Always Be Winning

Disarm with Charm

 The Humour Interrupt
● Prospects get a lot of sales messages
● Technology makes it easier than ever to reach your prospects
● It’s easier for your competitors too
● You need to win your prospects attention, and keep winning it throughout your
copy
● Humour achieves this while also making your prospect smile or laugh
● You’re connecting to another human - you can give them a good feeling
remotely
● This makes your sales pitch more palatable
Humour Formulas
● The Reverse
● Triples
● Lists
● Triple Reverse
● Understatement
● Exaggeration
● Incongruent Absurdity
● Funny Words
● Oxymorons
● Parody
The Reverse
The reverse builds up a premise, and then immediately misdirects the reader.

I’ve used a variation of this line in many cold emails.

“I got your contact details from a list. *gasp!* but hey at least you’re list-worthy,
that’s gotta be worth something right?!”

It starts off with a refreshingly honest admission of where I got the prospects email
address.

The following line then compliments them on being on a list. They’ve ‘made it’.
This is unexpected, honest and funny. A killer combination!
Triples
Triples use the power of 3.

Any list has more power if it has 3 elements.

Triples build a context with the first 2 words, and then break the pattern on the 3rd.

Here is an example I’ve used.

“If you agree to meet with me, I’ll take you for coffee / lunch / tequila shots…”

Coffee is sensible. Lunch is sensible (but more expensive, so it adds climax).

The 3rd element is surprising in a business context, and makes the reader wonder
“Is s/he serious?”
Triples
You can use the power of 3 to make your email signature more interesting.

The 1st job title should be serious. The 2nd should be descriptive. The 3rd should
be silly!

Example:

“Have an absolutely wonderful day,

Jon Buchan

Director, Veteran of B2B Sales, Writer of Terrible Fiction”

Lists
You can also add in a humorous element to lists longer than 3.

“We offer copywriting, social media consultancy, video production, analytics audits
and bedroom tidying.”

This can make a boring list end on a humorous note.

Lists
You can also construct lists and then ‘call out’ the absurd element.

“We offer the following services:

1. Copywriting
2. Social Media Consultancy
3. Bedroom Tidying
4. Analytics Audits
5. Video Production

One of these isn’t true. I’ll leave you to decide which that is.”
Triple Reverse
The Triple Reverse builds a context using the power of 3, and then misdirects the
reader immediately afterwards.

This is often used when introducing people. Imagine this at a speaking event.

“I want to introduce you to someone who’s interesting, witty and clever. Instead,
we’ve got Jon Buchan speaking!”

With the right intonation, the audience knows the following line is in jest.

You can use this structure as your first line. Here is an example:

“I’d like to introduce myself in a way that shows I’m interesting, witty and clever.
Alas, I wrote this email instead.”
Understatement
Understatement is used to not sound arrogant when making claims. The use of
moderative or tentative expressions is less direct. This subtle approach can be
more persuasive.

“I promise, It’ll be the best thing you’ve done all hour.”

“I was in a spot of bother.”

“The client wasn’t displeased with the results we achieved.”

Exaggeration
Exaggeration can be used to add humour, especially to pain points.

When making a point about other suppliers having restrictive, long term contracts,
the following line could be used.

“Many suppliers have contracts so restrictive they come with a set of

complementary handcuffs.”

I’ve used this line many times:

“We’re looking to win clients over from those evil (ok not evil... but not as good)
other agencies.”

This uses exaggeration, and follows up with an honest reassessment of the claim.
Incongruent Absurdity
Incongruence and absurdity are two elements of humour.

The use of absurdity in a business context is unusual, and incongruent with what
prospects expect from a business email.

I’ve ended many emails with:

“I’ve attached a picture of a ferret that has been dressed up. According to the
Internet, his name is Colin. I trust this will charm you into submission.”
Incongruent Absurdity
“I’ve attached a picture of a ferret that has been dressed up. According to the Internet, his name is Colin. I
trust this will charm you into submission.”

The line “I’ve attached a picture of a ferret that has been dressed up” is immediately absurd.

The line “According to the Internet, his name is Colin” further suggests that no effort has been involved in
finding the image.

This adds further humour the following line, “I trust this will charm you into submission.” which makes an
assumption the (lazy and absurd) tactic will be successful.

It also uses the power of 3 with the 3rd and final sentence delivering the ‘punchline’.
Incongruent Absurdity
“I trust this will charm you into submission.”

This sentence starts with formal and assumptive language “I trust this will”. It then
finishes with an over the top, exaggerated statement “charm you into submission.”

The word “submission” is daring, but makes sense within the context.

“I await your profanity-filled response.”

This uses formal language, and suggests that you understand if the prospect is
angry because of your cold email.

The formula here is [“Formal & Assumptive”] - [“Surprise”].

Funny Words
Some words can bamboozle the best of us.

If you use them sparingly, they're a great pattern interrupt. They make people smile.
Here are a few examples…

● Bamboozled
● Hoodwinked
● Flummoxed
● Tomfoolery
● Horseplay
● Antics
● Shenanigans
● Frolics
● Besmirched

I know you can't use this in all situations.

However, it's surprisingly effective. It's pretty universal. It's hard to be offended by someone using unusual or enjoyable words.
Using “Funny” Words Sensibly...
I doubt many of you would write the following closing line in an email.

“I await your response with great interest”

It’s a bit old fashioned. I’ve seen this line in a lot of old handwritten letters.

The addition of one word can transform this into something that may elicit a smirk.
“I await your baffled response with great interest.”

The word ‘baffled’ sticks out. It sounds funny, especially when surrounded by
serious sounding words.
Oxymorons
I'm sure you'll find this slide borderline fascinating.
This is just my unbiased opinion of course.
The principles of humour are an open secret.
No more will your attempts at humour be met with deafening silence!
Instead of bombing, you'll be able to come up with lines that land like a
peacekeeper missile!
Keep practicing and use the best ones in your final draft.
It'll help you develop your own original copy.
I'm 99% certain of it.
Memes
Memes are a very efficient form of comedy. It's a little like if a stand-up comic had Powerpoint slides.
I know that sounds awful, so let me explain.
With stand-up comedy, the comic has to first set a premise. This isn't just about the words they say.
They also have a character and a point of view. Without this build up, there is no tension for the punchlines
to break.
It's actually (a little) easier for an established comic to get laughs as fans already know their character,
backstory and overarching point of view.
Memes are able to create all of this premise in an image.
This is especially true when a specific character (in this example, the complex and confusing human brain)
has been used over and over again.
The viewer already has a lot of information (the premise) saved. The overlaid text delivers the punch.
Parody

I wrote the copy for this when a

client had overly protective
brand police.

I think Irwin Boreson’s

testimonial the funniest.
Parody

Someone once told me I couldn’t come

up with a cold pitch that would make
Financial Directors laugh.

I ran an agency.

I knew FD’s, like me, hated agencies

that used every trick in the book to
charge high fees and excuse poor
results.

I had this image of a pretend app

“Agency Bullshit Guard” made.
Sugar coating requests
You should include a call to action in your copy.

You can disguise these and make them more palatable using humour.

“If you agree to meet with me, I’ll take you for coffee / lunch / tequila shots and
promise to be somewhat entertaining.”

“Rather predictably, I’d like to have a call with you. If you agree to this, I’ll even
tell you some random trivia that you will find borderline fascinating.”

“If you play cards right, I’ll sweeten the deal by telling you the lamest joke I
know.”
Sugar coating requests
Another option is to provide a range of choices, including the option to ignore you!

“I know you’re busy, so I’ve provided 3 convenient options for you:

1. Ignore this email and I’ll eventually get the picture and write sad poetry about
the deal we never did. (MOST POPULAR)
2. Hit ‘reply’ instead of ‘delete’ and make my day, month and year.
(RECOMMENDED)
3. WILDCARD - Call me on 01234 123 432 and interrupt my day like I have
yours. It’s ok. I deserve it. (LIMITED TIME OFFER)”
Antithesis
“Everything I love, destroyed by everything I hate.”
Powerful headline, eh?
Behold the awesome power of antithesis!
Definition: Antithesis is a literary and rhetorical device where two seemingly contrasting ideas are expressed through parallel structure.
A few more examples:
"We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools."
- Martin Luther King
“Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.”
- Muhammad Ali
"There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America."
- Bill Clinton

All you need:

- Look for an antonym dictionary on Google
- Create a parallel sentence structure
 FYI: Triples & The Triple Reverse use the power of 3 to add humour. These were covered earlier in this deck. You can also use the power of 3 for emphasis, which is what is described on this slide.

Tricolon
This is a series of three words, phrases or sentences that are parallel in structure, length and/or rhythm.
Barack Obama uses this device in his speeches all the time.
Here’s an example:
“The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works - whether it helps families find jobs at
a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified.”
This device can found outside of the world of speechwriting.
Here’s an example from “The Wizard of Oz”:
“You are talking to a man who has laughed in the face of death, sneered at doom, and chuckled at catastrophe.”
How can this device be useful in a business context?
Let’s take a sentence that a CEO might send in an email to his team.
“We face significant challenges. To overcome these, we need to work hard and stay determined."
Let's use the part of 3s...
“We face significant challenges. To overcome these we need to work hard, stay determined and remain focused."
You can experiment with removing the conjunction "and". We can also use repetition for dramatic effect.
"We face significant challenges. To overcome these we need to work hard. We need to stay determined. We need to remain focused."
Litotes
Litotes is a special type of understatement in which a positive statement is expressed by a negative statement.
Use litotes to add emphasis or discretion to a statement.

A few examples:

Instead of "He's unfriendly."

- “He’s not the friendliest person.”

Instead of "I had a bad day."

- “It wasn’t the best day of my life.”

Instead of "She's rich."

- “She’s not poor.”

Instead of "I'm old."

- “I’m not as young as I once was.”
Q&A