I have never done improv, but as the americans say I was a "theatre kid".

This means I was swirled around in the world of people who do random noisy shit all the time. Whilst I didn't do improv, Improv happened to me.

When I was doing sales as a favour at one of the trade shows I was working at, I realised that whilst sales is not improv, there are a set of rules that the interactee tends to follow.

Generally there are three type of people(yes this set collapse, generalisations are important):

1) fuck you, I'm not buying from your fucking company

2) OK, I probably want what your selling, but I need specific information before I'll consider

3) I just here because I had nothing better to do/was too slow/drew the short straw.

the best signal, if you can get it, is from number 1. Sometimes they just have had a bad day, others because they've been burnt, or they think youre full of shit. But this is where the improv comes in. "I bet your product can't do x" aha! I see your are an engineer of distinction, what is it about x, that doesn't work with $product?

if you manage that, you have a focus group on why your product/marketing/reputation is shit.

If only the ownership/support heads were doing that work every day,

instead of once a year, the product and reputation would probably be better!