Marketing - Brand Foreplay For Sales

Before Someone Buys Something, They First Have To Be Romanced

By David Miranda

The field of marketing has many descriptive terms to describe and measure brand success such as awareness, recognition, preference, engagement, and relationship to name of a few. The best way, however, to describe and measure brand success is sales.

This is because before anyone buys anything, they first have to desire it. That is what marketing does. It is the business discipline of seduction.

Simply put, marketing is foreplay for sales.

All too often, brands think that a clever "pick up line" (advertising slogan) is enough or perhaps "offering to buy the pursued a cocktail of their choice" (discounting, coupons, free offers) will win their favor. These may be good techniques for "one-night stands" with consumers; but not for sustainable brand relationships. Brands need to create a conversation with the consumer - get to know them, understand their needs and wants.

In other words, consumers want to be romanced by brands - to be recognized and appreciated. This is what great brands do. This is what great marketing does.

Every sale and every repeat sale is the direct result of brand foreplay. Too often a great deal of effort is placed in acquiring a new customer, but also all too often this newly acquired customer is taken for granted wrongly assuming that an acquired customer will be a repeat customer. In a marketplace where preference is perishable, this is a critical miscalculation.

This is why it is critically important for a brand to understand that, in today's highly competitive marketplace, without brand foreplay-without romancing, competitive suitors are relentlessly seducing your current and future customers.

Don't try to "pick up" customers; romance them instead by employing the foreplay of sales.

It's called marketing.