Are funny ads actually more ๐’Ž๐’†๐’Ž๐’๐’“๐’‚๐’ƒ๐’๐’†? | Nudge Newsletter


Humor Effect

โ€‹Read onlineโ€‹


Are funny ads actually more ๐’Ž๐’†๐’Ž๐’๐’“๐’‚๐’ƒ๐’๐’†?
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That's what seven Californianยน researchers set out to test in 2014.
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A group of participants were instructed to remember a long list of words.
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50% of the participants then waited for 20 minutes in silence. ๐Ÿคซ
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50% of the participants then watched a funny 20-minute video. ๐Ÿคฃ
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The researchers asked both groups to recall as many words as possible.
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Those who sat in silence remembered just 20% of the words. ๐Ÿคซ
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For those who watched the humourous video, it was 44% ๐Ÿคฃ
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A ๐ญ๐ฐ๐จ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ฅ๐ increase in ๐ซ๐ž๐œ๐š๐ฅ๐ฅ.
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Which is why Specsavers has kept the same comedic slogan for 24 years.


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ยนยนBains, G. S., Berk, L. S., Daher, N. S., Lohman, E., Schwab, E., Petrofsky, J., & Deshpande, P. (2014). The effect of humor on short-term memory in older adults: A new component for whole-person wellness. Advances in Mind-Body Medicine, 28(2), 16โ€“24.

As a behavioural science practitioner, I believe in the peak-end rule.

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