Stand-up Comedians and Marketing - Know Your Value

Zanies Comedy Club

Young comedians are eager to please comedy club owners and they know the importance of writing new material on a regular basis.  However, this is only one element in the larger picture of comedy as a business and career.  It is equally important to develop business skills and good marketing habits. Surprisingly "being the funniest" will not necessarily propel you to a headline spot.  There is something much more important that will make you shine and get you booked often and for increasingly good pay.

Comedy Club owners are interested in headline comedians who fill their seats.  Ultimately, that is what will keep the comedy club open and thriving.  To recognize this is a new talent is invaluable.  Building a mailing list and a successful social media campaign will connect you to friends, family and fans.  If a club owner sees that you are motivated to bring patrons to his door, your value has increased tenfold.

Because comedians are prone to creativity, they generally focus on "funny."  The reasoning is that "funny" brings rewards.  "Funny" gets the emcees spot.  "Funnier" gets the feature spot.  "Funniest" gets the headliner spot.  I have performed as a stand up comedian for over 20 years and I have seen some of the "funniest" never quite make it.  The brilliant comedians can fall by the wayside, appreciated for their genius only by other admiring comedians.  This occurs when business sense does not quite catch up to creative sense.

Last year, I booked a small comedy room and I experienced first-hand what comedy club owners see as "value" in a comedian.  The comedy room was new and desperately needed patrons.  I initially made efforts to create the funniest show possible.  With a limited budget for advertising, I was reliant upon word of mouth and basic internet social media to get the word out in a very short amount of time.  Ironically, the "funniest" no longer had the same value to me when I was on the other side of the booking fence.

The comedians who were most valuable to me were the ones making an all-around effort.  They were contacting friends, making mentions on Facebook and Twitter and writing blogs.  My most valuable act of the year was a new comedian who did a great guest set and invited thirty friends.  He did his homework, created a buzz and got the laughs.  The club had a great night and made me understand the true value of a working comedian.

Comedy New Talent Night - Showcasing on Stage

The Comedy Club Stage and New Talent

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 like Zanies Comedy Club, the Laugh Factory Comedy Club r the Improv Comedy Club. How should you prepare to face a room full of strangers and make them laugh?

Write Funny Material

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 Your Comedy Routine

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.

Avoid Improvising Your Act

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 your comedy club 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.