How to effectively promote travel via humour was the subject of a lively "Comedy Sells" panel discussion at WTM London on Wednesday (5 November), hosted by BBC presenter Nick Kwek and starring comedian Maisie Adam, who offered her perspective on how to connect with potential new audiences through jokes.

“Humour drives perceptions of authenticity, and that in turn builds trust,” said Ursula Horne, head of insights at BBC Studios.

Comedy, the panel agreed, has become an increasingly popular tool for selling travel in recent years, deployed in everything from Melissa McCarthy’s Booking.com adverts to the Channel 4 series Miriam [Margolyes] and Alan [Cumming]: Lost in Scotland and Beyond.

“Humour has been making a comeback in the industry since the pandemic,” said Naomi Taylor, managing editor of BBC Storyworks. “People are hungry for some light relief amidst all the negative headlines and polarisation.”

Adam said humour captured people's attention, particularly with so much content now being shared online and on social media. “People are more likely to stop scrolling if they see something funny in this era of short attention spans,” she said.

Seek out 'passionate advocates'

Taylor said casting was key when it came to deploying humour effectively. “We do a lot of deep research at Storyworks into finding the right people to tell the right travel story,” Taylor continued.

“These people are representing your brand so they need to be passionate advocates of your destination.”

Meanwhile, Adam encouraged travel professionals to “make the ordinary extraordinary”, citing the positive reaction to her recent video with OTA Kayak on aircraft etiquette.

Martin Clarke, senior marketing manager for tourism at West Midlands Growth Company, who partnered with BBC Storyworks on Welcome to the Westlands last year, said he has already seen the benefits of this approach.

“The campaign has had a significant impact for us,” he said. “We’ve had a record number of visitors come to the region with a 2% jump in overseas visitors, most of whom are coming from North America.”

The panellists also discussed the risks of using humour as a marketing tool, with Taylor emphasising the importance of understanding your audience.

Adam agreed, noting comedy is about “finding the thing that connects everybody while still being acutely aware of the location and audience".