Thoughts on Approaching Random People From Having Briefly Worked in Movie Publicity

pavlove

I've seen a few pieces recently talking about why it's difficult to approach girls and also ones about how generally friendly people are when it comes to approaching others. not surprisingly, a lot of guys want to approach others but are either afraid to or have had experiences which have led them to believe they would be bothering the other person and many girls feel uncomfortable talking to new people. still, some guys do it anyway and some girls like it. It made me think of brief internship i had while still in college where i'd go to events and try to promote upcoming movies with movie posters that i'd then have to get them to take a picture with. I remember it being not the most fun thing but ultimately manageable and something I got good at despite not being someone totally comfortable with being rejected on a constant level. in other words, it would be hard for me to start and difficult to keep going given the nature of cold approaching people. These are few observations that led me to become one of the "top interns" at promoting movies at events despite the fact that i was competing mostly with hot girls.

Thoughts on Approaching Random People From Having Briefly Worked in Movie Publicity

Thinking of a number you have to hit helps

Some people might think its better to transform into this approach machine rather than thinking of some specific number of people you have to get a yes from before you can go home. I found, however, that it gives your mind something to play with and think about. "okay twenty five lets go!" it makes the process feel longer but its also one of the only things you're thinking about when people are weirded out that you're handing them a free movie poster...

Doing them back to back to back in quick succession helps (momentum is more for your nerve than your success)

it helps to just keep going and going and going rather than starting and stopping. this is obviously because the first one is always the hardest and once you stop you basically start that torture over...

Thoughts on Approaching Random People From Having Briefly Worked in Movie Publicity

It takes time to be able to cold read people for interest

The people you think are looking for you to talk to them are not the ones and the ones you think are uninterested a lot of times are looking like that because they don't want to be obvious. the best way to learn the difference is simply experience.

Hot girls tend to be way easier than other girls to open

not a myth created by hopeful guys. i don't know exactly why but hot girls don't seem to have that fear of men generally and whatever your intentions might be they seem down to at least chat with you with high energy and even politeness. Whereas other girls you have to convince you're not just a creepy guy...definitely something to think about when it comes to just flirting and not promoting movies...

Thoughts on Approaching Random People From Having Briefly Worked in Movie Publicity

Groups of two girls is more tricky than three

The dynamic is tricky. one girl is interested and the other one wants you away at once. usually its the one you didn't try to give the poster to first so i actually would try to give a poster to the unfriendly looking one and then double back to the friendly one after that didn't work.

It's embarrassing to be rejected in front of others

It is. It just is but you never remember it afterward unless it was particularly funny. I think people of both genders feel like it would be way worse than it could actually be but the way of getting over it isn't convincing yourself its easy but rather it sucks but its not painful.

Thoughts on Approaching Random People From Having Briefly Worked in Movie Publicity

Asian immigrants get very nervous and introverted generally

not to stereotype but Asian immigrants always would get scared. i honestly thought they might cry so i stopped even approaching them with posters. (the girls not the guys)

eye contact does not always mean interest

a lot of times its a defense mechanism of sorts--they're trying to figure you out and if you're a threat not as an open invitation to come talk to them.

Thoughts on Approaching Random People From Having Briefly Worked in Movie Publicity

your true nature will come out

its kind of wack getting in someones face with a movie poster and convincing them to take a picture with it on your iphone. you usually don't even have any credentials. yet, once the wackness goes away, you will slip into your true self. i stated just telling people they're taking a poster moving them into position for a photo and snapping it off quickly with a brief thank you its for the studio. i also told them i didn't mind if they threw the poster in the trash and showed them where the nearest one was.

it helps to have someone else working the room/event with you

seeing someone else you trust doing the same thing is just a lot more comforting and reduces the freak factor in your own mind.

Thoughts on Approaching Random People From Having Briefly Worked in Movie Publicity

guys almost never reject women

doesn't matter how fat or ugly they are, i've seen girls hand out many a poster and unless the guy is a lot older and just doesn't care anymore, or is the guy will almost always take the poster with a smile and take the photo afterwards. the problem for the female interns was they didn't like the role reversal of having to do the work so they subtly just tried to stand there as if men would magically appear and beg them for posters.

if you have actually have something they want it totally reverses it

and finally you can push anything but its totally different when you have something they really want. when i was handing out Frozen posters they went super super fast. mothers were flirting with me to get me to break the one poster a parent policy so that they could get as many as five for god knows who. i was swarmed from all directions. the craziest time was when i promoted the new hunger games movie inside comic con and had people cry because i wouldn't give them a wristband that only let them get in a line to stand for hours upon end without even the guarantee that they would make it to the front before the booth closed.

the point is the time at the gym is not wasted. the time figuring out how essentially what a hot person looks like and how to be that is not wasted. when you meet someone through friends, they have an investment in getting to know you past your looks or preconceived notions but when you are cold approaching them looks matter so much because the "buying temperature" can be so off the charts. This is also in my opinion why minorities have a hard time with white people why men have a much harder time with women than women would ever have with men etc etc etc. its all about what they already like, not what they could like and exploiting that

Thoughts on Approaching Random People From Having Briefly Worked in Movie Publicity
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