Photo by Vincent Boiteau
Imagine yourself as a desperate bachelor. You’ve just turned 30 and your last “serious” relationship was 4 years ago. As much as you enjoy “the single life” for its freedom, you woke up one day and felt lonely. You realized you’ve been subconsciously avoiding going home after work because all you’ll be seeing is an empty apartment.
You’ve suddenly realized something is missing in your life.
“Things can’t continue like this anymore.”, you thought. The thought stuck with you all day and you were driving home when you made the decision to join one of those online dating website as soon as you reach your destination.
But before you reached home, as if it’s the universe’s will, you saw a young beautiful woman stranded in the middle of nowhere. Her car has broken down and she obviously needed someone to repair it. You thanked God as you slowed down and stepped out of the car.
The two of you started talking… and about an hour later, her car is fixed. Now’s your chance to make a move. What would you say?
Saying The Right Things At The Right Time
You see, dating and pickup is one of the areas where salesmanship (and thus marketing and copywriting) is crucial because you’re essentially trying to sell the notion that going out with you is a good idea.
You use the same “psychological hot-buttons” salesmen use to sell products. Both you and the salesman approach complete strangers. He is asking his prospects to take the risk of of being scammed… you’re asking yours to take the risk of going out with a psychopath. But while thee salesman would be out of a prospect’s life in a short while… you’ll be staying for a while.
It’s not easy being a pick-up artist…
Most man assumed good looks and a muscular physique is all a man need to seduce. Is it? Or are they reflecting what THEY want onto what WOMEN want?
And from what I see in the dating world, it’s obvious 99.9% of man… and to a certain extent, woman, have no idea how to sell!
Here’s a common misconception about dating: Most man assumed good looks and a muscular physique is all a man need to seduce. Is it? Or are they reflecting what THEY want onto what WOMEN want? Do beautiful women like it when people complements their looks like what 99.9% of men do?
Take a look at this video.
Most salesman make the same mistake. They project what THEY thought to be what the prospects want onto the prospects. Can you blame them for slamming the door on your face?
Let’s use the dating advice industry as an example. Is it really possible to become a master pick-up artist by reading a short 20 page e-book? Highly unlikely. But that’s exactly what most guys are looking for. What pick-up lines should I use? What perfume should I buy?
What they really need to know is to get their mindset right… and that means continuing education and trial and error.
As a marketer in the industry, what would your marketing communication be saying? What they want (instant gratification) or what they need? Which one have a better chance of selling? Does that mean you don’t deliver what they need?
Here’s Your Homework
So here’s what I want you to do. Sit down with a customer and ask them the following questions:
- Why did you buy from me?
- What is the biggest problem you wanted to solve by buying my product?
- Why do you want to solve that problem?
- Was the problem solved?
- Are there any problems that you faced in implementing it?
By the end of the short interview, don’t be surprised to find that your marketing communication is fundamentally flawed. I know I did.
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