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When times are tough, we get serious. But staying in a prolonged crisis mode takes a toll, isn't it time we created some joy?
Recent research by TRA found that people are tired of crises. They're struggling, but still want joy, and brands are uniquely positioned to provide this.
To unpack the findings, Andrew Lewis hosts a series of three episodes on 'Play'. In this, the first episode, he's joined by Colleen Ryan, Partner at TRA and Daniel Talbot, Strategic Qualitative Director at TRA, who were both involved in conducting the research.
Andrew: We all crave a sense of joy in our lives, but when was the last time a brand made you feel joy – that sense of happiness that goes beyond just a fleeting moment or gag, becoming a lasting feeling? Hello, and welcome to Frame, a podcast dedicated to the art of knowing people. I'm your host, Andrew Lewis, Managing Director at TRA, The Research Agency. Over the next three episodes, we'll be exploring themes of humour and playfulness with thought leaders from various human science disciplines. By layering their unique perspectives on the topic, we’re going to search for truths others don’t – the uncommon truths. In today's episode, we’ll start by exploring our human need for playfulness against the backdrop of global tension, cancel culture, climate change, and cost of living crises. The use of humour is becoming increasingly fraught. So today, we're going to examine the possibility for brands to embrace play.
I'm joined today by Colleen Ryan, Partner at TRA, and Daniel Talbot, Strategic Qualitative Director at TRA, who were both involved in conducting our latest research on humour and play. Hello to you both.
Colleen: Hi, Andrew. Yes, I’m really excited about this. It’s been a really interesting project. Lots of good insights to share.
Daniel: Hi, Andrew, and hi, Colleen. I’m really excited to be here.
Andrew: Daniel, let’s start at the beginning. Can you explain what the study is all about?
Daniel: Yes, I think it’s really important that we start by acknowledging the context, the backdrop to this work. It’s true for all our research, but especially for this one, when we are talking about something like playfulness and humour. The current global and cultural environments are gloomy for many people – it’s been a challenging few years, and it still is in many ways. And so we’re starting to see many conversations in the advertising industry around humour, or rather, the loss of it in advertising. This got us thinking: why? Why is humour important? Well, put simply, humour makes people feel good, but it’s not the only way to captivate audiences and leave them feeling positive. Playfulness is less discussed, but it’s arguably more important.
Our survey data – and I’ll give you a statistic here to start with – shows that a sense of playfulness has declined. In New Zealand and Australia, six in ten people think that people’s sense of playfulness has diminished during the pandemic. With this context in mind, we set out to understand the question: is it too soon for brands to be joyful? Through our mixed-method research, both quantitative and qualitative, we found that not only is it not too soon – people actively want more playfulness and humour. So, there’s a real desire for it.
Andrew: Wow. That’s a fascinating insight: six in ten think our sense of playfulness has declined. And what you’re saying from the study is that people actively want more of it. That’s a crucial insight. Why are people seeking this humour and playfulness? In what ways are we seeking it?
Daniel: Yes, well, in many ways, we already consider ourselves a playful nation. In New Zealand, almost half of us see ourselves as being more playful and humorous than other countries, and this is slightly higher in Australia. So, there’s this real sentiment that we already are playful and humorous. But there’s also this desire for more playfulness. Again, almost half also think New Zealand and Australia can be more playful and humorous, and the qualitative research really echoed this sentiment.
That was a big question for us: what is the role of brands in playfulness? People do expect brands to deliver playfulness. Around six in ten people across New Zealand and Australia said that seeing playfulness from a brand would make them feel better about that brand, and only a small percentage felt it would make them feel worse. For those people, we did see through the research that there is nuance – playfulness used in the wrong way can land badly. But with humour, there’s even more risk. Humour that’s done wrong can really fall flat. So, both have their upsides, but there are clear risks. The simple takeaway, though, is that people want more joy. They’re seeking more joy from broader culture as well as from brands. And when you think about it, it makes sense – being in crisis mode isn’t good for us. So, it’s no wonder that we’re seeing people wanting more joy in their lives.
Andrew: Absolutely. And particularly as we see it in our DNA – both Australia and New Zealand – we perceive ourselves as joyful, playful nations. It’s easy to see how we lean into that as a response to prolonged crises. So, we see ourselves as playful nations, but we feel like there’s a decline happening around playfulness. And what I think is fascinating is that you’re saying the brand has a role to play in this as well. We want to see more playfulness in our lives. It’s an important part of our DNA as cultures in New Zealand and Australia, and people want to see brands playing – six in ten was the stat. People would like to see more playfulness from brands, and playfulness makes people feel good.
Colleen, I’ll hand this over to you. What caught your attention in this research? And would you like to expand a little on this idea? Daniel, you mentioned both humour and playfulness – would you like to expand on the distinction between the two?
Colleen: Yes, thanks, Andrew. There was so much that caught my attention in this research. But I think the distinction between playfulness and humour is really interesting, and it’s consistent. We spoke to academics, social commentators, entertainers, and CMOs, as well as conducting both qualitative and quantitative research, and this distinction was clear across all sources. The key thing is that humour is very culturally driven. It’s very personal – new migrants to a country often don’t get the local humour, and they revert to their own humour among expat friends because they just don’t understand the local humour, as it’s so culturally driven. That makes it super hard for brands to get it right, of course, because you can easily be a little bit culturally off-code. But the counter to that is, if you get it right, it sticks, and the impact can be really powerful. The CMOs we spoke to feel it’s time to lighten up a bit, and that there’s an opportunity there. But it’s kind of scary.
It’s a creative process – you do things, you’re part of it, and you go along with it. So, there’s a real opportunity there, especially in the current mood. Play is a sort of escape – a refuge from reality. From this research, it’s obvious there’s much more licence to be creative around play. There aren’t as many guardrails, and there’s not such a need to figure out that dangerous line you can’t cross with humour. The academics we spoke to, particularly regarding people’s mood and mental health, are seeing a growing role for play in people’s lives. And as always, if brands can get involved in that, it’s got to be good. There’s growing desire for brands to embrace and deliver more playfulness across the whole business. Whereas humour tends to be much more anchored in advertising, playfulness is much broader than that.
Andrew: OK, so that’s quite interesting. There’s a big difference between play and humour, and this idea that play can be a lot more universal and less bound by personal experience and cultural context is fascinating. I suppose that universal nature suggests it really is something that brands and organisations should be leaning into more than we’ve seen. It’s such a broad concept. Daniel, there’s clearly something in this, but playfulness is a big idea. How can we even begin to define it?
Daniel: People don’t see playfulness as one thing, so it’s hard to define. It manifests in a multitude of ways, depending on the context and the person. For some, it’s spending time with their cat; for others, it’s gaming, exercise, or going on holiday. It’s many things, but if we want a strict definition, we could say it’s spontaneity, creativity, and a sense of liberation from the mundane. People are clearer on what playfulness isn’t – it’s not seriousness, it’s not stress, and it’s not things seen as boring. There are plenty of guardrails around what playfulness isn’t, but what it is isn’t easily confined to a simple definition. It’s not a scheduled occasion or a significant event, but it’s present in everyday moments, and people really want it because it’s good for them. People see it as a way to strengthen and deepen connections with others, reduce stress, improve mental health, encourage creativity and experimentation, and even support self-expression. It’s a way to escape the routines and repetitive tasks of daily life, and it’s really good for brands too.
We’ve mentioned this before, but when brands are playful, it makes people feel good. It’s joyful – around six in ten say that playfulness from brands lightens their mood and makes them smile. And when those moments of joy build up – when all those little micro-moments of playfulness accumulate – it fosters a deeper emotional connection to brands and leaves a lasting impression, which is one of the differences between playfulness and humour. Play really does last; it’s a more ongoing engagement with people, and we know that connection matters. Our previous study showed that four in ten feel that playfulness makes brands feel like ‘my kind of people’, which is quite significant.
Andrew: I think that’s incredibly powerful and a fascinating starting point to build on. I just love that. I’m going to throw a few of your words together: ‘spontaneous liberation from the mundane’ is a brilliant definition and idea around playfulness. But I love this idea – it lightens us, it’s good for us, and it has all these enormously powerful qualities, even from brands. But what’s powerful in what you just said is this idea that it builds connection, and ultimately, extrapolating from that, it’s a path to relevance for brands, which makes it very powerful. The idea of playfulness can probably be written off as trivial, but it’s actually a really central and big idea. You know, in this link to making people feel good and building connection, these things add up.
Colleen, I’m interested in the human side of this experience – the idea that humour is culturally influenced, whereas play is more universal, that it’s an innate behaviour. Can you tell me more about this idea? What makes play so promising? Why should brands care?
Colleen: I think it’s because brands need to have many different threads of connection with people. Of course, they need to attract attention, be memorable, and create conversation around them. Humour does a great job of that, and it can do this even with serious topics. There was a campaign last year – or maybe earlier this year – about the dangers of children viewing pornography online. The ad featured a couple of naked people, porn stars, turning up at the door – a deeply important and serious subject, but one that nobody really wants to talk about. You can imagine a typical ad telling us all to be more vigilant, but this one grabbed attention and got people talking – highly memorable. Most people who were in New Zealand at the time will remember the ad.
There are many examples in Australia where serious subjects have been effectively brought to attention through humour. But it’s more of a one-off – a shot in the dark – rather than playfulness, which is much more ongoing. It’s not just about advertising; you can apply it across direct communications, events, customer experience, and loyalty programmes. Our survey data shows that people want advertising, but they also mention events, customer experience, and behaviour change programmes. Playfulness primarily rewards people. The top things people say about playfulness are that it lightens their mood, makes them smile, and makes them feel happy – important things in the current climate. But below that, you start getting into things like ‘it makes the brand seem like it gets people like me’, or ‘the brand is having fun with us’, or ‘the brand doesn’t take itself too seriously’. It’s reciprocal in that regard, and that’s one of its great strengths.
Andrew: That’s super interesting. We’ve talked before about the importance of connection. We seek connection, and brands play a growing role in the common interest groups that bind us. You can see that playfulness and the role it plays in demonstrating ‘it gets me’ – the reciprocity elements – can be a key facilitator for us. And there’s an uncommon truth here: when we try to find connection, we often think of purpose or ideas as the path to it. We tend to think of the ‘what’, but what you’re talking about here is the ‘how’ being really critical. This mood of playfulness can completely change the way interactions are felt and the way people feel.
Daniel, when we start to think about where play is being done well, what comes to mind?
Daniel:
That’s one of the key things we found – it’s not isolated to certain brands or categories. It can apply to how we design cities or how we encourage people to do their tax returns. It has broad application, which is what’s so exciting. Right now, people definitely see playfulness as being isolated to certain brands that are predictably playful. LEGO, for instance, or Happy Socks. But when it’s used in categories that aren’t inherently playful, it’s incredibly effective. People mentioned Air New Zealand’s Hobbit-themed safety videos and the packaging of Garage Project beers. I couldn’t remember what the packaging looked like, so I checked it out – it’s playful! It can show up in packaging, advertisements, and even sports events. Under Armour was mentioned for facilitating playful sports events. Duolingo came up frequently – they use gamification to make learning fun and playful. But the key watch-out for play is that it shouldn’t get in the way. It shouldn’t interfere with the experience. It can turn to frustration if it becomes a hindrance. So, a good guardrail is to always make play opt-in – optional – so when people are in the mood to play, they will. What’s clear is that playfulness can be used across brand activations, loyalty programmes, and even survey forms – a surprising number of people mentioned that survey forms could be more playful. People are excited about play showing up in different and unexpected ways.
Andrew: So unexpected is good. It’s an interesting part of where it’s done well. And if we’re talking about ‘spontaneous liberation from the mundane’, showing up in unexpected places probably gives playfulness its power. The possibility of application is broad, but it shouldn’t get in the way of function – it’s got to be additive. Colleen, what’s your view on this?
Colleen: I’ll start with a negative, Andrew, which is that when people don’t like playfulness, it’s because it feels forced or just seems silly. ‘Silly’ is hard to define, because a lot of playfulness takes us out of reality, which you could argue is silly. But ‘silly’ is a subset of ‘forced’. When brands do playfulness well, it’s because they bring it into the whole experience – they build it into the brand DNA, and it doesn’t feel forced. It encourages people to get involved, whereas a joke is more of an add-on.
You can’t add on playfulness. Gentle Monster and Loewe are luxury brands, but they’ve built this kind of non-serious side to their products, which is unusual for luxury brands that often take themselves very seriously. But sunglasses and handbags aren’t really addressing deep core human needs, are they? Yet they’re premium brands, and that matters to people – people buy premium brands as part of their identity. They’ve created products and experiences, like the Puzzle Bag and the interactive layout of Gentle Monster’s store, that are playful and fun. IKEA is, of course, the master of this, but other brands are recognising that there’s joy to be found when people are involved in fun, interactive spaces. Gaming is also really playful, and there’s a lot to learn from that. Not all gaming is ‘shoot-em-up’ – many games are gentle and draw out people’s creativity. TikTok, as well, shows how much people like to play and engage with others doing the same thing. So, there’s a lot for brands to learn from these environments.
Andrew: OK, so play itself is a very powerful idea in driving connection. And the key takeaway from brands doing it well is that it really can’t be forced, or it feels silly or wrong. One big idea is that it needs to come from the brand’s DNA – our version of playfulness should align with the brand. When we do that, we’re less likely to end up in a place where it feels silly. So, that’s an interesting idea about how to deliver spontaneous liberation from the mundane without ending up in a place of silliness. Brand DNA is our guide there.
Lots of amazing stuff as we touch the surface of this study, which we’ll be looking at in depth over the coming weeks. Shall we try to bring some of those insights together and look at what’s come out of this discussion?
First and foremost, people are seeking more joy. Whether we’re talking about humour or playfulness, we want more of it. In fact, for Kiwis and Aussies, it’s in our DNA – we feel playful, but we feel it’s decreasing in society, which we don’t want. We need something as an antidote to the prolonged crises we’ve been facing, and brands have the licence to play here. One of the questions we asked was, ‘Is it too soon for brands to be joyous?’ The answer is no. In fact, six in ten people would like to see more joy from brands. There’s an invitation to participate in lightening people’s lives and bringing something positive.
When people feel more joy, it creates a sense of connection that goes beyond what humour can do. Humour creates short bursts of salience and cultural alignment, but playfulness is more prolonged and more invested. We talked about reciprocity – playfulness creates a sense of mutual engagement. There’s a lot here that’s powerful for brands. Rather than thinking of playfulness as something silly or trivial, we can see it as an important way to create connection, demonstrate relevance, and show that we’re on the same page. But there are some guardrails: playfulness should never get in the way of function. It’s great to have these unexpected liberations from the mundane, but it must be additive and aligned with the brand’s DNA. There’s definitely a licence to be playful, but it has to be coherent with who we are to avoid seeming silly.
Recognising that humour and playfulness are different ideas is crucial. Humour is important in creating salience and finding connection with culture, but playfulness has a big role in how we apply it across everything we do.
A fascinating discussion – thank you all. I look forward to hearing more about this study in the coming weeks
Thank you to Daniel and Colleen for joining me today in the studio.
Daniel: Thank you, Andrew.
Colleen: Thanks, Andrew, it was fun.
Andrew: If you enjoyed today’s discussion, tune in to next week’s episode, where we’ll be uncovering new truths about the role of play at the intersections of behaviour change and brand. Thanks for listening to Frame, a podcast by TRA dedicated to the art of knowing people. TRA is an insight agency. By layering perspectives from the science of human understanding, we see what others don’t – the uncommon truths. To explore more of our thinking on play, visit https://www.theresearchagency.com/play
