Trolls are near-omnipresent across social media platforms and forums, purposefully seeking to derail how people and brands communicate online. Yet while these interactions are usually seen as malicious, how can brands use trolling tactics to create a unique voice and win over the public?

Russian diplomats have no qualms about using official Twitter accounts to troll the West. In a recent tweet, the UK's embassy used the country’s sinister public image as fodder for a light-hearted Star Wars joke, showing a willingness to merge the political sphere with the entertainment world.

Sweden’s deputy prime minister is trolling Donald Trump through Twitter to make a point about women’s rights. With young people notoriously politically disengaged, politicians are using comedic techniques to enable serious issues to gain a wider audience.

If Faisal Islam, Ralph Keyes and theNew York Timesare to be believed, the Trump candidacy and the vote for Brexit show we've entered a post-truth era – a world where emotion and populism win out over facts and experts. But is it true? And do emotional appeals really trump facts and figures?