Marketing Yourself to Get Off the Market
Yup, you read that right. Anna Nieds is here to give you the ~latest~, *greatest* Tinder advice there ever was, because we’ve all been there. Whether you’re looking for a self-confidence boost, late-night entertainment (take that as you will), or the good ole relationship; taking a dive into Tinder (and a dive into those DMs) is something to remember.
Logistically speaking, I might not be the most qualified “Tinder expert”, but if my Quora profile says anything about me, it’s that I can act like I am.
As an advertising and marketing student, I’ve learned a lot about branding, campaigns, and consumer behavior.
And the more I think about it, the more I realize how my areas of study pertain to the dating world of Tinder… Let me convince you.
Curating Your Profile
Ever heard of the AIDA model? As Wikipedia so greatly explains, “AIDA is an acronym that stands for Attention or Awareness, Interest, Desire, and Action. The AIDA model is widely used in marketing and advertising to describe the steps or stages that occur from the time when a consumer first becomes aware of a product or brand through to when the consumer trials a product or makes a purchase decision.”
That’s right, you are the product. And Tinder is all about advertising yourself.
So let’s take a look into how the AIDA model can best benefit you on your journey of swiping left, and more importantly, swiping right.
Attention/Awareness
Yup, you guessed it. Drawing attention and creating awareness begins with the first profile picture. Tinder actually has a fun little feature called “Smart Photos” that you can turn on/off. As Tinder says, it “continuously tests all your profile photos and picks the best one to show first.”
Quite the algorithm if you ask me, I tend to like to handpick the first photo people see of me so that I’m ~in control of my own destiny~, or whatever.
The jury might still be out as to the best kind of picture to put first, whether it’s a bomb selfie, a good ‘ole personality pic, a profesh solo shot, or an artsy mirror photo.
But there’s one thing that I know for sure, and it’s that the first image sets the tone for the rest of your profile. Your first photo should be an accurate representation of who you are as a person, and an accurate depiction of what your dream match’s profile would be, too. After all, you attract people who are similar to you, so curating your featured images around the vibe you want from a match is key.
Just like resumes and social media profiles, branding yourself becomes important in this aspect. Which leads to interest.
Interest
Your featured photos serve as a pathway to interest, but they can be a make or break if you don’t have a clever description. I like to keep it short and sweet – a one-liner – if you will.
For a while, I had my job description as “aspiring barista” and my description as “just a gemini girl living in a zodiac world.” It hinted towards my cliche-cringe humor, my love for classic/alternative rock music, and most importantly, it gives your matches just enough info to slide in with something witty, but not enough info as to make you intriguing and slightly mysterious.
Once again, let’s relate this to another component of advertising and marketing.
Do you know how short consumers’ attention spans are? A measly 8 seconds long.
Paragraphs are not the move. I repeat, paragraphs in your Tinder description are not the move!
The more concise, the better. Better to inspire curiosity in someone in saying less, than boring someone in saying more, which brings us to desire.
Desire
Ah, desire. What a lovely thing to instill in someone. Here’s where the messaging takes place.
To be honest, messaging is probably the most fun aspect of the whole Tinder experience. You’re able to better express your personality, find out a little more about your fellow Tinder match, and ultimately decide if it’s worth a date/meeting up in person.
Whether you decide to take the messaging to a different app (like Snapchat, for example), go right to texting, or just keep it to Tinder messaging, is up to you.
If there’s one Pinterest quote that I see particularly applying to this whole ~messaging phase~, it’s “How to seem enthusiastic but not desperate.” It’s a fine line between the two, and each person perceives it differently.
In my opinion? Message this person just as often as you would text a new friend or a classmate. Don’t try to be someone you’re not, better to embody your in-person self the best way you can than to try to conform to what you think you should send them.
Action
Last but not least, comes action. Not gonna lie, when it coming to this area, I’m biased towards girls making the first move.
I wholeheartedly believe in going after what you want! Waiting for guys to initiate is so overrated.
After all, shooting your shot versus sending cues you hope he’ll pick up on is essentially the premise of Central Route persuasion versus Peripheral Route persuasion in advertising.
Basically, the central route persuades someone based on a message and the content of that said message. The peripheral route, on the other hand, seeks to persuade someone based on surface-level characteristics and nonverbal signals other than a message itself.
Yanno what they say about central route versus peripheral route persuasion? The central route causes a lasting change in attitude, while the peripheral route causes a temporary change in attitude.
The facts don’t lie, it’s best if you ditch the stigma behind making the first move, and go ahead and take action first. Which means it’s only right that I make a section specifically for shooting your shot.
Shooting Your Shot
I’m not gonna lie, there’s no true step-by-step guide when it comes to sliding in, as crafting your message really depends on your target audience (so totally advertising major/marketing minor of me to throw in target audience, but seriously, so much of the stuff I’ve learned in class applies to making your move).
But more importantly, you should craft your message based on your own personality, too. You know how people have different form when it comes to shooting a free throw, but the end goal is always the same? The same concept applies to that first DM.
To give you some inspiration and get your creative juices flowing, here’s a couple messages I’ve sent that have been minorly successful (first message got me a phone number and 2 months worth of texting, while the second message got me a date).
And while you can tailor your message according to your target Tinder match, don’t forget the importance of a good ole rejection. I’ve definitely had my fair share of ghostings, no doubt about that.
And I should also mention: don’t forget to take this entire blog post with a grain of salt. Your girl might claim she’s a Tinder expert, but in reality, she’s never been in a relationship much less had her first kiss. The irony is too real.
Live ironically always.
