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US$23,365 Gathered on a Potato Salad Kickstarter Campaign. Because This is the Internet

By red pill junkieon

So you have this great idea for a new book, a film or a new invention, and you’re considering trying your luck in the crowd-funding pool & appeal to the generosity of the online community to make your dream a reality.

FOOL! Don’t you get it by now? Nobody cares about the kick-ass screenplay that’s been brewing on the back of your head all these years, or the sweet gadget that’s totally going to revolutionize the world overnight. When it comes to crowd-funding, it’s all about the LULz.

The LULz —and potato salad.

Zack Danger Brown from Columbus, Ohio, decided to try & make potato salad for the 1st time, and he had the good sense of creating a Kickstarter campaign to back him up:

Basically I’m just making potato salad. I haven’t decided what kind yet.

What may have started as something of a joke, has clearly escalated into a 5-fork viral phenomenon. As of the moment this article will be posted, Zack has already acquired the support of 1,842 backers, gathering a total amount of $23,586(!!!), with still 25 days to go until the campaign is officially funded —Bear in mind that when I first learn of this story this morning, they had gather about half of that amount. So basically the sky’s the limit with this one, and it’s going to be brimming in potato salad.

Here’s a look at the latest stretch goals in the campaign:

NEW STRETCH GOALS:

$1000: I’ll do a live stream of the potato salad making

$1200: I’ll pay someone to film a thank-you video for all of my backers!

A BIG STRETCH GOAL:

We’re really tearing through these stretch goals. I honestly don’t know what is realistic anymore. So, I thought maybe we try to double the current number?

$3000: My kitchen is too small! I will rent out a party hall and invite the whole internet to the potato salad party (only $10 and above will be allowed in the kitchen)! The internet loves potato salad! Let’s show them that potato salad loves the internet!!

Should they reach $100k, I honestly feel Zack ought to officially change his name to Mr. Potato Salad.

H/T to The Grande Zkombe, who along with me is going to create a Macaroni salad Kickstarter now that we’ve finally read the signs. You think a solid million would be too conservative at this point?

red pill junkie
Agnostic gnostic, walking conundrum & metaphysical oxymoron (with emphasis in the 'moron' part), the mysterious RPJ leaves a double life: By day he serves as Grand Master of the International Sacred Order of Lucha Libre, but at night he pursues his life-long study of everything considered mysterious and/or 'paranormal' --a term he personally detests... When he's not exploring the web looking for his daily fix of Forteana, he can be found blogging, doodling, fooling around and offering his services as news administrator and writer at The Daily Grail. He also regularly participates in other websites and podcasts like Radio Misterioso and Where Did the Road Go? He impatiently awaits for the return of the mothership in Mexico City. absurdbydesign.com
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9 Comments

  1. Potato Salad . . .
    “A fool and his money are soon parted.”

    There really does appear to be an inverse relationship between intelligence and giving money to Kickstarter campaigns.

    1. Not much lost

      Most of the backers have spent between $5 to $10 bucks, so I doubt this campaign will hurt their finances too much.

      That said… I think it's obvious why I chose to post this on TDG. As an independent website striving to provide our readers with interesting news links along with original content of our own, we could certainly use some of that salad sweetness to keep us afloat :-/

      Nothing against Zack, though. More power to him & I'd like to see that video of him preparing the dish —if he doesn't invite Gordon Ramsay, I shall be disappoint 😛

      1. Really?
        Maybe you’re in a position to think that $5.00-$10.00 bucks is chump change, but for many people it’s not.

        This is a scam and a testament to the stupidity of the “smartphone generation”, a large percentage of whom either can’t find jobs or can’t find jobs other than low-paying, part-time service jobs. Wonder why that is? Hmmmmmm?

        1. A valid point
          It is certainly true that many inhabitants of our planet don’t earn 10 dollars for a daily wage –they earn much much less.

          And there’s also true that a lot of campaigns created by people who are in dire need, either because they have absurd medical bills to pay or are facing legal problems, that end up failing miserably.

          Like I said, it’s head-scratching to me, and in the end highlights many aspects of this world wide web we’ve created that perhaps needs some fixxoring –but then people would accuse me of being preachy 😉

        2. Scam?
          [quote=purrlgurrl]Maybe you’re in a position to think that $5.00-$10.00 bucks is chump change, but for many people it’s not.

          This is a scam and a testament to the stupidity of the “smartphone generation”, a large percentage of whom either can’t find jobs or can’t find jobs other than low-paying, part-time service jobs. Wonder why that is? Hmmmmmm?[/quote]

          I’m not sure how it can be labeled a “scam” when he quite clearly says what people get for their money. And people are free to pay their $5 or $10 if they want the silly rewards that he quite clearly explains, or not pay.

          What it is, is a joke. Just a bit of fun laughing at the Kickstarter philosophy and also the slacker generation I think – “I’d like a potato salad, but I’m going to have to raise $10 (that’s the original goal he set) so that I’m motivated enough to do it”. Then others have joined in the joke, and for $5 or $10 get to be a part of a silly joke becoming a highly funded Kickstarter project. Some of the higher rewards even recognise it as such, with a t-shirt to commemmorate the occasion etc.

          The other point worth keeping in mind too though is that the amount raised – as with many Kickstarters – is a long way from what he will end up getting in his pocket. At the higher levels of pledges – $25, $35, $50 etc – he’s having to manufacture merchandise and post it out. These require both direct expense in the manufacture of hats/shirts/books, and also many, many hours of organising design, manufacture and fulfillment. People tend to see “oh, they made $40,000”, when in reality a Kickstarter that reaches that amount might only make $10,000-$15,000 from that total.

          Whatever he does make, he sure got lucky with a joke gaining momentum enough to put some cash in his pocket. But I don’t consider it a scam in any way – more power to him. Will be interesting to see if Kickstarter pulls it down as a joke, or if they honour the fact that his rewards seem genuine. The way it’s currently going, he might end up making a few hundred thousand dollars and having a *very* full kitchen.

      2. ‘murica
        You’d think that they’d pull something like this though because it’s so ridiculous. Maybe they are going to see how high it gets and then pull it off right as it’s about to end like ebay does 😛

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