"Right now, discounted price on our blablabla! Come buy today!"...

Do you like those ads? No, not me either... But wait! Now, you are probably wondering... "Isn't this what you are working with? 😅" Well not really, we call this Interruption Marketing. Marketing that interrupt and force their products to be seen. It's the tactic most brands use today. However, it's not a sustainable tactic. And for most brands it's a waste of money. In fact, I believe it is pretty much bound to fail... Because it's an endless war for attention.

Advertisements just become crazier and crazier. I mean, agencies literally hire full scale hollywood productions to create their ads today. Costing millions of dollars just to produce... But at least if you are really good, you'll sell at first. However, after only a couple of months you'll have a big problem. No sales... No customers... No additional revenue... Why? Because people only buy from people they trust. And you've spent months destroying every inch of trust consumers have in your brand by shoving your sales message in their face. But don't worry. There is a solution...

You want to treat your customer relationships like dating. First of all, you need to attract initial engagement. You can do that by giving an appetizer. For example. A free report... Checklist... Or maybe a webinar... Once you've attracted people with some free value, you do a tiny exchange. They give you their email address and permission. You give them the valuable content you've created.

Congratulations! You've made it to the first date. Now you want to get to know each other to see if you are compatible. If it turns out you're not, no worries. There is plenty more out there. Politely say thank you for the time spent together and decline to go on another date. Otherwise, you're risking to live the rest of your life miserable. Keep providing value through email and keep asking for permission every now and then to find out what dating stage you're at. That way, you make sure to not embarrass yourself by doing the wrong move.

There's nothing worse than standing outside the restaurant... Neon lights are shining a beautiful blue and purple shade over you... It's almost too good to be true... Your favorite song is playing... And you start wondering "is this the moment?" "Should I lean in for it?" *you shut your eyes* *lean in* And... Misread the entire situation. It stings, doesn't it? We definitely don't want that happening. So instead of embarrassing yourself you ask for permission.

Once you get more permission, you step up and provide more value. Then you just keep dating until the relationship is strong enough to become a couple. *hocus pocus* You just got yourself a new client! How does it feel? Good, I bet...

Just remember that dating takes time... And forcing someone to go on a date definitely won't work out very well.