Chances are, you’ve heard about Tinder, the not-so-new dating app that all the kids are using. If you haven’t, this article may not mean as much to you, but you’re welcome to read on.

Tinder is a mobile app that helps you find the love of your life by showing pictures of other users within a certain age range and geographical distance from you.

If you see a face you like, you swipe right. If not, you swipe left.  If you swipe right on the picture of someone that swiped right on your picture, you’re matched. At that point, you are allowed to start talking to each other and decide if you’d like to go on a date, knit holiday sweaters together, or just become friends. Or so the news articles read.

“But, Dallas,” you say, “business development is complex; you can't compare it to online dating.”

And to that, I reply, "Bologna."

Sure, your pretty little corporate logo isn’t displayed in an app where prospective customers swipe through a collection of companies and brands. Unless you’re an ad agency in Amsterdam, in which case you have http://gopitcher.com/.

But for the rest of us, we must realize that the business of getting business is about acquiring quality attention and not simply screen time. Perhaps your one “slide” of attention is on the grocery-store shelf. Maybe it is an intro you make at a networking event. It could be a quarter page ad in an industry publication or a sentence on a search results page.

And so, without further ado, I present my list for Businessing like You Were Tindering.

  1. Be Uncommonly Attractive. It doesn’t matter yet how many talents you have, how smart you are, or just how much you have to offer. Those discoveries are to happen during courtship. All that matters at the very beginning is to get a swipe to the right. And in order for that to happen, people [customers] need to find themselves attracted to you. So, look good. No, seriously, just because your mom [aka, the CEO’s wife] thinks you’re super attractive, it doesn’t mean your beauty is that easy for everybody to see. Have your brand in order. Use only the best photography; Incorporate excellent design; craft compelling messaging and promotions; offer killer products. Of course, some of this comes with time. If you discover you’re just not getting any quality matches, it may be time for a makeover.
  2. A Match is not a Guaranteed Date. Not everybody on Tinder understands this. Newbies on Tinder often think, “I matched with someone, they must want to go out with me.” But that’s not always the case. A match is nothing more than acknowledgement that someone finds you attractive, and an opportunity to strike up conversation. In the business world, a match could be a visit to your web page. It could be someone walking into your storefront. It could be asking an employee about your services. It’s an invitation to take the next step in securing their interest. If you bombard them, or assume too much, you’re likely to scare them away, and end up getting blocked. Behavior like that often smells like desperation. It’s better to take this time as an opportunity to get to know them; qualify them and see if they possess the qualities that might make a good customer/client/partner, or if they are just a pretty face.
  3. The First Date is for Filtering. Congratulations, you matched! AND you got a first date scheduled! You’re on a roll. This is very validating. It feels good to know that someone you’re interested in is also interested in you. But the work isn’t done yet. This is the hard part. It doesn’t matter what was said via text, email, the phone or your website—when you meet in person, the whole game changes. Dates offer a chance to determine if you are a good fit. In business, this can be an intro meeting, a minor purchase, or even working together on a small project. Try to resist the urge to simply be what you think the other person wants you to be. Instead, see how you communicate. See if you share a similar vision and the same values. If your values are different, you’re not likely to be a great match. But that’s ok. Perhaps you can be friends. Perhaps things will change down the road. And, maybe, you can introduce each other to someone that might be a better fit.
  4. Build a Reputation for Positive Relationships. If your date(s) goes well and you eventually decide to have a relationship, you then start down the road of expectations and execution. Most relationships alter over time, and many relationships won’t last forever. That’s no reason to look at the time together as a negative. So things changed;  but, did you have a good time while you were together? Did you help each other meet your needs? Did you share some positive experiences? Then make sure you say nice things about each other. Hopefully, they’ll do the same for you. You never know—you may cross paths again, or they may have someone new to introduce to you.

The competitive landscape is constantly changing. Many brands that are super hot today won’t be as attractive tomorrow. Tastes change and so do customers. But there will always be people and businesses with needs to be met. And they will look to other people and businesses to help meet them. So get out there. Be the brand that people want to talk to. That others trust. This may require promotions, advertising, brand collaborations, contests; it may be networking, consulting or pro-bono work. The point is: be good for something, represent yourself well, and share yourself with others. Before you know it, you’ll have more matches than you can handle—you may even fall in love.