Shakespeare-King of Personal Ad Writing

Sometime around the middle of my college career, I started working out with weights. Not because I was interested in getting healthy mind you. On a diet of 7/11 chili-dogs and beer specials, those college-years weren't the healthiest.

Actually, like most men, my reasoning for hitting the gym was purely superficial. I wanted to be ripped. Women go for guys with big muscles and washboard abs. Right?

Well, I know they do in L.A. But in the real world, I can assure you, while a lean body is certainly not going to hurt your chances - there are definitely better ways to attract the opposite sex.

Last year, American men spent hundreds of millions of dollars on gym memberships and products to make themselves look younger and more attractive.

Yet the number of single men is still staggering.

And, of course that means the number of single women is just as staggering. With more than 8 million women searching for dates online every single day - this is not hard to believe.

The thing is men spend so much time trying to devise ways to impress the ladies, they easily overlook the obvious.

Shakespeare didn't do Tae-Bo

In 1609, William Shakespeare wrote the poem, 'Shall I compare thee.' Probably one of the most romantic poems ever written.

For years, this poem turned the strongest, most independent women to jelly.

Now I'm not saying go out and recite Shakespeare to the first gorgeous woman you see. And I'm certainly not suggesting that any one of us even attempt to write something even close to this.

But you can definitely take a lesson from Mr. Shakespeare on how to excite women.

Because the truth is - no matter how ripped your muscles or how chiseled your jaw line, if you can't get a woman excited, she'll see you as a dud.

And duds don't get dates!

Romance Marketing: 101

In last week's article, we reviewed the first 4 letters of the S.C.O.R.E. system.

S -- Subtly sell yourself in the headline and lead

C -- Connect with her through descriptive words

O -- Offer her a dream first date by showing her (specifically) where you want to take her

R -- Reinforce that you're the only one she should pick

Using this information, we took what was a poorly-written and ineffective personal ad, and turned it into a winner.

Today I'd like to review with you the next letter of the S.C.O.R.E. system - 'E.'

E -- Excited. Get her so EXCITED at the end of your ad that she e-mails you right away.

If you've never read 'Shall I compare thee,' do yourself a favor and read it.

It is truly one of the most classic romance poems ever written.

Now not to disparage the concept of romance here - but the reality is, just like anything, this can be broken down scientifically.

And for our purposes, that's exactly what we need.

Taking a cue from my early principles of marketing text, it's not the poem that makes them melt - it's what it represents. And what it represents is excitement.

What this poem says is exactly what every heterosexual female wants to hear about how a man should feel about her. And that in itself is more exciting than anything!

What woman doesn't want to be placed on a proverbial pedestal?

Of course, personal ad profiles aren't nearly as complex.

Women don't want you reciting Shakespeare and don't want to be 'compared to a summer's day.' Not yet anyway.

But they still want to feel excited.

And if they do feel excited, you have a much better chance of having them e-mail YOU right away.

Obviously that's what we're going for here.

Now in order to get her excited, there are 5 elements that you should be able to identify in your ad that will accomplish this goal. These elements include:

Creativity

Curiosity

Confidence

Inclusion (include her in your plans)

Romance

If you're able to hit upon these elements at least once in your ad, you've successfully laid the groundwork for an effective and EXCITING ad.

So let's take a look at our ad so far, and dissect it to see if it meets our demands.

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Headline: Have you ever tried the $60 Challenge? CURIOSITY

What if I told you that you could dine at the city's most luxurious restaurant (I'm talking five-star rating) for just $30? CURIOSITY You'd call me nuts, right? Well, it's not only possible, but I'm willing to prove it by taking you to the city's finest anonymous French bistro, right on the Harbor. CONFIDENCE I have a reservation for this Saturday night and I'd like you to be my teammate to help me with my challenge. INCLUSION The idea is to budget ourselves 60 bucks for a five course meal -- and see if we can pull it off! CREATIVITY And I'm not talking just a quick bite at a local diner either. I'm talking about a five-star restaurant, spectacular food, a couple of glasses of chianti and intriguing conversation. ROMANCE Interested? INCLUSION If this idea sounds familiar, they have a similar show on the Food Network. But I'm sure we can one-up them. INCLUSION So what do you say? Will you be my cohort for the night? INCLUSION

As you can see, this ad exhibits all the elements of an ad that will get her so excited, she?ll rush to e-mail you.

Granted, it's no Shakespeare - but it'll do definitely do the trick!

So there you have it. The S.C.O.R.E. system - and all its working components.

For more information on the S.C.O.R.E. system, visit the weeklyscore.com archives section.