MarketingTheory.net

Marketing is an art form and an acquired skill. It also gives you a way to either get more people to do what you want (purchase your product, visit your blog, vote for your candidate, etc.) or convince people that you have no clue. Like a bad date, a bad campaign can leave a bad taste in the mouth of one person and a disaster can leave you with a tarnished reputation. Someone I know just re-entered the dating scene and is being reminded of some of the unpleasantness that comes with it. Some of the dating pitfalls reminded me of marketing mistakes, so I thought I’d share them with you.

5. Sixth Sense
So you think you have a sixth sense? Some people do. They seem certain that they know what you want even before they know you. In dating, this is the guy who buys a girl a drink without asking what she likes and then proceeds to talk about his fast car and high-paying job, assuming that’s what will win her over. I see this all the time on Twitter. Someone follows me and I follow them back. The next thing I know, I get a direct message from this person and although I’ve never read one of their tweets yet and they’ve likely not read mine, they’re already pitching an ebook to me. It reeks of someone who has to try too hard because they can’t succeed on the quality of their offering. Take some time to find out about someone and you’ll be able to filter your presentation down to what might interest them. On Twitter, I almost always visit the site of someone who sends a public message to me, but I never visit the ebook link of the person who just DMs me and walks away.

4. Don’t let victory dull you
Just because you’ve won her heart doesn’t mean she’s blind. You know how it goes. As soon as a couple gets serious (or married), one or both stop trying to look good, keep fit, etc. The same can often be seen in marketing. Everyone tries to look good long enough to seal the deal, but looking good long after is just as important. Keeping someone is much easier and more cost-effective than replacing them when they leave because you’ve “let yourself go”. After someone buys your ebook or signs up for your online service, be there for support, listen to suggestions, continue to be what attracted them in the first place.

3. Give, Take, and Compromise
Both marketing and romantic relationships have far better odds of survival when there’s a fairly even give/take dynamic. If you’re always taking and never giving, a girlfriend will vanish quickly and a client isn’t much different. More important than what you’re giving is the fact that you thought to give it. Clients, like romantic interests, want to feel appreciated. After you’ve gotten a relationship started, you’ll find there’s still plenty to learn about each other and more often than not, there will be some things that neither of you are 100% comfortable with budging on. Compromise is just another form of giving. Sometimes you can avoid an argument just by setting the thermostat to 75 degrees when she wants it at 70 and you want it at 80 and sometimes you can keep a client happy with a partial refund or discount after a miscommunication or small problem. There are times when you should stick firmly to your guns, but not nearly as many as the times you should find a reasonable compromise.

2. Communication is key
Silence may be golden, but communication is the key to any solid relationship. I’ve been in a few relationships and a common theme that used to get drilled into my head was that a given situation could have been less agitated if I had communicated better. This can apply to something as simple as saying I’ll be home in 40 minutes rather than “soon” or something slightly more delicate like letting her know I’m hanging going to hang out with an ex and discussing any issues with that BEFORE doing it. In marketing, it’s not much different, except that there can be more legal liability attached to miscommunications in marketing. Be clear (but polite) about what clients can reasonably expect from you and what you expect from them, if anything. Lack of communication can lead to misunderstandings, which can go down-hill quickly. Good communication can save you from a lot of headaches.

1. Be real
This is one of the easiest analogies to make and probably the most important. There are so many things you could find out about someone you engage with romantically that would have kept you away if you knew about them to begin with. Does she still live with her ex-husband? Are they still married? You wouldn’t want to find out about that after you’ve made the commitment. Similarly, a client doesn’t want to buy your ebook on “How to make $200 an hour working from home” only to find out that it requires a $5,000 advertising investment and 17 hours of work each day to sustain. Be up front about any nasty details and the customers you get will be more likely to refer friends and colleagues to you.

What else is there?
What other helpful analogies can be made about marketing and dating? What situations have you come across that I didn’t mention above? Share in the comments.

Remember the early days of MySpace? There was hardly any spam or people trying to steal your account, it was simple, and networking early didn’t seem all that important. Twitter is just getting out of the early phase and networking is more important than ever. So how do you succeed on Twitter? Be like Darth Vader.

Darth Vader has a death grip on Twitter

You read that right. Be like old Mr. Angry Deathstar, himself. I don’t mean you should throw on a big black helmet and talk like James Earl Jones. Instead, just take a look at his account and what he’s doing right. How did Darth Vader land almost 20,000 followers? Let’s take a look.

Be a Celebrity (stand-in)
Sure… Easy, right? OK.. Maybe you can’t do everything just like Darth, but think about it. Is it REALLY Darth Vader slinging tweets? My money says it’s just someone who got the right idea at the right time and has executed the plan perfectly. Are there any celebrities? If you decide to become a celebrity stand-in, use it as your second account and keep a primary account for the real you. Then let the success of the celebrity account help your “you” account.

Entertain
If you’re a celebrity stand-in, don’t just repeat some lines from a movie like @napoleondynamite does. That clearly does not work at all. Be original while staying in character like D.V. does. Not all of his tweets a hilarious, but enough are that I don’t want to miss one, so I follow, just like the other 19,000+ followers.

Don’t Be Afraid to Follow
You can’t just sit back and expect the love to flow one way. You are nurturing relationships to an extent and just like the real thing, you need to give if you expect to receive. On Twitter, this means following people. Even if it’s just people who sent you a tweet or who you find interesting, don’t be afraid to follow a lot of people. Even an A-Lister like Darth Vader follows over 4,000 people.

Brand Yourself
What does your twitter page look like? Do you have a background? You at least have an icon, right? Take a look at Darth Vader’s Twitter page. His icon is easily recognizable and his background is subtle, but brands the page well. If your blog or site already has a brand that people will recognize, weave that into your Twitter page. Often just a simple background and the right icon will do the trick.

Darth lands himself about 50 new minions a day and can easily drop a link to a blog, website, or product landing page that will automatically be sent to an audience of almost 20,000 people. That’s true marketing power and if it is used correctly (linking only to related things like a Star Wars ring tone affiliate link, for example), the Dark Sith could be on the receiving end of some easy affiliate earnings.