Develop a Full Marketing Strategy, Complete With Campaigns and Lead Management Systems

Andréa, citing Darren (rightfully welcomed to the year 2003 by Naked Condo) who blogged Why I Will Never Have a Girlfriend: “Miller's experience as a scientist -- and not a marketer -- shows when he determines that it will take 67 years for him to meet one of those women. He bases his marketing plan on just one tactic -- a weekly blind date. To achieve a return on investment within a reasonable time frame, Miller should develop a full marketing strategy, complete with campaigns and lead management systems. By building awareness, cultivating interest, stimulating desire, and prompting action, Miller could find a match in a much shorter time. Perhaps he should consider enlisting the help of a marketer....”

It pains me to admit this, but she's right. For most guys and girls who have trouble getting a date, the problem is not the packaging or the product, but the marketing. For me, the marketing copy has absolutely sucked, and this is something I'd be all over outsourcing if I thought "hey, I need you to talk about me amongst your female friends" wasn't a conversation-stopper.

If I catch him in a moment of extreme honesty, I think I know a friend who will admit his markeing copy stinks, but he will happily admit that the way he convinced his girlfriend to start dating him was genius, if unintentionally so. He told his friend that he loved her (very courageous), and refused to let her come to a decision right away. She talked to her female friends, who revealed to her that they thought he was a good guy. So while his marketing skills may have sucked (I don't know the full story, so please place the emphasis on the word "may"), but the word-of-mouth advertising about him was strong. Getting strong word-of-mouth is highly dependent on being awesome.

(It really doesn't matter, and nor can I prove this, but I blogged the "Why I Will Never Have a Girlfriend" in October 2001, and deserved kudos to those who blogged it before me.)