It's Seth Godin's Permission Marketing, the Clown-on-BART Edition.
Easy smiles. Free balloons doled out to strangers like Flower Children share marigolds at a rally.
Spreading love.
All the while patient for... the opening.
"What's up?" asks one new friend mid-tunnel, pointing to balloons.
"This is what I do for a living," the clown quickly offers before resuming crowd banter.
He waits until he's exiting BART at Rockridge before zeroing in on new friends-to-new customers conversion:
"I'm Kenny the Clown. kenny-the-clown-dot-com...See me tomorrow at Fisherman's Wharf."
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5 comments:
I'm quite familiar with clowns on BART. There ought to be a priority clown car on all trains.
Clowns always make me a little sad, but it makes me a little less sad knowing Kenny. Thanks for sharing the sights and sounds of your BART travels. Very interactive and fun!
I actually have always liked clowns. Although, when I was a kid, one jumped out and scared me and I punched him in the nose, getting grease paint all over my fist! My neighbor is the Comcast clown and a very nice guy.
Hi -- I'm in San Diego with more complicated internet access issues or I would have responded to each of your comments, and certainly more quickly. What I will say is that I find reactions to clowns much more fascinating than clowns themselves.
So it's fun to hear you all weigh in.
What I can add is this story of a professional crafter who made (still makes?) clothespin ornaments she sells at local craft fares. I spoke to her several years back at our local Christmas craft fair.
Her display had well over a hundred of handmade and creative choices. Everything from random ballerina to Cal & Stanford football players to whatever was the "big" thing that year.
What I bought was a Harry Potter that first Christmas after the first book came out.
Those timely offerings kept collector-customers coming back, she told me when I asked.
She said she'd make anything for anybody. Anything, she said, except one thing. A clown. Never had made one. Never would.
Hated clowns. Had since she was a child. Something about a birthday party...
Like the post and the story. Appreicate that you found the story in the every-day.
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