The B2B Playbook

#218: Why Being Funny in B2B Marketing is a Serious Brand Strategy (and How To Do It!) - Deadpan's Luke Winter

The B2B Playbook

Show Notes

Most B2B content looks polished. But almost none of it gets remembered. In this episode, we break down why humour isn’t a creative risk in B2B. It’s a strategic advantage.

We’re joined by Luke Winter, founder of Deadpan and one of the few people proving that B2B marketing with humour drives memory, brand lift, and real revenue.

Luke shares how a single funny B2B video generated over $300K in sales, why AI-generated content is creating sameness, and how brands can use comedy frameworks to stand out without needing a massive budget.

We also unpack: + Why most B2B brands confuse looking professional with being effective + The science behind entertaining ads and higher conversion rates + How to turn real customer pain points into memorable content

+ Five practical frameworks to generate funny B2B ideas + How to build a sitcom-style content series for your brand + How to get CEO buy-in without calling it “comedy”

Tune in and learn: + Why humour works better than features in B2B + How to create distinctive brand memory in a world of AI slop + How to apply comedy without damaging credibility

If you’re a B2B marketer trying to stand out, build trust, and stop blending in, this episode is essential.

----------------------------------------------------- 🔗 Links + CTAs ----------------------------------------------------- 🎓 Join our Demand Generation Program: https://theb2bplaybook.com/demand-generation-course

🧠 Learn how to drive revenue across your organisation with CRO School: https://theb2bplaybook.com/cro-school

💼 Need help running your own LinkedIn Thought Leadership Ads? https://theb2bplaybook.com/linkedin-ads-agency

----------------------------------------------------- SUBSCRIBE to our channel: / @theb2bplaybook SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter: https://theb2bplaybook.com/newsletter GET the latest CONTENT: https://theb2bplaybook.com/ -----------------------------------------------------

00:00 Why Humour Is a Smart B2B Brand Strategy 01:10 Why B2B Comedy Is Untapped 02:00 AI vs Memorability 03:20 Why Corporate Videos Fail 04:10 The Video That Changed Everything 06:00 From 234 Views to $300K 07:00 The Showmanship Era 08:10 Why B2B Content Gets Ignored 09:10 Showmanship vs Salesmanship 10:00 Turning Pain into Comedy 11:30 The Data Behind Funny Ads 13:00 Why Humour Isn’t Risky 15:00 The Customer Is the Hero 16:40 Comedy Frameworks 20:20 Comedic Displacement 23:20 Opposites in Comedy 26:00 Metaphors That Work 28:00 Parody and Associations 31:40 Testing with Memes 34:30 Sitcom-Style B2B Content 36:50 Getting CEO Buy-In

-----------------------------------------------------

👥 Are you a B2B marketer in a small team??

💰 Need to bring in more revenue for your company (so sales and your boss love you??)

Get the: 🔹 strategy 🔹 templates 🔹 tools

So you have everything you need to drive more revenue for your brand.

See why other B2B marketers like you love The B2B Incubator

Check out: https://theb2bplaybook.com/demand-generation-course

S08 E218 - The B2B Playbook #b2b #b2bmarketing #brandstrategy #humourinmarketing #demandgeneration

More from The B2B Playbook

Oct 18, 2026

In this video, I chat with Kevin about LinkedIn ads frequency caps, and why the native member level caps won't stop a handful of big companies from eating your whole budget.

Oct 11, 2026

In this video, I chat with Kevin about why your weekly sales and marketing sync isn't enough on its own, and how to turn it into a real feedback loop.

Oct 4, 2026

In this video, I break down why lead scoring falls short in B2B and what to do instead. We get into cataloging the market, buying committees, ICP fit and timing, and how to use scoring as an overlay.

Sep 28, 2026

In this video, I sit down with David Fastuca, the founder who built Locomotive, sold it to Travelport, bought it back, then sold it again to Webjet.

Sep 20, 2026

In this video, I sit down with Jared Robin, the founder of revgenius, to unpack how he built a 100,000-plus member community by staying obsessively close to his market and betting on relationships over platforms.

See all episodes →