Classification and Division

Commercials play an important role in a company. They can bring either success to a company or harm to its reputation. It all depends on the quality of advertisements. It is preferable for advertisements to be funny and attractive to the viewers, otherwise the effect can be unpredictable. Most of the time, the intention of a commercial is to make people feel good about a particular brand. To do that, companies should cause only positive emotions. Every person, however, has their own individual sense of humor, and it makes it very difficult for companies to create a universally funny commercial. Thus, all funny commercials that can be seen on television can be divided into 3 groups which are discussed below. 

Under-Humored Advertisements

Humor is a complex and controversial issue. Brands sometimes try to make their commercials extraordinary and unusual. Everyone likes jokes, but not everyone can define what a good joke is. Companies often overdo their job and create some really stupid advertisements, which is half of the problem. Also, advertisements can be offensive or disgusting. A bright example is a commercial of a chewing gum which is called Dog Breath. It was banned in the UK and Ireland because of the complaints of people who considered it unethical and unpleasant to watch. Another advertisement of the drink Mountain Dew with a purple haired boy was banned before even being aired because of its sexual content. 

Although advert-makers tend to consider their commercials hilarious, some people may not appreciate their work. Some commercials may have some racist content. An example is a funny commercial of a black herbal toothpaste. It shows a black man who helps a little girl to get her balloon, but her mother, instead of thanking him, chases him away. That is an example of how biased and spoiled some modern people are and how they do not trust those who are not like them. “Appearances are deceiving,” claims the advertisement. Of course, the makers of this advertisement meant it to be funny and amusing, but in reality it is offensive and racist. Thus, there is a very delicate line between the funny and the unfunny. 

Over-Humored Advertisements

There are a lot of challenges for companies in making advertisements for their products. A successful advertisement is not just about attracting attention. It is also about being able to hold it. If a commercial evokes a response lasting longer than a few seconds, it must be connected with the brand itself. Otherwise, people can forget what the commercial was about after being influenced by some unrelated joke in it.

Sometimes a commercial is simply overwhelmed with distracting unnecessary information that prevents the viewer from understanding the actual message. An example is a commercial of IKEA beds. In the advertisement, husband and wife were lying in bed at night and one thing does not let them fall asleep. That thing is the spring that got out of their matrass. The wife thinks it is “something else” and when she lifts the blanket, she sees the truth; and every viewer sees the truth. Therefore, they no longer remember the brand of the bed which is advertised; they only remember the spring and how funny it looks. There are a lot of such moments when advert-makers commit mistakes. Therefore, every commercial is shown to some audience as a trial. If the audience likes the advertisement, the company airs it on television. If, like in this group, the message is hard to understand, there is no use in such a commercial. People will not remember the brand name and, therefore, will not become customers. 

Really Funny

This final group distinguishes itself by being really funny and effective. A good commercial should bring joy and happiness to people who watch it. It should encourage the viewers to buy a certain product. Also, it should inspire them to watch it over an over again. These are some of the features of successful promotion of a product in the market. An excellent example is the Windows 8 advertisement. There is no doubt that almost everyone has watched it and found it amazing. In the advertisement, some Asian girls try to make a ten-second make-up. Only one of them manages to do it perfectly. “Beautiful and fast” – that is what the advertisement says. These words characterize Microsoft’s another product, which is really beautiful and fast. The commercial is brilliant and absolutely funny. The main thing is that people will not forget what it is about, and they definitely will not forget what it is associated with. 

Moreover, Coca- Cola always tries to impress its customers. The advertisement which is really funny is the one when they placed a Coca- Cola machine in the college campus. That machine was unusual as it gave everyone free cola, food, and other presents. It made a lot of fun among students and later, among viewers. The company wanted their product to be associated with happiness, and they managed to do it. People were happy and surprised. That was an unexpected move. 

It can be concluded that it is not enough for a commercial to be funny. It has to be unusual and bring people something that they do not expect. It has to show them something new and amazing. That is the way funny commercials will work. If a company wants their commercial to fall under the third group, they must know about the other two groups. Only then their commercial will not be too long, too informative, or too complicated. However, there is no perfection yet found. 

Works Cited

1. Hollis, Nigel. “Why Funny Commercials Work.” The Atlantic. Oct. 27. 2011. Web.