Comics might understand the requirements of moving to the “next tier” (i.e. emcee to feature, feature to headliner), but rare is it mentioned that we are entrepreneurs. Until your career requires representation, you are a “one person production” company. An essential of this business to learning is how to market your talents.
I discovered this issue when I began self-producing comedy showcases. My goals at that time were:
1. Learn how to become an emcee by hosting the shows.
2. Learn as much as I could from the more experienced comedians.
This occurred during my first year of comedy. My former career in IT provided me with many talents, but marketing was not one of them. So I began to research various websites and blogs on how to market. When I discovered The Rise To The Top, a website created by David Siteman Garland, my search was over. What kept my interest in returning to this website? The web-based interviews from thought leaders I admire. Tim Ferriss. Seth Godin. Lewis Howes. This list could go on and on, because, David has produced over 340 episodes to date. In the process, he also produced his first book Smarter, Faster, Cheaper: Non-Boring, Fluff-Free Strategies for Marketing and Promoting Your Business.
Taking the bold route, I reached out to David to discuss some of the problems comedians face when it comes to marketing. We bounced around several topics during our conversation, and I was delighted to learn that David is a fan of stand-up comedy. “Comics have a huge advantage. People see and hear you. Either they’re going to like you or their not.”
He offered advice to comedians on how to make themselves attractive to potential interviewees. “Having an interview based format gives you the world’s best excuse to reach out to people, basically take up their time, and ask for advice. Never ask them to promote the interview – that will make you appear to be sketchy. Simply thank them for their time, and send them a link when it becomes available.”
David also mentioned that approximately 75 percent of his interviewees will post it somewhere on the Internet without being asked.
This was perhaps the most fun I’ve had interviewing someone who wasn’t a comic. Here are some of David’s other tips and suggestions:
Learning from Mentors:
- Find comedians you admire or respect, and find ways to connect with them. Keep the time brief by asking them three well thought questions. The question and answers can also be used for content.
Marketing Tips:
- Learn to build a brand around yourself. You are responsible for building our audience.
- Dedicate time to figure how to market yourself. Learn from top marketers, read marketing books.
- Create your own media and market it.
- Know who you are selling to, and what makes it important.
Building Content:
- Create your own blog, podcast, or other content on a regular basis.
- Connect with anyone you want to meet, anyone you want to talk to or find interesting.
- Use an application like Leadplayer to “pimp your videos” on your website and YouTube.
Website Tips:
- Comedians should have their own website, preferably using their own name.
- It’s important to build a fan base across multiple platforms. Other websites (i.e. Facebook, Tumblr, etc) are like vacation homes that you rent. If everything you built was created on one platform and they are gone tomorrow…..you’re screwed.
- Collecting emails from your website is essential to building a fan base. Use a mail based application (David prefers AWeber) to managing email campaigns and newsletters.
My personal favorite marketing quote from David was his comment on learning how to commit your marketing growth:
“There is always someone out there that is doing something that you want to do….somewhat. It might not be right on the nose, but it will be very, very close. I would recommend getting to know these people, and that’s how you will take your game to the next level.”
Hopefully, these tips will inspire you as much as they inspired me. Take a chance by contacting someone you respect for advice, and apply it to your comedy career. I’m willing to bet they will share the same amount of knowledge that David provided me for this interview.
Now…Build your audience!
© 2013 Wayne Manigo
