5 ways standup comedy influences product building

Product is a serious business, they say. So is comedy. Well, watching an amusing comedy performance on stage can by far seem a different mise-en-scène from a four-walled den where teams collaborate on launching products. Not anymore, when there’s a livid parallelism between standup comedy and building products.

Sounds like an oxymoron? Here’s a rather comical-yet-logical run-through of how standup comedy influences tech products and the makers behind them.

‘Iterate’ be the motto

If there’s something I’ve seen consistently with the standup comedian/comedienne, both friends and extended folks, it’s the dedication to experiment and reinvent. Before they land up on that one joke, pun, or a dark repartee, they have hours and days of iterations that run in their minds. From picking out the best opening lines to cracking the right quips at the perfect moments, one is always prepped up by arduous experimentation.

And, isn’t this not the baseline for us, the product people? Whether is finding the next best feature in the road-map, completing the UI for user onboarding, or strategizing the go-to-market plans — there’s always room for ideation and iteration. Before we hop on to the best plan, we have a thousand ideas that would have almost worked or bombed big time. See the connect? (Read on!)

Audience is everything

So, do you know what really cheers up a standup comedian?

A gig — well, yes! But, something more.

Good set — of course, but there’s the obvious that’s missing.

Great audience — perfect, this is a beaut!

Audience is the most important part of every standup show and it’s what drives the performer as well. Standup specials are completely dedicated to the audience — with every show, the performer finetunes their set based on the audience’s reactions, the pulse, and all the more, the laughs! At the end of every session, the comedian takes back a whole lot of live study — of what they should retain for the next set of shows, the lines they should drop, or the new stuff they need to add.

Finalizing on products and launching them into the market are pretty much an audience job — the more you know the market pulse, the better success you reap. Identifying the audience needs, introducing the right feature set, incorporating feedback from users, dropping the least-in-focus product ideas, are just some ways we speak our audience’s language.

Tackling the improbable

Extremes? That’s not even a concern. Comedians are always on their feet, from addressing the elephant in the room to quoting the implausible happenings. Risky starters or incinerating lines don’t bother them because they’re always upfront and inviting to try radical things. Making ridiculously-offensive jokes and going back with a no-laugh show — both are tried-and-tested signs.

Product folks and mostly entrepreneurs go through a similar path. Pushing themselves beyond ‘Go big or go home’ banner, they’re open and gutsy to prodding the best and the worst. Sky-rocketing revenue or going bonkers, doubled signups or worst attrition, converted customers or wasted cold calls — all’s in the game!

Start small, grow tall

Open mics or a full-house special — comedians give in their full-on potential. With every stepstone, they grow a bit closer to the big name. Finding the niche audience, reassuring and focusing on delivering the best are innate qualities, leading to the stardom and big name, with hours-long practice.

Building products calls for finding the smallest viable audience, discovering their needs, and looking out to map the right purposes. Smallest steps that start here go on to provide the premium results, every level-cross with its own setbacks and swift-wins.

Real present is in the present

Timing is everything, and these comedians are well aware of this fact. They don’t stick to their past glories or sail in the doomed boat, for they’re always up with facing the present. Pulling threads from the audience, instant plot changes, or focusing on the current trends — you’ve got every flavor in their performances.

Moving scenes to the product harbor — rowing with uncertainties on a market-driven, well-performing product calls for the product leaders to not only escape the disruptive tides with innovation, but also keep a major anchor on the present-day trends and need of the hour from the audience.

In the end, comedy and product indeed are serious and sail-worthy businesses, always dynamic and success-driven.

Got more interesting parallelisms? Get them coming in the comments section.

The story was originally written by me for TheProdcast, the all-product platform that provides technology insights through podcasts and blogs.