Josh Anstey’s Blog

Yes that is right. There are lessons to be learned from stand up comedians.

Before we learn the lessons, let me explain to you the pre-text of this post.

Last week I went to see a stand up comedy show by the great Australian comic Wil Anderson.

Wil has a new show called beWILdered and it is absolutely hilarious. I recommend you check it out. Anyway, at the show it got me thinking about how there are a few things to learn from stand up comedians that entrepreneurs can put into practice.

Stand up comedians are entrepreneurs themselves. They are a perfect example of someone going at it alone, giving it their best shot, getting up in front of a crowd and saying ‘here is what I have to offer; what do you think about it?’

Sometimes this is successful; they are received well and have an audience filled with laughter for the whole show. Sometimes it is not successful, and there is an awkward silence of unfunny jokes, and an unresponsive quiet audience. Regardless of the results, you can bet your dollar the stand up comedians are standing back up on stage the next night giving it another one of their best shots.

Lesson #1 from stand up comedians: Always give it a go. Don’t be afraid to stand up there, be counted and put your ideas out into the open. And more importantly, if at first you don’t succeed, don’t be disheartened, be persistent, confident and get out there and do it again.

Comedians want you to laugh, have a good time, enjoy the show and then go home and tell all your friends and family to come see the show. Stand up comedians spend a lot of time getting to know their audiences, relating to their audiences, and bringing their audiences on the ‘comedic journey’ with them. They want it to be your experience. Why? Well aside from the fact that it makes you enjoy the show a whole lot more, it also means there is a higher chance of you going home and spreading the word about the show. What is this called? This is the great important marketing skill of Word of Mouth.

Lesson #2 from stand up comedians: Relate to your audience so that they are enjoying your product or service. Word of Mouth is the most powerful marketing tool that you can use. There is a much higher chance of someone using your product or service if a friend or family member has recommended it. Never forget the importance of getting your customers, clients or users to promote your product. Make sure they enjoy their experience with your company. For starting entrepreneurs, this is the most cost effective way to kick-start your business.

I hope you are able to put these lessons learned from stand up comedians into practice.

By the way, I really do recommend seeing Wil Andersons show beWILdered – you are guaranteed to have a great night.

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This entry was posted on Monday, March 17th, 2008 at 8:59 pm and is filed under Business, Entrepreneur, Ideas, Marketing, Start-ups. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.