“A sense of humor is part of the art of leadership, of getting along with people, of getting things done” – Dwight D. Eisenhower

Laughter defines our relationship with the world. Sadly, very little is known about this remarkable form of human interaction even though there’s been a great deal of research done. Most of the studies have been related to the physical nature of laughter, but its digitised aspect is as important, especially in an age where people interact most online.

Recently Facebook published insights into recent changes in how people laugh online, from the abbreviated laugh out loud (LOL) to exclamations – haha, hehe – and emoji. The social networking giant’s findings were inspired by an article published in the New Yorker exploring the various ways people laugh while connected.

Facebook kicked it up a notch using its vast resources to collect and collate the data. What they found was that haha occurred at a frequency of 51.4%, while emoji and hehe took up 33.7% and 13.1%, respectively. Lol had a dismal frequency of 1.9%. The data further goes beyond just percentages, indicating that ‘ha’ and ‘he’ form building blocks of laughter. There are even hybrids that shape intricate forms of hilarity – hahahe, heha (we’re not making this up).

Content strategies need humor too

It may seem like an inconsequential modification of pop culture to some digital marketers, but you’d be sorely wrong and are missing out on an incredible content strategy as a result. The trend indicates the complexity in showing ones level of admiration, happiness and trust, all of which are essential to increasing content engagement. In fact, a study published in the journal of Behaviour found that the way people laugh is related to how they form relationships and the subsequent level of cooperation within them.

Researchers also found that the frequency of laughter increases in more social environments – you don’t say. Although most research delves into acoustics, the premise can be applied to mute, digital expressions of laughter as well, as has been seen by the data released by Facebook (hahe, haheha – seriously, we’re not making this up).

Understanding and using such adjustments is an opportunity for digital marketers to truly connect with their audience with an engaging content strategy. To say, “We’re one of you” and not a machine that perceives your existence as merely a number to profit from – haha. As laughter is synonymous with trust and cooperation, it would make a lot of sense to adjust our own content to suit the times. It may have us laughing all the way to the bank if we do it right.

Do you have more to add or do you want us to stop being comedians and stick to our day jobs? Let us know by leaving a comment.