Humor Means Business: Funny Explainer Videos for B2B Marketing

Here’s a scenario: there’s a product called Qt for Python, a toolkit that makes building user interfaces (UIs) in Python easier. It offers cross-platform libraries and tools, helps with data visualization and graphics, and comes with intuitive APIs, thorough documentation, responsive support, and a vibrant developer community.

Sounds a bit… dull, doesn’t it? Now watch how they’ve explained their product in this hilarious explainer video.

This video takes what could’ve been a snooze-fest of technical specs and transforms it into something fun, understandable, and memorable.

That’s the magic of funny product explainer videos. They turn dry content into something digestible, relatable, and downright enjoyable. In the B2B world, it’s easy to get lost in jargon and feature lists – and lose your audience’s attention.

But when you inject humor into explainer videos, it also boosts engagement and recall. In fact, 72% of people say they would choose a brand that uses humor over a competitor. Because humor sticks. Studies have also shown that 90% of people remember funny ads, and 69% are more likely to click on an email with a funny subject line.

In short, when you make your audience smile or laugh, you become more memorable and likable. And in the world of B2B, where relationships and trust matter, humor = engagement + memorability.

What are Funny Explainer Videos?

Funny explainer videos for B2B are short, engaging videos (about 60–90 seconds long) that break down a product or service in a humorous way. They often follow a clear structure – presenting a problem, showing the solution (your product/service), and ending with a call-to-action. In terms of treatment, they can be either live or animated comedy explainer videos or a mix of both.

These videos use wit, playful scenarios, or even absurdity to entertain while they inform. Instead of listing features in a long, dry, and boring format, funny explainers tell a little story or use a metaphor that makes the viewers smile.

The humor can be subtle or silly, but it’s always there to serve the message, making a complex or boring topic feel fun as well as accessible

Why does Humor work?

Cuts through the Noise

In a world filled with doomscrolling on social media, going through hundreds of ads, emails, and messages, humor is a refreshing break. Humorous explainer videos stand out in a sea of serious content. People are more likely to notice and pay attention when you surprise them with something entertaining or offbeat. When consumers associate absurd humor with authenticity, it shows a brand isn’t afraid to be different.

Increases Memory and Recall

There’s a reason why we remember funny commercials from years ago. Laughter triggers positive emotions and even a dose of endorphins in the brain, which helps imprint memories. Simply put, when we enjoy something, we remember it better. Humor often comes from a twist or surprise, and that element of surprise is powerful for memory. So if you want your audience to retain your key points, wrapping them in a bit of comedy is a clever move.

Builds Emotional Connection and Community

In this day and age, sharing is everything. See something funny on Instagram? Share. See a relatable meme on X? Share. Humor is social, and it creates a bond. The same goes for brands: making someone laugh builds goodwill.

A survey found that 48% of people say they don’t feel a “relationship” with a brand unless it makes them smile or laugh. In B2B, where long-term relationships and community matter, a laugh can humanize your company. It shows there are real people behind the logo, and they understand the audience’s daily struggles. Building emotional connection through humor (like an inside joke about a common industry pain point) can even foster a sense of community among your customers.

Build Trust within the Brand

Humor, when done right, signals confidence. It shows that your brand isn’t overly stiff or “trying too hard” to sell something – you’re comfortable enough to joke. That can make buyers feel more at ease with you. A quirky brand video or funny SaaS explainer can make your brand seem more approachable and honest. The point is, a touch of humor can make your brand feel more like a partner and less like a faceless corporation.

Psychological & Marketing Insights

There’s actual science behind why humor is effective. Laughter can put people in a good mood, and studies have shown that when we’re in a positive mood, we’re often more receptive to new ideas (and more generous in our judgments). Research indicates that humor activates the brain’s reward centers, making content more engaging. Plus, when a joke lands, it often involves a bit of surprise or insight, which rewards the brain for “figuring it out.” All this means viewers are actively processing your message rather than tuning out. All in all, humor works on both a human level and a business level – it engages the brain, the heart, and yes, the wallet. This is why attention-grabbing explainer videos with humor outperform their serious counterparts.

Examples of Funny Explainer Videos

1. Business Differently with QuickBooks

This video by QuickBooks may only be 30 seconds long, but it packs a punch. Instead of the usual corporate clichés, this explainer drops us into a lively gala to emphasize that QuickBooks makes running your business easier.

The visuals are glamorous, the tone is celebratory, and the message is clear: no matter how you define success, QuickBooks has the tools to help you get there. This is a perfect example of how humor, style, and storytelling can turn a simple product message into something shareable.

2. BI vs. IT: The Struggle for Data Ends Now

This explainer by Snowflake, a cloud data platform, takes a common corporate conflict and turns it into a comedic showdown. This video hilariously portrays rivalry between the BI (business intelligence) and IT teams through prank wars to highlight the pain of data silos.

The use of exaggerated humor in this video keeps the audience engaged and entertained while driving home the point: Snowflake can end the fight by uniting data for everyone involved.

3. SCAYLE // It’s a metaphor!

In this explainer video, SCAYLE, an e-commerce platform, used an out-of-the-box approach by mimicking a cheesy pharmaceutical ad to explain its product. By framing its software as a miracle medicine for online retailers’ headaches, SCAYLE presented itself as a fast-acting cure for e-commerce pain.

What’s particularly delightful about this explainer video is that although it’s almost 3 minutes long, not a single moment feels drab or unhelpful. Throughout the video, we get an insight into the product, its uses, and solutions while also maintaining the humor factor throughout. It’s a great example of video storytelling in action.

4. How One Business Brought Manufacturing Back to the US

The biggest advantage of funny explainer videos is that even a topic like manufacturing can be made fun to learn about. This is evident in the explainer video by Ornasi, makers of electric motor-based products. It’s educational, sure, but it’s also funny and heartwarming.

The video features candid clips of Oransi’s team, lighthearted narration, and even a few jokes about the challenges they faced. By using a friendly, humorous tone and featuring the people who made it all happen, Ornasi made viewers care about their manufacturing story and remember it.

Best Practices for using humor in Explainer Videos

1. Understand your audience: It’s crucial to know and understand who you’re talking to because what makes a software engineer laugh may make a product manager cringe. So, tailor the tone and messaging to your target audience. Speak their language. Avoid jokes that would go over their heads or, worse, offend them. Ultimately, the goal is to make your viewers smile and get them to understand your product and not leave them scratching their heads.
   
2. Balance humor with your message: In funny explainer videos for B2B, the comedy should support the goal without overshadowing it. Sometimes, you may get caught up in the humor and lose the thread of the actual message. So, always start by nailing down the key point or benefit you need to communicate (your value proposition or “what’s in it for the customer”).
   
3. Keep it short and engaging: The sweet spot for explainer videos is usually around 1–2 minutes (often closer to 60–90 seconds). Humor or not, brevity is golden. Keep your pacing snappy. Use visual gags or quick cuts to maintain interest. From a content perspective, focus on one main storyline or theme; don’t try to cram every single feature into the video. Aim to entertain, inform, and then hit your CTA before the audience’s attention wanders.
   
4. Make a video where the humor matches your brand’s style: Every brand has a voice and personality. And your explainer video should reflect that. The humor should feel like it belongs to you. The key here is authenticity – the humor should come from a genuine place in your brand culture.
   
   Ask yourselves this: Does this comedic approach reflect our values and how we normally talk to customers? If not, you may need to adjust the tone. It’s crucial to remember not to force humor on your audience, because they can tell when a brand is trying too hard.
   
   Here’s a litmus test you can use: if you swapped out your logo with a competitor’s, would the joke still land? If yes, then maybe it’s too generic; you need to refine it to be more you.

Mistakes to avoid

• Trying too hard to be funny: Not every line needs a joke or two, and not every scene needs to end in a punchline. When you try too hard to be funny, the humor can feel strained, unnatural, and could ultimately fall flat.
  
• Insensitive or inappropriate jokes: It’s worth noting that humor should never come at the cost of offending or belittling your audience. Steer clear of jokes about race, religion, gender, politics, or any hot-button issues that could alienate or upset viewers. Be mindful of global audiences; something that’s culturally funny in one region could be misunderstood elsewhere. The goal here is to make people happy, not uncomfortable. So, consider avoiding humor that relies on negative stereotypes or punching down at any group.
  
• Overdoing the Comedy (to the Point of Losing the Message): One big mistake is when companies get so wrapped up in producing a hilarious video that viewers remember the joke but not the product. Don’t let the humor completely steal the spotlight. Don’t distract from the core story. If a comedic bit doesn’t serve the narrative, consider trimming it.
  
• No Clear CTA (Call to Action): A common mistake is ending a funny video with just a laugh and no direction on what the viewer should do next. The audience might think, “That was great!” and then… move on, forgetting to engage further. Always include a clear CTA at the end (or even as a gentle prompt during the video if appropriate). They’ve enjoyed the show; now invite them to continue the journey with you.
  
  It could be visiting your website, signing up for a demo, or contacting you for further information.

In the B2B world, funny product explainer videos are about creating content people actually want to pay attention to. Humor makes you memorable, approachable, and trustworthy, all while delivering the message your audience needs to hear.

So the next time you want to make a feature-heavy product video, ask yourself: what if we explained our product that brings smiles and not sighs? Because when you’ve engaged your audience in laughter, half the battle is won.

Ready to give your own brand story the funny-explainer treatment? We, at Red Bangle, can help you create a video that cuts through the clutter, lands in the audience’s mind, and sticks around.

Let’s make your next explainer video one that informs, entertains, and most importantly, gets remembered.