Is a comedian a salesperson?

I’ve never been to a comedy show except for Crimson Improv on campus. Comedy is pure entertainment… right? What if it was more?

Comedians bring laughter, joy, and a good experience for their audience. It’s meant to be light-hearted, inviting, and often, very interactive. Matt Rife is an example of interacting with his audiences. He does standup where he’s able to engage with his audience, learn who they are in real time, all the while bringing laughter and entertainment.

The funny thing about comedians? Other than their ability to make people laugh, their jokes are written with something a little cleverer. After all, it’s just normal circumstances and regular stories, but there’s a way that hits just right for the audience. It’s about the weight of the joke, how quick or slow they tell the joke, how much or little detail they provide, how much time they put between sentences; it all matters and is a part of delivering the joke. And they do this over and over again throughout the show, changing their depths of the jokes and timings. Timing is everything. Understanding the audience is everything.

So, imagine a salesperson trying to sell their product. It’s about timing, understanding the customer, knowing when to provide information and when not to, and when to engage and when to listen. In one way, they’re doing the same thing. One is looking for laugher, and one is looking for a sale, but use similar tactics. Of course, there are differences, but it just had me thinking differently, and how we might be able to see from other perspectives than a sales’ perspective. Timing brings laughter, engaging with audience brings laugher; timing brings sales, engaging with the customer brings sales, the audience is everything; the customer is everything.