Not every civil or socially-minded brand has to raise potentially sensitive topics for society through their narrative. Many brands, like Orange and Miller Beer can promote universally popular ideas like optimism and friendship in their brand narratives without getting into potentially sensitive or uncomfortable subject areas.

But for those brands that decide to take up the mantle of raising important and sometimes difficult topics for discussion through their brands, humour can be an effective way to create dialogue without the danger of alienating the audience.

Toyota Prius questioning our real reasons for going green. Are we going green because it’s right or because it allows us to be righteous.

Björn Borg highlighting the despotic behaviour of warmongering leaders of all varieties. See previous post

Samsung illuminating what goes on inside the warmonger’s mind. See previous post

Volkswagen discussing how the greed of bankers created immense suffering around the world. See previous post

Absolut Vodka illustrating conflict and violence at political riots. See previous post

Frank uses macabre wit to talk about the dangers of drugs.

But why is humour such an effective means to remove the barbs from the topics that society feels sensitive about? Well, compared to the rest of the animal kingdom, humans are complex, our world view is complex and the societies we create are extremely complex. The social issues we create and try to overcome in the name of progress, are systemic and usually have a long history of their own.

The reason humour works at all is that it creates an unexpected picture of reality that we are surprised by. Sometimes, these pictures are simple, like puns and sometimes they are more complex, like irony. This flexibility to deal with simple and complex ideas to form a surprising and delightful effect makes humour an ideal device for dealing with awkward, complex societal issues.

Also, humour has the ability to reduce a complex problem down to a simple idea and change our expectations with delightful effect. In this way, humour gives us the ability to reflect on an issue without getting engaged with its complexity. By taking a non-serious view on a serious topic, we afford ourselves the opportunity to see new ideas around the issue and take in information differently in order to make newly-informed decisions about the ideas surrounding the problem.

Finally, humour is reflective in purpose and action. It is like a fun-house mirror that distorts our image. But just like these mirrors, humour can emphasise an aspect of what we believe is true or false. It enables us to step out of our ingrained views and suspend reality for a moment. Humour helps us gain perspective by looking at life through a distorted lens and helping us reflect on what is or is not true in our personal reality.

Humour’s reflectivity makes it an ideal tool for addressing tough topics and creating more civil brands. This ability lowers the barrier for many brands to have otherwise impossible conversations with society.

You need to admire a company that tries to bring down warmongering governments with ratty old underwear. Björn Borg, the Swedish apparel retailer founded by the famous tennis player namesake has launched three campaigns that tackle social issues head on. One campaign sends old ‘un-sexy’ underwear to war-promoting politicians like George Bush and Kim Jong-Il. Another gives a glimpse of the future to a time when (male) Catholic priests can get married to each other.

Not since Benetton has a brand been so bold with the taboos of the Catholic Church. Unfortunately for Benetton, their creative direction led them down an ever-increasing sensationalistic critique of various institutions, governments and deeply held ideas. In the end, the Benetton family had to turn their back on the creative director who had produced the ads responsible for the brand’s meteoric rise.

Of course, humour is one of the most powerful devices we have for diffusing serious subjects and tackling them from a slightly adjacent trajectory. Björn Borg can probably stay relevant and continue to tackle important social issues if they are able to keep their sense of humour. Benetton were not able to resist the temptation of becoming ever more sensationalist and increasingly serious. Björn Borg has the opportunity to avoid this slippery slope and remain relevant to customers while taking up the differentiating role of humanitarian leadership.