Modern dating isn’t for the faint of heart. But if love is a battlefield, marketing skills might be a secret weapon. Intuit Mailchimp recently surveyed* marketers to get their perspective on dating, and how they apply their professional skills to their romantic efforts.
Marketers tell us they’re highly attuned to red flags, confident in spotting inauthenticity early, and quick to assess fit. Poor communication, lack of curiosity, and overly curated “personal brands” are among the fastest deal-breakers, with authenticity emerging as a clear non-negotiable.
And unsurprisingly, many marketers bring their professional toolkits into their love lives. Skills like data analysis, audience targeting, and personalization offer what marketers believe to be a strategic advantage in a crowded field: 87% of the marketers we surveyed believe their professional skills yield more successful matchmaking results compared to non-marketing peers, and the majority of marketers we surveyed — 93% — admit to analyzing their dates like a work project.
Rather than relying on vibes (or holding out for love at first touchpoint), marketers take a more strategic, data-driven approach to achieving their romantic KPIs: nearly half (48%) say they use data analysis and audience targeting to weed out the wrong personas and get better results. And, just as marketers might raise conversion rates with data-informed personalization, 45% of marketers customize their interactions based on specific insights they’ve gathered about a date. (It’s a competitive marketplace, after all.)
Not a marketer, but want to date one? For starters, know that marketers have keen radars for inauthenticity: 68% of them feel that their industry experience makes them expert "BS detectors" who can spot a bad fit within a month—primarily by sniffing out poor communication (the top red flag for 63%), a lack of curiosity or growth mindset (46%), and overly curated personalities (41%). Whatever you do, be sure to bring your A-game, because marketers have high standards: 59% agreed that their profession makes it harder to be impressed while dating.
Meeting those high standards is our love language. Mailchimp’s continuous, customer-led platform upgrades are our way of keeping marketers and their preferences in mind. What better time to launch new product features and capabilities than during the most romantic season of the year? Consider it our public love letter to marketers.
Survey Findings:
Most marketers find dating “painful.”
- 70% find reviewing their dating app likes/matches to be painful
- 45% feel it's more painful than learning a new technology at work
- 25% believe both to be painful
Most marketers admit to analyzing dates like a work project
- 93% report doing this "Always," "Often," or "Sometimes."
- The most frequent response was "Often" at 46%.
- Only 7% say "Rarely" or "Never."
Marketers are keen observers
- 59% of marketers agree that their profession makes it harder to be impressed while dating.
- 68% of marketers feel very confident that they can spot “BS” early on in dating.
- 78% can tell if someone isn’t the right fit for them within a month or less.
Marketers value interpersonal skills
- The top turn-off is ‘Poor communication’ at 63%.
- This is followed by ‘No curiosity’ or ‘growth mindset’ at 46%.
Overly curated or inauthentic ‘vibes’ is a major turn-off for 41% of marketers.
- 77% have lost interest in someone because their “personal brand” didn’t feel authentic.
- Falling for obvious hype or trends was a turn-off for 31%.
Most marketers apply job skills to their love lives
- 87% believe their professional skills have helped them yield more successful matchmaking results compared to non-marketing peers.
Most commonly used tactics in dating:
- 1. Data analysis: evaluating outcomes and informing future tactics (48%)
- 2. Audience targeting: determining if a persona isn’t a fit (48%) and/or identifying the optimal audience (34%)
- 3. Personalization: customizing interactions based on personal insights (45%)
Love is in the air
83% of marketers report their brand is running Valentine’s Day campaigns, with 55% noting it’s a valuable time for the brand.
- 28% of marketers report running Valentine’s Day campaigns only because it’s expected of them or told to do.
- 85% of marketers enjoy the holiday on a personal level.
*The interviews were conducted online in January 2026 via an independent survey conducted by 3Gem Media Group.