RWRetailWire
Back to Discussions
DISCUSSION

Americans Share 'Funny' Not 'Important' Content on Social Media

Written by Guest contributor

Through a special arrangement, presented here for discussion is a summary of a current article from MarketingCharts, a Watershed Publishing publication providing up-to-to-minute data and research to marketers.

Why do social media users share content? That was the question posed to consumers around the world in a recent survey by Ipsos Open Thinking Exchange (OTX). Among American respondents who had shared content on social media sites during the previous month, a leading 65 percent said they typically look to share "interesting things." While fewer (49 percent) said they typically seek to share "funny things," Americans appear to be more motivated to share "funny" than "important" content (43 percent).

Moreover, a more recent survey of U.S. consumers by Lab42 found that a clear majority believe that TV ads that are funny make them more likely to remember a product.

While Americans may believe they're susceptible to humor, some studies say that might not be the case. Research released last year by Ace Metrix, for example, found that humor and purchase intent are unrelated when it comes to TV advertising, while a recent report from Unruly suggested that brands aiming to get their videos to go viral try differentiating themselves by using an emotional trigger other than humor. (To be fair, that recommendation seemed to be based more on over-use of humor rather than humor itself not triggering the emotions necessary to motivate sharing.)

Returning to the Ipsos survey results, Americans' other motivations for sharing content on social media include:

  • To share unique things (37 percent, versus the global average of 29 percent);
  • To let others know what they're doing (34 percent, compared to the 22 percent average);
  • To add their support to a cause, an organization or a belief (32 percent, versus 29 percent); and
  • To let others know what they believe in and who they really are (32 percent, versus 37 percent).

 

Discussion Thread0