Instead of standing on a stage, one comedian at a time, humorists were leaning over their computers, waiting with bated breath for quirky Brit Tiernan Douieb to say “Go!”  In this Twitter Comedy Club experiment, drawing a crowd of 6,000 each comedian had a 10 minute act. They madly delivered their best lines in 140-characters, one after the other. Those attending the event simply had to search for tweets appearing with the event hashtag #tcgig. Some searched by smart phone and others by computer.

Out of the comedian line up came Tweets such as Mark Watson’s “My dad used to say, ‘Money: you can’t take it with you.’ Which led to some pretty boring holidays.” 

One participating comedy club, Pappy’s even created Terry Witter (@TerryWitter) a fake heckler.

Humor’s hard to create, especially under time pressure. If these comedians can generate so many ideas, crowd attention and camaraderie using this format, so can you.  This jam-packed, Twitter-based event could be adapted to other lifestyle topics (tips by and for cycling commuters, living well on less, etc.) or professional interests (customer-attracting tips by and for restaurant owners, etc.)

The bonus benefit for all participants?  The “content” that’s created by the event, generates lasting visibility for tipsters and sponsors.  Anytime you can see the ideas again as you can on the comedians’ Twitter accounts.

If you are adept at Twitter you could take on Tiernan’s role as a business. Offer to create such events for an association and/or businesses to sponsor themed events that would attract their members and customers. Such innovative uses show that, used smartly, Twitter can attract customers and potential collaborators.