Does Humor Belong in Sales?

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I have always been a firm believer that if you can make someone laugh, they will remember you forever. Okay, maybe not forever, but they will remember you more than they would someone who isn’t funny! 

However, not everyone agrees with me about using humor in sales, and that’s okay! 

Although I use humor in sales, it is very important to keep in mind that there is a time and place for it. There is a difference between being funny, and being obnoxious or inappropriate! 

Right, so where do we draw the line? 

Avoid Politics 

Regardless of your political affiliation, it is my opinion that avoiding mention of politics, especially in a joking or mocking way that could be offensive, is for the best. You may think you can assume someone’s political affiliation, and make a joke about the “opposing party”, and they will not find it funny. 

To be completely transparent, I have made that mistake a couple times when I was new in sales! I was absolutely certain a fellow salesperson (technically considered a customer) would find a joke about a particular political party funny, and they did not laugh. 

Trust me on this one. It’s best to just leave that one alone! 

It’s Called “NSFW” For a Reason

Even with customers with whom I have the strongest of relationships, I don’t really make inappropriate jokes to them when we speak! It’s just not something that I think they would appreciate. 

Now, don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love raunchy comedy and extremely inappropriate standup comedy. In fact, for my thirteenth birthday, my mother took me to see George Carlin live just a few years before he passed away. 

That all changes when I’m dealing with folks having to do with business. 

Does that make me disingenuous? Absolutely not! I still make just as many jokes, and I’m just as sarcastic as ever, I just keep it PG-13 - so to speak. 

Also, I wouldn’t really appreciate a salesperson telling an inappropriate joke if I were a customer, so I just don’t tell those types of jokes to customers. 

So what if a customer tells you a dirty joke first? 

Personally, I’ll laugh about it if it’s funny, but I don’t reciprocate with the same type of humor. It’s just something I feel as though doesn't belong in a business setting, unless it were after hours or otherwise outside of said business setting. 

I will also take the time to mention racist, sexist, religious, or otherwise offensive humor like that should be refrained from at all times in a business atmosphere. 

To be honest, that should go without saying, as well as me reminding you that this type of humor isn’t appropriate in any atmosphere and really doesn’t belong in our world. 

Well, no duh, right?

Then what are you supposed to do? 

Try Using Sarcastic Responses to Common Questions 

Whether it be on the phone, in an email, or in person, someone is inevitably going to ask, “how are you today?” or something along those lines. Pretty standard stuff, yeah? 

Rather than responding with, “not bad” or “good, you?” you could try, “not bad for a Tuesday afternoon to be honest with you!”

Another one of my favorites is, “just living the dream, I’m not sure whose it is yet, but I’m living it”.

As always, I encourage you to always be honest, and that includes being honest with your feelings or how your day is going. If someone asks me how I am on a day I’m not feeling well, I will be completely honest. 

I will say, “I’ve been better honestly, but I’ve also been a lot worse, so I’m doing alright”. 

Said with the right tone, that one usually gets a pretty good chuckle, and it’s just the honest truth. I don’t think what I said is funny as much as it catches them off guard. Either way, if you make them laugh, they remember that, and it loosens up the conversation. 

Another common thing people say, almost mindlessly, “have a good day” is something I like to catch them off guard with. 

This one’s really good! 

I’ll sometimes respond with, “don’t tell me what kind of day to have!” in a clearly sarcastic tone. Since they are saying something to you in an auto-pilot mode, a response like that will certainly catch them off guard and make them laugh! It’s almost guaranteed! 

There are plenty of other common questions or statements you can “riff” off, so just come up with something really witty and sarcastic with which you can reply, and start getting some laughs and become more memorable! 

Otherwise, just be you and if you’re the funny type, be funny! That doesn’t mean you have to go out of your way to be funny all the time, but it’s okay to let out a joke once in a while. 

CONCLUSION

Yes, humor absolutely belongs in sales, but it should be appropriate for a business environment, and at a proper time. 

When you are having a serious conversation with a customer, it’s probably not the best time to crack a joke, or to try and get a laugh. I never suggest you try and ease tensions with a customer, or try to win them over somehow with humor. 

Humor should be used to simply make them laugh, because making someone laugh makes them feel great! Making your customers feel great is what selling with empathy is all about! 

It can also be used to break the ice with a new customer, or a cold prospect. Again, it needs to be really basic humor like responding to basic questions with a bit of wit. 

Otherwise, I’m not sure how to teach someone how to be funny, or teach them jokes to say. It’s not like telling scripted jokes or anything. It should be more genuine, and it could just be a result of you joking around and having fun with the customer! 

What do you think? Do you think humor belongs in sales?