Executive Summary

• Joy in advertising helps to make ads more engaging, memorable, and exciting while creating stronger emotional connections with consumers.
• Brands like Nike, Ben & Jerry’s, LEGO, and others utilize joy in their marketing campaigns and brand strategies to boost brand recognition and consumer loyalty.
• Joyful marketing campaigns bring tangible results for businesses, such as improved brand recall, enhanced engagement, and increased sales.
• Shared elements in successful joy-led advertising campaigns include authenticity, innovation, and consistency.

The Power of Joy in Advertising

Joy is a powerful advertising tool as its use within brand messaging, and more specifically advertisements, helps to foster an engaging and memorable experience. Brands that successfully leverage joy have seen considerable benefits, like more meaningful emotional connections with their target audience, increased brand recognition, and stronger consumer loyalty.

Several brands, from Nike to LEGO, have gone above and beyond to utilize joy in their marketing tactics in order to build firm market positions and stronger relationships with their consumers, both of which support tangible increases in sales. Looking to these brands as examples provides the opportunity to break down key elements of their advertising campaigns and understand how they were able to successfully integrate joy.

The Psychology of Joy

Incorporating joy and other positive emotions into advertising serves a powerful purpose. Joy has a psychological impact—when we experience joy, the brain releases chemicals like dopamine and serotonin that make us feel good. Dopamine is part of the brain’s reward system, so it signals to the brain that you should want more of something.

If you see something that sparked joy in the past, those feelings come rushing back, reminding you of the positive emotions you previously experienced. This matters in advertising—if a product or its messaging sparks joy, you are likely to want to keep going back to it in the future, as your brain is seeking that same positive feeling. Brands that infuse joy in their advertising can spark a greater foundation for creating emotional connections, increased sales, and improved opportunities for consumer engagement.

Joy should be a crucial element of brand advertising, as seventy-four percent of Americans rely on moments of joy to get them through tough times, and this has a substantial impact on consumer purchasing decisions. In fact, our research at PETERMAYER shows that 63% of purchase intent is related to the joy that consumers experience from a brand’s marketing communications.

Altogether, utilizing joy as part of an emotional marketing strategy can lead to the following advantages:

• Emotional connection
• Enhanced engagement
• Greater brand affinity
• Viral potential
• Improved recall
• Increased trust
• Improved customer perceptions

Brands That Succeed in Joy Advertising

Several brands use joy marketing to their advantage in order to further captivate their target audience and boost brand recognition. Each of these campaigns and the joy that they sparked demonstrates the power of thoughtful advertising.

1. Old Spice

Campaign: “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like”

Old Spice ads are easily identifiable by the humor and majestic elements, expressing how using Old Spice body wash could make any man have the charm and charisma of Isaiah Amir Mustafa or Terry Crews riding a horse.

The “Men your Man Could Smell Like” campaign aimed to spark conversation between couples about the power of using Old Spice. The campaign was launched online during Super Bowl weekend, and due to the positive response, the brand took the campaign a step further by launching it on television soon after. The campaign filmed almost 200 video responses to questions submitted to social media sites like Reddit, Twitter, and Facebook.

These video responses used humor and the excitement of getting your question chosen to spark joy amongst its target audience. The goal of the campaign was to increase the brand’s body wash sales by 15%, but in a matter of months, the campaign resulted in a 60% increase, eventually doubling sales in just five months.

2. Taco Bell

Campaign: “Live Mas”

Taco Bell’s campaign inspired joy by promoting a fun, carefree attitude and the excitement of indulging in delicious meals as an experience. The “Live Mas” campaign was designed to inspire people to try new things, make waves, and ultimately, “live more.”

The campaign was also paired with new menu offerings, like the Doritos Locos Tacos and Cantina Bell offerings, which demonstrated the message of trying new things in practice. Through the campaign, Taco Bell saw increased traffic to their locations, a boost in brand affinity, and a significant increase in sales and social media engagement.

3. M&M’s

Campaign: “Red and Yellow”

For 20 years, M&M’s Red and Yellow campaign has utilized marketing centered around the personified Red and Yellow M&M characters brought to life through animation. It also features appearances from other characters that highlight the different flavors of M&M’s, including peanut, caramel, and pretzel. The campaign inspired, and continues to inspire, joy through entertaining and comedic interactions between the various characters.

These fun interactions kept M&Ms in consumers’ hearts while highlighting the joy of imagination as well as the fun of enjoying these colorful candies. This multi-layered campaign has led to several benefits, like improved brand recognition, increased social media interaction with the brand, and stronger sales.

4. Ben & Jerry’s

Campaign: “Peace, Love, and Ice Cream”

Ben & Jerry’s “Peace, Love, and Ice Cream” campaign highlighted the brand’s passion for social activism by blending its brand values and brand strategy into one. This campaign messaging goes hand-in-hand with its brand purpose and commitment to addressing social justice issues, climate change, and sustainable sourcing.

They expand on this campaign by naming new flavors, like “Empower Mint” in advocacy of racial equity and “Save our Swirled” in advocacy of fighting climate change. Each campaign coincided with specific actions like donations to prominent organizations, such as a branch of the NAACP, or political advocacy campaigns that involved reaching out to elected officials.

What’s more joyful than the prospect of a better future for us all? As a result of this ongoing campaign, the brand has boosted its image amongst consumers, inspired social activism efforts that resonate with consumers, and driven an increase in brand loyalty.

5. Nike

Campaign: “Just Do It”

Nike’s iconic “Just Do It” campaign fosters joy through the themes of personal achievement and overcoming obstacles. In its campaign, Nike highlights the stories of both professional and everyday athletes beating the odds to achieve their dreams.

Nike’s advertisements align with the slogan by using strong, inspirational, and motivational messages and imagery to emphasize the emotions of overcoming a challenge to become your best self. The inherent joy in the Nike brand comes from the inspiration in each story as well as the overarching potential that everyone has within them to overcome their obstacles.

Thanks to this ongoing campaign, Nike’s slogan has become recognizable virtually everywhere, built an emotional connection with countless consumers, and placed Nike in a world of its own. Above all else, the campaign has built and reinforced the brand’s dominance in the sports apparel market and as a leader in sports marketing.

6. LEGO®

Campaign: “Rebuild the World”

The LEGO® Rebuild the World campaign focuses on creativity and imagination as a means to joy. The campaign uses videos and examples of creations made from LEGO bricks to emphasize the message that playing with LEGO’s products can help you recreate things that currently exist as well as invent something entirely new.

Even further, the campaign presents building LEGO products as an opportunity to escape the “real world” and create something exciting and magical, positioning creativity as a way to change the world. The campaign also positioned the joy of innovation as something that’s necessary for problem-solving and overcoming obstacles in the future.

The results of this campaign include the strengthening of LEGO’s undisputable brand authority and its reputation as a pathway to experiencing joy. The campaign helped spark inspiration and creativity while emphasizing the brand’s unique and unmatched position in the market.

7. Apple

Campaign: “Shot on iPhone”

This campaign demonstrated the power of the iPhone camera by highlighting how it was able to capture valuable memories and moments of joy in vivid detail. The campaign sparked grievances among consumers who cited that the photos shown in the campaign were taken by a professional and not the everyday iPhone user. However, part of the campaign was showing the capability that would empower iPhone users to embrace their potential.

The campaign highlighted that whether you are passionate about embracing and boosting your photography skills or you are simply passionate about preserving meaningful memories, the iPhone camera is designed for you.

The campaign improved awareness around the brand’s consistent innovation and of course, increased iPhone sales. It’s campaigns like this that coincide with Apple’s innovation to give it a $3 trillion market cap.

8. AirBnB

Campaign: “Belong Anywhere”

Airbnb’s Belong Anywhere campaign centered on the concept of belonging, leading with the idea that users of the platform belong anywhere they may choose to stay. The campaign became more than just an ad but part of a full brand identity, featuring a joy-inspiring new logo and a redefined digital experience that is easy to use.

The campaign also included storytelling from around the world and more immersive pictures of the environments where people could stay. Together, these efforts encouraged people to explore new places, knowing they have a unique, inclusive, and exciting place to stay when they get there. In doing so, Airbnb showcases the joys involved in finding community and adventure all in one.

Thanks to the campaign, Airbnb experienced greater brand visibility and user engagement, leading to increased bookings and a stronger market presence. As a result, Airbnb saw its valuation rise to a market cap of around $86.5 billion.

9. Zatarain’s

Campaign: “Will it Fri?”

The Zatarain’s “Will it Fri?” campaign focused on fostering joy through playful and engaging interactions with consumers on social media. The brand put on a live-stream event hosted by New Orleans icon Tarriona “Tank” Ball, where consumers had the ability to chime in on social media and vote on which items to batter and put into a fryer, including items that wouldn’t normally be fried, like a pineapple, cotton candy, and even a high-heeled shoe.

Even adults can’t help but laugh and get excited about the recklessness of frying random items just to see what would happen. Centering the campaign around joy brought greater engagement while giving consumers a chance to be a part of the campaign themselves and get involved in the joy of play.

The campaign was focused on promoting the brand’s Fish Fri product but also increased brand recognition and user engagement. All together, the campaign resulted in 3.3 million views, 62 million impressions, and 326,000 engagements.

10. Skittles

Campaign: “Taste the Rainbow”

The “Taste the Rainbow” campaign is highlighted by its humorous and often rather absurd commercials. The campaign uses a long list of variations of the phrase, from “Find the Rainbow” to “Sour the Rainbow”, to highlight the various ways that one can enjoy Skittles and its different flavors.

With commercial ideas such as portraying the candy as a contagious disease known as “Skittles Pox” or Skittles coming out of someone’s ears when they lie, the brand has been able to make their candies memorable through unique commercials. It’s these memorable commercials that have led to simple brand recognition and campaign recall that leads to sales.

The success of the campaign is clear in the fact that the slogan has stuck since 1994. Today, the “Taste the Rainbow” campaign is a familiar slogan that everyone knows and allows them to recognize that picking up a bag of Skittles is a great way to embrace the rainbow.

Common Elements of Successful Joyful Advertising

Any successful, joyful advertising effort relies on a few key elements. No matter what direction a brand follows to incorporate joy in its messaging, it remains essential that any campaign stays true to the brand, its values, and its overall brand purpose.

The following are crucial, foundational elements of all these campaigns:

• Authenticity – Any good outreach campaign should be genuine and make sense for the brand based on its persona, values, and messaging. If a campaign doesn’t seem to mesh with your brand image, then it may not be the best to follow through on.
• Creativity and innovation – These campaigns stood out as being unique and innovative to the brand. By demonstrating a creative, interesting direction, you will be able to differentiate your brand from your competition and stick in your audience’s memory.
• Consistency – None of these campaigns were just commercials but comprehensive efforts that permeated through each area of the brand’s interactions, including product offerings, slogans, and overall messaging.

Being able to tie together all these elements gives brands the power to stand out amongst the crowd and cement their own path forward. If you can utilize these three key elements in your campaign, you can leave a lasting impression on your audience for improved brand recognition and consumer engagement. Sometimes, that requires the support of a creative agency, like PETERMAYER.

Incorporate Joy Into Your Advertising Campaigns

Joy can play a valuable part in any advertising campaign, helping to boost customer engagement and campaign recall in order to increase sales. Centering an advertising campaign around joy requires authenticity, creativity, and consistency, among other elements. However, if you can balance the various elements, you can set your brand apart and maintain a soft, joyous spot in their hearts.

At PETERMAYER, fusing joy with advertising is what we do. We’ll help you build a comprehensive campaign centered around joy, calculate your Joy Score, and reframe your brand’s messaging. By incorporating creative, joyful, and engaging campaigns into their overall marketing strategy, brands can expect to see tangible results such as increased sales.

Schedule a discovery call with our team at PETERMAYER to learn more about how we can support you in developing a campaign that resonates.

‍