If I had to look in my crystal ball, I’m putting my money on Jimmy Fallon. Tues. I was fortunate to get to go to his show with one of my best buds Jill Griffin, author of Taming the Search and Switch Customer (Jossey-Bass), and two new friends from New York city, Meagan, who works with Peter Shankman, fellow entrepreneur and founder of  Help a Reporter, a great website for connecting journalists to story resources and Julie, a music publishing pro.  It was a very memorable event. Here are a few things I took away.

To start off with tickets for the show are only available for a limited time window. Fans need to call the NBC studios about 30 days before the desired date as they only release tickets on certain days and then they are gone. I called for 20 days straight, the more I called, the more determined I was to get the tickets.

Limited time windows to purchase anything, drive the emotion.

Once I spoke to an NBC staffer, it was an enjoyable experience from then on. They were super friendly and seemed just as nice as Jimmy’s persona; a consistent extension of his brand. Within minutes of the call, I received a pleasant notice explaining all the ground rules and details to attending the show.

They made the entire ticketing process simple and hassle free.

A few days before the event, I received another friendly notice, telling us where to go to get our tickets and how to fully enjoy the show.

All the staff at the studio reminded me of Ross the intern, who got his big break with Jay Leno.  Young, happy and eager to help.

The check in process was seamless.  We were instructed to meet at NBC store, an environment full of branded Jimmy Fallon goods. Friendly, helpful people dressed in gray NBC suits with crisp shirts and big smiles were everywhere. Security was a breeze and we were moved into a holding area and asked who wanted to be on stage and jam with the Roots, Jimmy’s house band. Of course we did. We were given special wrist bands and more instructions to be sure we added to the show’s natural charm and fun.

Inside the filming studio, the room was decked for the holidays, not one inch of real estate was missed. About 15 minutes before show time, a warm up comedian, warmed us up. Without fabricating the show, the pre host provided more branded guidance, so that the show’s audience would not misbehave. He also danced like a champ, chatted with many guests and kept the room’s mood at a high energy level.

The Jimmy Fallon experience lasted over two hours, even though he was only on an hour.

Before the opening featured guest came out, Jimmy did two entertaining side stints. The first one was called “Tweeter hashtags”. Viewers contribute their goofy tweets from one of Jimmy’s hashtag topics. Tonight’s hashtag was: HOHO Hell no! The second one was a continued segment called “The 12 days of tacky Christmas sweaters”. A lucky audience member was gifted a very ugly coiffed with trinkets knitted master piece.

The stints were touch points and 100% on brand all with Jimmy’s contemporary and silly style.
Social media is an active strategy for building the show’s fan base.

Every minute of the show was fun. Jack Black was the featured guest. Jack, so consistent with his over the top funny brand, bolted on to the stage with a song and dance. From there the chemistry of Jimmy and Jack kicked in, they were smooth and added to the authentic personality of the show.

Next was a random, crazy performance where Jimmy and Jack banged on larger than life drums all to the tune of The Little Drummer Boy while spewing red and green paint all over the stage. Watch them get in the spirit.

The show ended with a special, rocking performance by the Roots, probably the hottest TV band going. The performance was magical, but what made it even better was more audience engagement. 30 or so of the guests, including my pals got to stand behind Roots and sway and groove to the tunes and have even more fun.

So how can you include your customers in your product delivery? Not only adding to the offering, but the experience they receive?

And for any of you who feel like you are not on your game yet. I started watching Jimmy Fallon when his show first launched. In the beginning, he appeared awkward and he wasn’t that good. Today, he’s smooth, in the zone and his popularity continues to grow. Brilliance takes working at it.

Jimmy has been crafting his craft for many years and even though he was a solid stand up guy and SNL hit, a new gig of any kind takes time to get right and Jimmy likely still has nights where he tells joke that bombs.

In closing, comedy and humor in any form feels good. Is there an opportunity in your world or venture for little more random, silly,  gut-busting funny material or content?

More from NYC on Thursday.

It’s freezing in New York, but fun and stimulating!

First thing, check into my hotel. I am staying at a small boutique property on upper West Side (I’ll share the details on this property at the end of my trip). Are you traveling to a big city and want a great deal on cool hotels? I always use Hotwire.com. You can pick the number of stars and which part of the city you want to stay in. You get a choice of many, showing prices and star rankings. I’ve never been disappointed and sometimes save 50% off rack rate.

Worried about bedbugs? Go to Bedbug registry and make sure your chosen hotel won’t have uninvited guests in your bed. My hotel is awesome – it was not listed, WHEW!

Our first adventure: A food tour of the Lower East side via City Food Tours. This is a great way to taste and learn some history about New York’s fabulous food. Most tours are a couple hours long and range from 40-90 bucks per person. They include a knowledgeable guide, outside exercise and samplings of 5-6 culinary bites along the way. We discovered: The Essex Food market, a gem, which houses Roni-Sue chocolates, an artisan spot with truffles and to die for chocolates in every variety. The Pickle Guys, one of the few pickle places around. Economy Candy, a massive store that feels like a mall of a million sweets. The Roasting Plant, a great coffee cafe founded by a former Starbucks  staffer who turned a vacuum into a Javabot® coffee roasting system and lastly, one of the best slices of pizza from San Marzano Brick Oven Pizzeria.

A great afternoon! More marketing commentary coming. Packed agenda.

Robert’s at the Museum of Design.

Prohibition a neighborhood spot for live music acts. Rachel Platton performed and was an amazing, fresh and entertaining sound. She’s a New Yorker who is hitting the world tour scene. Check out her schedule, and check her out.

Tues. night
Went to Jimmy Fallon Live with Jack Black, recap coming, was tooooo much fun and got to hang and dance with the Roots. I’m now the proud owner of an official drum stick too.

Weds.
Got to run, sorry for the short hand, promise to fill in. Headed to Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown. Review coming too with lots more street stuff.