In his latest standup comedy special “The Salesman,” Greg Warren shares stories of his time in “the peanut butter game,” working as a sales rep for Procter & Gamble.

Now choosy comedy fans choose Warren as the special has turned into an effective sales pitch for his talents.

“The Salesman,” directed by fellow comedian Nate Bargatze and released in the spring on YouTube through Bargatze’s Nateland Entertainment channel, has been viewed more than 800,000 times and generated glowing reviews for the veteran comedian.

Warren is no stranger to Mahoning Valley audiences. The Funny Farm Comedy Club has been a regular stop in his travels, dating back to its days at the Holiday Inn MetroPlex in Liberty, and he’ll perform Friday for a Funny Farm show at Risers Tavern on the Links in Columbiana.

“I’ve kind of learned to appreciate everything and not expect much,” Warren said. “You don’t know what people are going to respond to. It seems comedy fans and some of the comedy media have been real supportive of this special. A lot of it has to do with Nate Bargatze, who is doing really well right now, and I got a chance to be on his podcast a couple times. So I think Nate and 800 Pound Gorilla (the production company that produced the special) found my audience right when I needed to find my audience. Maybe I finally got good at this.”

Warren is being modest. “The Salesman” shows a comedian at the peak of his skills, building waves of laughs out of a subject that doesn’t seem inherently funny — peanut butter, specifically JIF peanut butter. The special isn’t only about peanut butter, but it’s the sticky stuff that holds the comedic sandwich together.

“During the pandemic I had a lot of free time,” Warren said. “I did work for Procter & Gamble for 10 years. I spent a lot of time on it, but I could never figure out how to make that funny. In 2020, I had a lot of time and finally cracked that a little bit.

“I started playing with the idea of being a fierce loyalist for my products. There was a little bit of truth mixed with hyperbole. I do know a lot about peanut butter. I was proud of my products. I probably dialed that up a bit for comedic effect, but that character seemed to resonate and became a central part of that special. It feels like it may be the most cohesive special I’ve done. Everything kind of related to each other. It wasn’t all about peanut butter, but most of it felt like it all belonged in the same special.”

He now has fans asking him to sign their jars of JIF after the show, and Warren said, “I love to put my signature on that beautiful brand.”

And for those who haven’t seen the special, leave your Peter Pan jars at home.

Warren said Bargatze had a light touch as a director, but he believes the suggestions he made improved the final product.

“The Salesman” has no intro and no backstage comedy bit, not even a voice introducing Warren.

“Nate said ‘Don’t do it. You come out swinging. Just show the title card and go right to the first joke.’ I was a little hesitant, but he was completely right about that … On YouTube, you’re competing with everyone for attention, competing with a billion other comedy specials or whatever, so in my mind, you better get to it and get to it fast.”

They also cut a bit about college sports cheers. It’s hilarious — even though it starts with a few shots at Ohio State Buckeyes fans — but Warren said it was the one segment that didn’t really fit with the other material (it was released as a stand-alone video on YouTube).

That bit might have fit with some of the new material Warren is working on that could become part of his next special

“I wrestled when I was in college,” Warren said. “I talked about that a lot when I first got into comedy. I thought I exhausted it, but I’m a better comic now. Let’s take another run at it, go a little bit deeper. I have a very important bit about Walgreen’s and had the courage to tackle the tough issues of snakes and poison ivy.”

If you go …

WHO: Greg Warren

WHEN: 8 p.m. Friday

WHERE: Funny Farm Columbiana at Risers Tavern on the Links, 105 St. Andrews Drive, Columbiana

HOW MUCH: $25. Tickets are available online at funnyfarm

comedyclub.com and by calling 330-759-4242.