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  • Your Advertising Should Be More Like Dating

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    Not many people in this day and age would be drawn to the notion of marrying someone they’ve barely or never met. Yet, that’s the approach that most advertisers take. “Here’s my ad, here’s my phone number, you don’t know anything about me, but call me so I come on over and sell you something.” – more or less the same as if you walked into a crowd of people and ask the first person that appealed to you if they would like to get married. Flash around enough cash, ask enough people, and maybe you get lucky with this approach every now and then, but it’s no way to build a small business.

    Advertising for the small business should be approached more like dating. Your ads should be asking for a date, not a sale! Give your prospects a compelling reason to meet you for coffee, in a public place – by offering some sort of free, valuable information that they can gain access to with very little commitment. Then, move up to the movie, add a nice dinner, meet the parents – maybe, just maybe, it’s time to ask for the order – or better yet, simply say yes when the prospect asks you.

    Don’t try to do too much with your ads. Don’t try to be too cute with your ads. Use them to attract and educate. Then build an information arsenal that will allow your prospect to come to the conclusion that you are indeed someone they would like to spend the rest of their life with. (Or at least some of their money with.)

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    Posted by: John Jantsch on Sep 19, 06 | 4:04 pm
    Category: Advertising | Tags:

    View Comments
    • <pingback>...publishers can use today to further increase their online marketing … Your Advertising Should Be More Like Dating Not many people in this day and age would be drawn to the notion of marrying someone they’ve barely or never met. Yet, ...</pingback>
    • Amen John! I just spoke to a national association today and I used a very similar analogy. We were talking about their fundraising efforts and I likened them to walking up to a stranger in an airport and asking for $300 versus asking a friend for the same amount.

      People get so enamored with their own product/service that they forget they need to woo their audiences before going in for the big pitch.

      Your post is a great reminder -- keep up the smart writing!
    • Ha ha I was just writing about this the other day, but more about how business act like they are trying to get a date from a potential customer, only to get the date then immediately turn it into a stale, boring relationship.
    • Dan
      Nice points John. Reminds me of a Seth Godin post - Shiny and deep - http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2006/06...
    • Great post - check out this post, I did a few months back on similar meme - after the date comes the relationship work..;)

      http://www.deborahschultz.com/deblog/2006/04/it...
    • Pink Apple
      John
      I couldn't agree more. So rather than advertise per se, I network a lot and direct people to my website and blog that has a real sense of me as a person so that I can start building a connection -tenuous at first - and from there a relationship starts.
    • <trackback>Dating .. Marriage .. Advertising
      John Jantsch’s blog “Duct Tape Marketing”, once voted “Best Small Marketing Blog”, gives a lot of different insight. Its an interesting read and often makes me consider the way that I approach certain topics. His latest p...</trackback>
    • Great article John!

      To put this into dating terminology for you, too many people try to get in bed and have sex with their date on the first date. The same is true with sales people and their clients. They try to shove the product or service down their throat to get the immediate sale, yet they forget about the long term relationship that is needed in order to move towards marriage and a LONG life of happiness!


      Aaron Foster
      Buzz Media, Inc.
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