If you are serious about your comedy career, you eventually are going to want to stand out from all the other comedians that are working for the same opportunities as you. Of course this means constantly working on your act and your jokes, but a big part of show BUSINESS is looking professional.
An easy way to look slightly more professional then a lot of the comedians you meet at an open mic, is to have some kind of website. You could have a wonderful and elaborate website that likely involves paying each month to keep it online (Which is a smart decision eventually!) or you can have something as easy as a free Link Tree (More information about that at the end of the article)
Many working comics eventually put together an Electronic Press Kit (EPK) which is essentially your online entertainment resume. These aren’t exactly like a website for the common public, but they are what you would send to a booker or venue that you’d like to hire you.
EPK’s have everything a booker would need to either consider you, or to promote you on a show they’ve already booked you for. Today’s blog post is mostly about what you should include in your EPK.
And here we go!
Headshots or Images
You want to include several images of you that gives the booker a variety to choose from when they are putting your face on their promotions. Make sure these are GOOD pictures of you, the most professionally done ones you have. Headshots are the goal, but if you have a really high quality picture of you performing that’s sometimes okay too. I recommend having at least 3-6 pictures in your EPK, but the number is really arbitrary.
Don’t be afraid to regularly update these pictures as you get better ones! This is true for every part of your EPK. It’s like a comedian’s resume, so update and upgrade as often as you can to make yourself as marketable as possible!
Videos of Varying Length
You probably already assumed this, but you definitely want to include videos of you performing. What you eventually want to have is a variety of videos that are different lengths. Have a tight 5, a tight 10-15, a tight 20-30, a tight 45, and eventually a tight hour. (Remember, “tight” typically means a laugh every 10 to 15 seconds)
The most important video is your tight 5, because every single person viewing your EPK will for sure check that video out. If they are considering you for a feature or headlining set, they will likely want to look at your longer videos, which is why it’s good to give them options.
When you’re starting out, you likely will not have a good video of you doing an hour set. You may just have a good f5 or 10 minute video. That’s okay! As you get more quality videos, add them to your EPK and also update your videos with better and more recent videos. It’s typically a bad sign when a booker looks at the video submission of the comedian, and it’s a video from 10 years ago!
A Short Bio
In addition to this biography telling the booker a little about you as a comedian, you want it to be something that they can copy and paste to whatever promotion material they have of the show you’ll be eventually on. Professional bios are a little tricky because you want them to be informative to how awesome you are, a little entertaining, but also short. It’s like a movie trailer of you in text form.
A decent formula is.
1. Start with an entertaining blurb that sets you apart from everyone else
“Drew Davis is a former youth pastor, turned standup comedian, Adam Devine’s arch nemesis, an expert on all things Fast & Furious, the former lead keytar player of Vertical Motion, and surprisingly still single!“
2. Then, include details about where you’ve performed, and the kind of comedian you are
“Drew has performed all over the southeast at a variety of venues and comedy clubs such as Zanies, The Comedy Catch, Huntsville Levity Live, and the Idiot Box. He has 3 obscure TV credits and has opened for many comedians you have never heard of, and a few you might have, including Etta May, Killer Beaz, and Ellen Skrmetti.”
3. Lastly, if applicable, share the products you have done/are doing that people can find if they like you as a comedian…and if you don’t have any, just leave it at the previous step.
“Drew Davis has 2 comedy specials out online, hosts the Quarter Mile Podcast, and is a founder of the Clean Comedy Collective.”
Remember that your short bio is meant to be SHORT, it doesn’t have to include all the amazing things you have done! However, that brings us to the next thing that should be in your EPK…
Your Credits
When you first start out as a comedian, you won’t have any credits. Then, you’ll get a few small credits. And then, you get bigger ones then that. As you go and grow, you’ll constantly be editing your credits, dropping the lower ones, and including the bigger ones.
Most any accomplishment you have at some point could be considered a credit. Clubs you’ve performed at, contests you’ve won, festivals you’ve been accepted to, things you’ve created, or shows you produce/run/host. Give yourself permission to use this section to brag on yourself and share every comedy related accomplishment you are proud of.
Remember you are constantly updating and upgrading your EPK so at some point you hopefully will remove some of your credits because next to your newer ones they do not seem like that big of a deal.
For example, even though my credit of “had a joke published on the “Laugh your butt off” deck of cards on the 4 of clubs” was my first comedy related accomplishment about a year or 2 in to it, I recognize that compared to other things I have done, it is not that much of a bragging right now…and the site doesn’t exist anymore…so while it’s still special to me, I don’t put it on my list of credits!
Your Contact Info
This is probably another obvious one…but if you want people to contact you to book you, you’re going to have to give them the means to do so! Remember EPK’s aren’t meant for the general public, meaning not every weird person on the internet will see yours. Because of that, I recommend sharing your email and phone number.
I also recommend having an email specifically for comedy, something like “drewdaviscomedy@gmail.com” please don’t ask bookers to email “ballbuster69@hotmail.com” back if that’s you…it’s unprofessional and weird!
Something else you will want to have on hand is references in case a booker asks. I do not put this on my EPK, but I have in mind the people that I would point the venue to if they asked. And, depending on the venue, you might have different comedians or bookers that you’d want to suggest (Nobody in Vermont cares about my good TN references, but I might share with them a reference from a different club in Vermont!)
While I don’t recommend listing your references on your EPK, I do recommend writing something like “Comedian and Booker references are available on request.” (PS, hardly anyone requests it…but it’s nice we have the option!)
Social Media Links
We do live in a world where more often then I care to admit, bookers won’t ask the question “Is he funny?” but they will ask the question, “How many followers does he have?” Remember, that a comedy club’s job is not to put on a funny show…but to get butts in seats…so your online following is something a lot of venue owners and show bookers will care about!
Also, for a lot of us considering you for a show, it’s nice to creep on your social media and see what you are up to and what kind of comedian you are!
You could just list all your social media links, but I like the app/website Link Tree. Basically, it’s a free site of links that you make, and then on the site you can list whatever links you want to provide.
On mine, I list all my social media links (Youtube, Facebook, Instagram, Tiktok), I have a link to my site, and I have links to my other entertainment services.
You can check out my link tree here
If you feel like you aren’t ready for a full EPK, you might consider creating a Link Tree where you can link your socials, maybe a video of you performing if you have one, and then anytime someone is considering you for a show, you can just share with them that one link that leads to everything.
If you ARE ready to make an EPK, I offer a very basic and affordable EPK Creation service, and you can learn more about it in the link below. I am also sharing a friend of mine’s site who makes really good professional EPKs that cost more, but are 1000% times better…if you’re more established and want to create a better looking EPK, she’s someone I would recommend!
Check out my EPK services here
Check out Chandra’s EPK services here
Thanks for reading today’s blog post! Do you have any questions or ideas for what else should be included in an EPK? If so, feel free to comment below! Have a great day!
