When Potty Humor Is Okay

As Twitter becomes the primary place to engage audiences in real time, it’s more important than ever that brands be nimble and proactive in their commentary on the day’s trends. But how can companies avoid controversial quagmires while remaining worldly and witty? Here’s an example (via Complex).

On Tuesday night the Comedy Central show @Midnight cracked a joke about rejected names for college football bowl games, and by the wee hours of the morning the hashtag #RejectedBowlGames was trending on Twitter.

Not wanting to miss out on the off-color fun, Clorox floated its own awkward entry, “Toilet Bowl,” a good-natured dig at the brand’s mundane area of expertise.

By  morning Clorox had been deemed the unofficial winner over submissions by brands like Charmin and Cap’n Crunch. Don’t feel behind the times if you’re not following any of these companies – none of them exactly screams social media. But they gained major points (and major followers) across the web for their quick-witted and quick-footed responses.

Every brand can gain an edge from this responsive, playful approach to social media. Here are a few lessons from Clorox’s triumph:

1. Have a Sense of Humor: Trust is crucial to social media, and users trust brands that are willing to have a laugh (especially if it’s at their own expense).
2. Be Timely: Jumping on a trend late is about as cool as the Macarena. Loosen your social media reins a bit and let the conversations happen as close to real-time as possible. After all, humor is all about timing, right?
3. Avoid Controversy: Quick, funny messaging means bold messaging, which understandably gives many brands the sweats. But by avoiding charged issues (where your brand doesn’t belong anyway) and sticking to self-effacing, playful messaging, you’ll be in the clear.