaps they already use that product or that service….or they need that product or that service….or they wish they had access to such a product or service….or their lives aren’t as full as they’d be if they were using the product or service.
When creating commercials, don’t do comedy unless you do it well — unless you can do it “funny.” And even if you’re good at “doing it funny,” funny isn’t enough; you still need to deliver the sales message.


