With so many different voices competing for attention online, some marketing professionals may feel discouraged about their ability to successfully attract customers and grow their business in this medium, especially going into the new year.

However, 2013 marks a great time for small businesses to revisit their approach to online marketing. One idea that many marketing departments may be interested in exploring is adding humor to their social media, online content and Web advertising.

While this may sound difficult, there are several reasons that this approach is not only beneficial, but right for some small businesses:

A new approach may inspire broad cooperation – While your employees may not be willing to dedicate their extra time to more intensive assignments, certain ones like posting humorous videos shared around the office or shooting videos of office hijinks can get more employees involved. With the pressure off, contributors may be more willing to dedicate their downtime to the company effort.

Humor can cause a social stir – If you employ mostly young workers, there's a great chance they're already well-versed in social media. They may engage with other companies or entities through these platforms, and as such, tapping into this knowledge base can help you provide them with a creative outlet that furthers the company's goals.

Small businesses have marketing flexibility – According to Jeffrey Hayzlett, a one-time CFO for a Fortune 100 company, flexibility is one advantage that allows small businesses to use humor to their advantage. Since any mistakes or missteps are unlikely to attract high-profile interest, this gives small companies the ability to conduct trial and error until they find a humorous way to get their message to potential customers and establish a brand identity.