Advertising best practice, evidence and insights

What we know about using humour in advertising

Article • WARC Best Practice, August 2019

Provides marketers with information and guidance about using humour to create buzz, emotional engagement and virality.

Case Study • Dina El Dessouky, Yosr Khalifa, Mustafa Darwish, WARC Prize for MENA Strategy, Shortlisted, 2020

Egyptian telco Etisalat crafted a comic campaign to narrow the gap between itself and Vodafone and win customers over to its hybrid offer.

Burger King: Who said men don't cry?

Case Study • Ali Khalil, WARC Prize for MENA Strategy, Shortlisted, 2020

QSR brand Burger King targeted young Saudis with a social media 'trolling' campaign featuring football icon Sami Al-Jaber to drive sales of its new spicy menu across Saudi Arabia.

Jawwy: The Fair Telco Company

Case Study • Mario Morby, WARC Prize for MENA Strategy, Shortlisted, 2020

Mobile telecom brand Jawwy used entertaining video content to resonate with Saudi youth, and achieve positive results in terms of both short-term sales and long-term brand building.

OMO: Post-Credit Wash

Case Study • Roy Khachan, Remie Abdo, WARC Prize for MENA Strategy, Shortlisted, 2020

Detergent brand OMO piggybacked on the Marvel film franchise's famous post-credits scenes to boost sales and appeal to millennials in Lebanon.

Burger King: Burjer Kinj

Case Study • Ali Khalil, WARC Prize for MENA Strategy, Shortlisted, 2020

QSR brand Burger King created a social media, outdoor and in-restaurant campaign based on the Arabic pronunciation of 'burger' to increase Whopper sales and reignite interest in the brand in Saudi Arabia.

Brands and influencers: A guide to the perfect partnership

Article • Didrik Svendsen, WARC COVID-19 Series, May 2020

Advice on how to work with influencers to deliver consumer engagement both during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chipotle’s ‘culture hunters’ guide its COVID-19 response

News • 26 May 2020

Chipotle, the quick-service restaurant chain, has leveraged insights from its team of social media “culture hunters” in rapidly adapting to the challenges of COVID-19.

The WARC Guide to Marketing in the COVID-19 recession

Article • WARC COVID-19 Series, May 2020

A summary of new thinking and best practice on Marketing in the COVID-19 recession, from the WARC Guide.

Laughter is the best medicine: Navigating brand communication in challenging times

Article • Graham Page, WARC Exclusive, May 2020

Looks at how brands can communicate in difficult times and how to strike the right tone in their advertising.

ŠKODA: Hesitation

Case Study • Pauline Dunas, WARC Awards, Bronze, Effective Social Strategy, 2020

Automotive brand SKODA created a campaign tailored around the specific insights of the local market to challenge erroneous brand perceptions in France.

Burger King: Who said men don't cry?

Case Study • Ali Khalil, WARC Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Social Strategy, 2020

To win over young Saudis, QSR brand Burger King joined their conversation via a social stunt that trolled one of their most famous football icons.

Burger King: Celebrating Subcultures

Case Study • Jimmy George, Annabelle Butler, WARC Awards, Silver, Effective Social Strategy, 2020

Quick-Service Restaurant chain Burger King created a content engine to become loved and talked-about online in order to grow visitation among iGen and young millennials in the US.

KFC: How KFC's #1 fan charmed millions

Case Study • Hajar Yusof, WARC Awards, Grand Prix, Effective Social Strategy, 2020

KFC the fast food brand used a comedic take on a social influencer to drive affinity with millennials in Malaysia.

Lay's: Crunchy Sounds Challenge

Case Study • Benjamin Condit, Jerry Perez, WARC Awards, Entrant, Effective Social Strategy, 2020

Potato-chip brand Lay's used short-video platform Douyin and the sound of chips being eaten to drive e-commerce impulse purchase in China.

JCB: Digging JCB out of a digital ditch!

Case Study • Tushar Handa, Jitender Dabas, WARC Awards, Entrant, Effective Social Strategy, 2020

British construction machine brand JCB took to social to turn a tricky Twitter situation to its advantage in India.

Samsung Galaxy S10: Do What You Can't Jimmy Fallon

Case Study • Jessica Perrin, WARC Awards, Entrant, Effective Content Strategy, 2020

Electronics giant Samsung got talk show host Jimmy Fallon to film an entire episode of The Tonight Show on its latest smartphone to promote the launch of its Galaxy S10+ handset in the US.

McDonald's Australia: Macca's Summer of Spin

Case Study • Zoe May, WARC Awards, Entrant, Effective Content Strategy, 2020

QSR brand McDonald's created targeted and culturally connected content to secure a summertime win in Australia.

Racold: Mind Your Language

Case Study • Sabiha Khan, Aakash Chatterjee, Provit Chemmani, WARC Awards, Entrant, Effective Innovation, 2020

Water heater brand Racold exploited Indians' e-commerce mistypes to spell a disproportionate increase in sales vs money spent in the highly competitive online market.

DB Export: I'm Drinking It For You

Case Study • Ahmad Salim, James Tucker, WARC Awards, Grand Prix and Best Multiplatform Award, Effective Content Strategy, 2020

Beer brand DB used a multiplatform takeover encompassing TV, radio, print, digital, social and experiential to launch its DB Export Gold Extra Low Carb beer in New Zealand.

ookyo: Gaming the telco ecosystem

Case Study • Sheryl Tan, WARC Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Content Strategy, 2020

Digital prepaid brand ookyo gamed the eSports space to its advantage to increase brand awareness and boost sign-ups in Malaysia.

Is it too soon to be funny? What consumers want from social media during COVID-19

Article • Geoffrey Precourt, WARC COVID-19 Series, April 2020

Research by Shareablee, the social-media intelligence provider, has shown that brands can inject humor into their marketing efforts, but must do so with a suitable degree of caution due to the sensitive climate relating to COVID-19.

Virgin Media: 25 Days of Christmas

Case Study • Jen Musgreave, WARC Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Innovation, 2020

TV and broadband provider Virgin Media ran a Christmas campaign in the UK to increase net promoter score (NPS) and loyalty.

Pedigree: SelfieSTIX

Case Study • Hayley Pardoe, Ahmad Salim, WARC Awards, Silver, Effective Innovation, 2020

Canine oral care product DentaSTIX took an innovative approach to improve its relevance and drive purchase in New Zealand.

Three themes from WARC’s Effective 100

Opinion • Lucy Aitken, March 2020

Lucy Aitken spotted three themes among the case studies featured in this year’s Effective 100 rankings.

Humour & jokes