I came across this. It’s hilarious.
If you haven’t clicked the link yet, it’s a post containing a collection of tweets from VeryBritishProblems: gems such as…
‘Hearing a recording of your own voice and deciding it’s perhaps best never to speak again’
‘Changing from ‘kind regards’ to just ‘regards’, to indicate that you’re rapidly reaching the end of your tether’
‘Being unable to pay for something with the exact change without saying “I think that’s right” ‘
If you’re British, or know anything of the British psyche, you’ll know that all of these are spot on – it’s exactly how British people think, or act, in certain circumstances.
I know people find it annoying when this is pointed out (as in; ‘Yes, I know… I worked that out already), but the tweets are all so funny simply because they’re true – so, so painfully true.
The VeryBritishProblems tweets don’t work too hard; they’re all about simply observing the daft things we do without thinking, as habit.
That’s why it resonates with us. It’s all about the common thoughts we have and the common language we use – things we all know that we do. Because of this, we find ourselves smiling and nodding at each comment/tweet, particularly if we see them as a list of 30, in one blog post.
In fact, the more we go along, through that list, the more we find ourselves nodding in amusement. We get into the habit of it. We feel connected to the author of the tweets.
Well, good news: you can apply this thinking to marketing your brand. You can create a campaign that even admits the failings of your industry, and have people nodding, connecting with you, warming to you. Look at your industry and the way it’s perceived, or your company (based on comments from clients), and see if you can spin a truthful campaign off of that.
It could be that you already work in an industry with a tarnished reputation (estate agents, double glazing, banking): can you play on this? Can you turn it on its head? Can you make clients nod and smile, but also show that you’re not like ‘all the others’?
Maybe there’s a truth about your target audience – one they’d begrudgingly acknowledge, but still find funny. I remember discussing a campaign for a London co-working space, which prodded the intended audience based on truths about working from home e.g half a chocolate cake becomes an acceptable lunch, your cat becomes your best friend, no-one will know if you wear the same pants three days consecutively. Anyone who works from home will know the strange things they do that they wouldn’t do in an office full of colleagues.
Anyway, give it a go: look at your company, product, service, or industry, consider a truth about it, and see if you can spin that into a marketing campaign that resonates with your audience, and makes them click, tap, call, or email.