GUEST POST: Why These Comedians Went Viral (SNL Edition)

Taking a look at the new crop of Saturday Night Live hires.

Hello! I’m David Zucker, a former data analyst at TikTok that now helps comedians grow their audience. I also run a mailing list of my own, where I recently shared how I got a million views on a video I posted, ten years after it was recorded.

Today, we’ll be looking at some posts from new SNL cast members (Emil Wakim, Jane Wickline, Ashley Padilla), as well as recent content from Please Don’t Destroy and former cast member Chloe Troast.

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Emil Wakim

donttellcomedy

A post shared by @donttellcomedy

Quick Stats (at time of writing):

• 516K Views, 24.5K Likes, 202 Comments, 30.9K Shares

• Like PCT: 4.7% | Share PCT: 6.0%

• Video Length: 1 min 29 sec

• Text Hook: MUSHROOMS & GOD

• Hashtags: #donttellcomedy #emilwakim #standupcomedy #standup #comedy #jokes #funny #mushrooms #religion

The craziest stat from this post is not the extremely high Share PCT of 6.0%, nor the relatively high Like PCT¹.

It’s that the first laugh doesn’t happen until 1 minutes and 15 seconds in (!!!)

This pretty much defies any “viral marketing guru” online who sells you on a whole host of tricks to “hook” your audience at the start of your video, none of which ever seem to include, “cut your teeth as a professionally funny live performer for a decade”.

Don’t get me wrong, the first few seconds of every video are paramount.

That should be obvious.

If you scroll past a video where nothing happens in the first five seconds, of course you’re going to keep swiping.

But high retention and shareability don’t come from incorporating cheap gimmicks.

They come from the extreme payoff achieved from a 90-second investment in a joke like this one, which in turn becomes an experience you want to share with a friend.

The video’s success is a testament to Emil’s storytelling, his talent for building suspense, and his ability to write a joke that makes thousands of people send it around to their buddies and say, “wait for the ending 🤣🤣🤣”

If you’re keen to watch some more of Emil’s stand-up, he has a charming Tonight Show set, a recent profile in Vulture, and an extended set shot by Don’t Tell Comedy, who always deliver extremely high production value:

I couldn’t find much of him online in the realm of impressions or characters, so it remains to be seen how he will fare on a show that doesn’t offer too much airtime for stand-up-esque jokes outside of Weekend Update.

Emil is also doing a show at Union Hall tomorrow night (9/17) that still has tickets available. (If I were him, I’d make that the main link in his bio, not his LinkTree.)