The dances were varied.

A shuffle reminiscent of the salsa followed by two bounces low to the ground. A modified running man on a spin, accompanied by high kicks. Hip sways punctuated by claps and a smile.

Those were the moves three customers busted out at a gas station in Halfmoon, New York, prompted by a sign at the register: “Want a discount? Show us your best dance move.”

The videos of the customers cutting a rug at Sunoco and Halfmoon Car Wash quickly went viral.

Paulina Sirtori ’24, social media coordinator for the business, says seeing the clips garner so much national attention is gratifying.

“We were not expecting this specific video to blow up or take off as it has, but being able to see my work being shared by all of these different news stations and the national news, being asked to be in interviews and people being curious about, ‘How did you come up with this?’ It’s definitely been extremely rewarding,” Sirtori told Syracuse University Today.

‘Our Goal Was to Bring a Smile’

For almost a year, Sirtori, who majored in television, radio and film in the Newhouse School of Public Communications, has been working as the communications coordinator for Bruce Tanski Construction and Development in Clifton Park, New York, running social media accounts for several businesses, including the Sunoco and Halfmoon Car Wash, owned by the company.

She came up with the idea for the video after seeing other businesses, like restaurants and bars, offer similar “dance for a promotion” opportunities.

Sirtori thought the gas station could offer a discount instead, knowing the biggest complaint from customers was the price of gas.

“We knew we wanted to do something to give back to our customers,” Sirtori says. “We were looking for a way to show them some kind of appreciation, and we knew this would definitely help them. Our goal was to bring a smile, bring some laughs to people.”

With the owner and store manager onboard, the Newhouse grad says the thought was that some regulars, who have been in the business’s videos before, might participate. At minimum, Sirtori thought they’d get a fun video they could post to their account.

Sure enough, most of the regulars saw the sign at the register and asked about it. Other customers, too, inquired, questioning if it was real. The manager behind the counter told them it was, and asked if they could record.

Ultimately, Sirtori said eight people danced for the discount, but only three were OK with their videos being posted on social media.

“We knew this would be a fun way to promote our store, but also give back to our customers,” Sirtori says.

A month after it was posted, the video, which features Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)” as the soundtrack, has over a million views and nearly 100,000 likes on TikTok, along with thousands of comments.

“I love sharing my content and my videos with other people, and just [people] telling me that it made them laugh or made them so happy,” Sirtori says.

Applying Lessons From Newhouse 

Sirtori, who is responsible for ideation, filming, editing and posting the content for the businesses, says she uses the skills she learned at Newhouse daily.

When she arrived on campus, she didn’t know anything about filming, editing or post-production, so her first-year production classes were essential. Her time at Syracuse University in Los Angeles also helped her refine her career goals, she says.

“I learned how to storyboard and how to properly write scripts and take your idea that you have and be able to execute it, whether it be a 30- to 60-second video or a 5-minute video. I’ve used all of those skills in this specific job,” Sirtori says. “I’m the only social media person, so I’ve really touched on every single skill I learned from pre-production to production and even post-production.”

Applying those skills on the job, Sirtori has learned not to give up on her ideas, and she advises current students to do the same.

“Don’t give up on yourself and always advocate for your idea and use your resources that you have at Newhouse,” she says. “Rent the equipment from the CAGE. Go to your office hours. Listen to your professors.”

Since the dance videos went viral, Sirtori says the gas station likely will offer another fun option for customers. They’re currently brainstorming other ideas, such as “sing for a discount” or “dance battle for a discount.”

“We’re going to do another thing for our customers along that line,” she says. “It won’t be specifically dancing, but we liked how many customers and new people were coming into the store and asking us about it and wanting to be a participant in it. We’re like, ‘We have to do it again. We had to give them what they want.’”