As Valentine’s Day approaches, grocery stores are slowly being bombarded with colors or red and pink flowers, cards, stuffed animals, etc. It conveys a message to both those in relationships and singles. As a single (woman), myself, I start to think about the holidays and the reminder that maybe I should be actively looking for a significant other, or even that just one Valentine’s Day is enough. This process is not too far from the process of targeting intelligence or even influencing consumer behavior.

If you really think about it, the steps are somewhat similar. First of all, the whole concept and/or goal is to build a relationship. And the only way to do that is to introduce yourself to the consumer first. Before you can influence a consumer to buy, you must build a relationship with him or her and even before that, you must define yourself to him or her. So you must ask yourself, who exactly do I want to influence and/or build this relationship with? You need to determine who the demographic is that you want to influence. For me, this is the part where I pick and think about the qualities I’m looking for in a partner that will help me take the next step. The step is WHERE: Once you’ve determined your audience, you now need to locate the sources you want to use to access them. If I’m looking for someone who is athletic, I’m likely to look for this person in a gym instead of the library. Or even target college students on campus to sell a book on frats, instead of trying to place them in an arcade at the mall. You simply can’t get to WHERE without first determining WHO.

And once you’ve determined who, what, and where, it’s only a matter of time before you find exactly who you’re looking for. But it’s not over yet. Just because you’ve built the relationship doesn’t mean it will automatically be successful. True success, of a relationship or even a business, comes with hard work and constant care, and if you want to continue influencing consumer behavior, don’t forget to stay constantly connected.