Comics

Scott Adams, creator of Dilbert, talks about comics and how different parts of the audience responds to them.

Gag Lovers: This group looks for classic cleverness in their comics. They don’t care that much about art, as long as it isn’t distracting. Nor do they care about the comic’s relevance to their life. “Funny is funny� would be their motto. They’re about 20% of the population at most.

Visual People: This group cares so much about the look of a comic that the writing becomes secondary. The people in this group would never admit that their sense of humor is influenced by the art, but their lists of favorite comics will always be the ones that are the most artistically accomplished. They’re about 20% of the population too.

Relevance People: This group cares the least about the art and cleverness of a comic. They look for comics that are relevant to their own lives. They want to know they’re not alone in their peeves and viewpoints. This group is the largest, probably 60% of the population.

If you substitute the word "comic" with "ad", I believe his comment still holds water.

You can make your ad funny. You can also make it look great. But you must make it relevant to the reader. Only then will you stand a chance of engaging them. And remember, people like comics and hate ads. It's double the challenge.