Comedians and SEO Marketing

By Sally Edwards at ComedyBySally.com

As a clean female comedian, I am often approached by church groups to ask me to perform clean comedy for women.  They find me in a number of ways including mailings, word-of-mouth and SEO (search engine optimization).  Therefore, I spend many hours each day trying to get to the top of that very important Google search.

In addition to finding the ideal keywords, meta tags and descriptions for my site, I am continually searching YouTube videos regarding the most recent developments for optimizing websites.  Ironically, the YouTube video I discovered today discussed the optimization of YouTube videos!  This video offered a wealth of information which will be of great benefit to me when promoting myself as a clean female comedian.

Dave Bowen is very clean in his instruction and he offers daily tasks for serious students of YouTube SEO.  I recommend his videos to other funny clean comedians hoping to advance their videos for promotion.

Stand up Comedy - Your First Appearance on the Comedy Stage

Tips for Performing Stand-up Comedy

You think you're a funny guy or girl and you've gathered enough courage to perform on New Talent Night at a local comedy club. How should you prepare to face a room full of strangers and make them laugh? First, you need your arsenal of funny material. Take time during the day to sit down and write a joke with a simple joke structure. The simplest and most basic form of joke writing is "set up and punchline". "Setting up a joke" is providing basic information about an experience or topic. It establishes a place, a feeling and a presence. The punchline element produces the surprise and the unexpected ending. A genuine surprise elicits laughter from an audience which proves your joke is effective. 

 Memorize your jokes and rehearse them either mentally or verbally. Create a visual picture in your head of the subject matter and your first jokes will be more easily committed to memory. Continue rehearsing your jokes daily until they can be recited out loud and with confidence. Achieving a relaxed conversational tone will demonstrate command of the stage and put an audience at ease. Many new comedians assume they can stand on stage and be an "off-the-cuff" guy or girl. This can be a dangerous assumption. The first time on stage can be intimidating and it is very possible that increased nervousness will steal your mental reflexes and response time. You will be facing lights and strange faces as the audience stares at you, and you alone. Most likely, you will feel robbed of your humorous creativity as you know it. Having a solidly memorized "set" of material will give you a performance safety net on stage. It is better that improvising skills are utilized once an audience is engaged and laughing. 

 The first time on stage triggers the primal fear of facing a roomful of unfamiliar faces. You are taking on a very formidable challenge when standing on the comedy stage. Don't be too hard on yourself. Congratulations on conquering a fear that is only second to death. It does get better and more fun as you feel more comfortable on stage and as you get to know your "character". Performing on a weekly or nightly basis will make the joke writing easier and the performances will appear more natural. Taking those first few steps on the comedy stage are giant leaps in terms of personal goals and a lifetime of effort and enjoyment.    

ComedyBySally.com

Clean Comedian Sally Edwards Hosts Zanies' "Top Ten"

On Tuesday nights beginning on October 22nd at 8:00 p.m., the best and the brightest Chicago comedians will be taking the stage at Zanies Comedy Club located in the new MB Financial Park at 5437 Park Place, Rosemont, IL 60018.  After spending a few years away from the comedy club scene in order to pursue my clean corporate comedy at special events and women's conferences, I am returning to the Zanies Comedy Club stage in Rosemont, IL to host their special weekly comedy event called "The Tuesday Ten." 

Adding a new performance night at Zanies Comedy Club offers a great opportunity to established comedians to showcase their talents.  Whether comedians are performing new material or old standards the show will rock.  I absolutely love hosting comedy shows at Zanies in Rosemont because the room is intimate yet dynamic. The sound is fantastic which gives an added punch to the very funny material the comedians are delivering.  Hope to see everyone there!

 

Zanies Comedy Club & The Tuesday Ten with Sally Edwards

After spending a few years away from the comedy club scene in order to pursue my clean corporate comedy at special events and women's conferences, I am returning to the Zanies Comedy Club stage in Rosemont, IL to host their special weekly comedy event called "The Tuesday Ten."  On Tuesday nights beginning on October 22nd at 8:00 p.m., the best and the brightest Chicago comedians will be taking the stage at Zanies Comedy Club located in the new MB Financial Park at 5437 Park Place, Rosemont, IL 60018.

Adding a new performance night at Zanies Comedy Club offers a great opportunity to established comedians to showcase their talents.  Whether comedians are performing new material or old standards the show will rock.  I absolutely love hosting comedy shows at Zanies in Rosemont because the room is intimate yet dynamic. The sound is fantastic which gives an added punch to the very funny material the comedians are delivering.  Hope to see everyone there!

Comedy in L.A. with Ray Romano

     Just took a trip out to L.A. and had a super time.  My husband, Bert and I, planned the trip to see our children who are in L.A. and San Francisco respectively.  However, we did spend some time at The Comedy Magic Club in Hermosa Beach because my husband is a friend of the manager Richie Barrett.  Our son Steven, who is also a comedian, joined.  (Of course that was the best part for me.)

     Richie was an awesome host and made us feel very much at home.  We ate dinner in his company in a private room and really received the super treatment.  It was a special thrill for our son because he is relatively new to the comedy scene and he got a real bird's eye view of backstage.

    As is customary to the Comedy Magic Club the stars were out.  Although I have met most "wow" comedians from their visits to Chicago, I had never met Ray Romano and he made a special guest visit that evening.  It just so happened that there was a benefit that night and the audience was all women.  Believe me, I wanted to be on that stage but Ray handled the same sex crowd with finesse.  They loved him!

      We exited when Ray's portion of the show was over.  On the way out, I passed him in the hallway and shook his hand.  He was very gracious and I told him I was big fan of his show that still airs daily.  If you want to know what Ray Romano is really like - watch "Everybody Loves Raymond."  At first glance, it does seem to provide a true reflection.

We're Movin' On Up!

I have some fun shows coming up in the next couple weeks and 2012 but I have to say my favorite place to perform is my hometown of Wauconda.  When my friends, Vicki Laureys and Monica Jablonski decided to bring stand up comedy to Lake County (since the closing of Zanies) I never dreamed we'd open such a wonderful room.  When three women open a comedy club it is soooo different than a club run by a man.  Of course, I'm biased but the ambience of the room, the cleanliness of the bathrooms, the big smiles that greet customers when they walk in is something to that deserves recognition.  And we are happy - genuinely happy!  It's all new and we're reinventing ourselves.  Could three business women ask for anything more.

The room is comfy with so many different kinds of chairs that generates eclectic charm.  The comedians are so warmly welcome, they go on stage and immediately feel the supportive vibe.  I personally love the audiences who want to see you succeed.  Do you know what you get when you give positive energy to a comedian - a super show.  We're the little kids who used to spin in circles or do magic tricks or lip-sink songs while the adults egged us on.  The positive nature of the Lake County crowds is instrumental in the great shows that have hit home since the opening on October 8th.

You can have Hollywood, the glitter, the glare, the noise and the traffic.  I'll take Wauconda because comedy, for me, is to make people feel good!  And it happens here.

Gearing up for "Comedy Laugh In!"

     I love Wauconda.  And I don't say that lightly.  I Luuuuvvvvv Wauconda!  We moved here one year and four months ago from Arlington Heights and I'm still drinking in the country.  Owning five dogs, I knew I was out of place in Arlington Heights.  (The fact that the police were against dogs in the park also was a big clue.  I told my husband I was forever on the "lam.")
    Of course, all moves have their give and takes.  The big take is the dog park woods where I take my dogs for walks twice a day.  The give (away) is the distance of every and all comedy clubs.  With Zanies leaving Vernon Hills, I feel like I'm on remote island where I have no good access to my craft.

     This summer I went on a quest to find a place for my humor.  And oddly enough, I ran into the answer in my own backyard.  One of my friends, Monica Jablonski, was looking for activites to place in a soon-to-be-vacant space which a part of Vickie's Plaza that includes the a beautiful salon and spa.  Located on Route 59 and just seconds from Route 12, the location is ideal.  Another big advantage for me is that women who frequent Vickie's are my audience - women who would absolutely love to get together and laugh!
     Days later Vickie, Monica and I met to discuss the possibility of bringing comedy (along with other great daily classes and workshops) to the beautiful vacant space.  Our ideas seemed unlimited.  We knew that Wauconda needed something wonderful to call its very own.  I felt elated that I could share the culture I'd know for 25 years - the comedy scene.  Comedy is almost an addiction in its ability to relieve stress and forget about all the troubles of the day and/or week.  It's been a blessing I have known most of my life.  I wanted to give this gift back to Wauconda. 

     With opening day just three days away, the mood at Vickie's Plaza is thrilling.  I know that comedy is a wonderful gift that keeps on giving.  I'm so happy to bring comedy home!
     Days later,

Clean Comedy Comes Home

Having "grown up" in the Midwest as a stand up comedian", I know that clean comedians in the Chicago area are a rare commodity these days. However, with the overkill of provocative comedy on cable television, they are making a comeback. Comedians performing clean comedy in the Chicago are ahead of the game.

I first took the stage in the mid-80's when television's comedy heroes were just beginning to change. While my parents still laughed at the one-liners of Bob Hope and the gimmicks of Red Skelton, a new generation was forming that would follow in the footsteps of Lenny Bruce and George Carlton. Material was becoming more risqué and very edgy.

With the advent of a few cable television channels, boundaries widened. Comedy material that had been "bleeped" by major networks was gradually becoming accepted. While the likes of Joan Rivers and words like "pregnant" had once raised eyebrows, the rants and raves of Sam Kinison made such references pale in comparison. America wanted to hear the straight talk. Offensive language and material was the new kick.

Welcome satellite TV and everything in between. Hundreds of channels and no specific guidelines for taste or tack cause the "tell-it-like-it-is" factor to spiral out of control. Every physical body part is explored and fair game for joking. The crowd goes wild as baby boomers are no longer silenced by the censor of the mom and dad generation. Who could have predicted after years of honing comedy material for the CBS, NBC and ABC talk shows that absolutely anything could be said or written for television? The baby boomers spilled their guts and ranted and raved. The uninspired became just plain foul.

The audience grew tired of it and even disgusted. Where's the genius in over-using the four-letter word?

And the tide takes a turn.

Clean comedy is back. No longer thrilled by shock value, a new generation sees the value in the inspired observation. There is an awe in watching a clean comic work and get laughs. Like an injured warrior taking his first step without crutches, there is bit of heroism in clean comedy. Audiences like the fact that they are treated as intelligent human beings who "get it". Clean comedy is the new "hip" because it offers a fresh approach to funny as life and all of its joys, pains and pitfalls are turned inside out.

Clean comedians in Chicago are making a comeback along with the rest of the nation. This really is a time for change when we re-examine our values and find joy in clean and intelligent humor.

Sally Edwards is a professional clean comedian, keynote speaker and corporate humorist who began her career studying improvisation at Chicago's Second City. Sally has been featured on Showtime's Comedy Club Network, A&E and NBC TV's Friday Night.

Sally Edwards is the president of The Humorous Speakers Bureau in Chicago.

Laugh of the Day - Comedy by Sally

I saw the cutest thing on the news yesterday. A little girl of only four years old (Aelita Andre) had amazingly creative paintings hanging (and for sale) in an art gallery. A fawning reporter said, “Oooh you are so talented. These paintings are done so creatively! … What do you want to be when you grow up? (anxiously awaiting the expected reply).


The young Picasso matter-of-factly replied, “When I grow up – I want to be a caterpillar!”

Feature Spot with Kevin Nealon

Working with an "A" List Comedian who is featured in a very popular TV show ("Weeds") and formerly a very hilarious part of Saturday Night Live might seem like a dream come true. On many levels it is - especially since Kevin Nealon is a wonderfully nice person. However, in addition to it being an exciting venture it is also stepping into the unknown of basic audience reaction.

An audience that comes out to see a particular performer is generally locked into the appearance of that celebrity. The m.c. of the show as well as the feature act are on very shaky ground under these circumstances. The position of "feature" in case like this is glorified only on paper.
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The 7:00 p.m. show at Zanies was a feature act's dream. The crowd was older and more mannerly than the average Saturday night crowd. These folks seem to know Kevin from the good ole' days of SNL TV. I could not have asked for a warmer and more gracious audience. We had fun and it was a great set up for Kevin Nealon.

The 9:30 p.m. show was a different story! This cast of characters seemed to have walked right off the set of "Weeds" still waving the smoke from in front of their eyes. The average mental age seemed to be about 13.

Although a comedy club is supposed to help in crowd control this was not the case. Screaming, yelling, and ranting set the bar for attentiveness. They came at me from either side and I was ready. Well almost ready. I could only calm the craziest of the crazies. One bold heckler broke through so I gave him the microphone to see how he'd handle his dream of taking the stage. The audience "booed" and screamed "get off the stage." After that warm encounter, my heckling friend may reconsider his dream of telling jokes. I escaped unharmed and the night ended with Kevin Nealon pulling it all off like a pro.