Being Unique In A City Of 8 Million
Why do the Amish throw their pennies down the sewer?
They don’t like change.
What do you call Chewbacca working with clay?
Harry Potter.
New York City is full of people who are trying to make money on the street. Times Square is stuffed with people drawing caricatures, selling t-shirts, or dressing like Dora the Explorer and posing for pictures. There are millions of people walking through Times Square every day, but how do you grab their attention when everyone else is doing the same thing? The short answer is – You don’t.
Enter Jason Schneider, The $1 Joke Guy (www.theonedollarjokeguy.com). Rather than setting up shop in Times Square, he chose a quieter place at The Mall in Central Park. There are still people here looking for your money, but not as many. And the space is much quieter. Jason has made a name for himself by holding up a sign offering jokes for $1 – laughter guaranteed. That’s a pretty powerful offer – Give Jason a dollar and he’ll tell you at least six jokes – often more – one liners that are usually a little cheesy, but also smile and laughter inducing. When you’ve had enough, Jason hands you a card. On one side is a joke. On the other is written:
Hey, I just met you…
And this is crazy…
But here’s my number
(201) 306-3807
So call me for weddings,
Bar Mitzvah’s, Corporate
Events, Fairs and
Festivals, Orientations,
Homecomings,
Kids Parties (Kids Jokes),
Grand Openings,
Cruise Ship Deck Parties
I just returned home from a week in NYC, and I saw so many great marketing ideas that my next few blog posts will likely reference them. But I wrote about Jason first, because he was the only person that I saw doing this. NYC is full of aspiring comedians and actors, all looking to grab your attention. But Jason has managed to create a space for himself telling jokes rather than waiting tables. His offering has had him featured on news programs, including The Today Show, and has gained him press all over the world.
Multi-millionaire? Doubtful. Happy? He looks happy. Will all this hard work turn into a Comedy Central Special or a gig co-writing the next Adam Sandler movie? I don’t know. But he has managed to get noticed. And that’s something that everybody can learn from.
