In a recent LinkedIn Group Discussion, the question was asked "Is a touch of humor a good way to 'humanize' your marketing communications"?  It's fair to say most people enjoy humor in the appropriate context. But can it fit within a content marketing strategy designed to sell advanced instrumentation to scientists? In marketing, when we talk about humor, I think most of us imagine clever advertisements or videos that get noticed and go viral.In the sciences, those are often perceived as risky. Unlike Conan, most of us don't have another joke in the queue to help us recover when we bomb on our first attempt. Don't get me wrong, I love a funny video. Even my wife (a non-scientist) can appreciate something like this.For a product launch with an appropriate budget, that may be a perfectly good option. But for small companies with limited budget, how can humor be used effectively and sustainably to generate business?There are as many shades of humor as there are of the color green.  Humor doesn't necessarily have to be outright funny. Sometimes it's just a pleasant surprise.If we broaden our definition  to include every interaction that provokes a smile or even a chuckle, as well as big productions intended to generate full blown gut-busting laughter, we can find many ways to take advantage of humor's ability to help us connect with others.Imagine humor were a line item in your budget. How would you spend it? You could spend it on a video or an event that might create a tremendous impact all at once.Or you could spread your investment around. Would you be willing to spend a little bit of your humor budget every time someone comes to your website, visits your booth at an event or receives an email from you?While every marketer would love to hit a home run with a video that goes viral and creates a lot of brand awareness, we can make a bigger impact day to day if we think about every potential interaction with every customer. This applies to our email messages (bulk and personal), images on our web pages, the button text in our calls to action and the confirmation messages that follow them.Which strategy do you prefer? The first option is a gamble.  The second one is an inexpensive investment that over time has real potential to differentiate your business from all of your competitors. Consistently humanizing your customer interactions in small ways at every opportunity is a path to valuable brand affinity.Do you need help with a content marketing plan? Contact me for a free consultation. If you need ideas about how to make your content more useful and engaging, join your colleagues who enjoy automatic updates and subscribe to this blog.