Dimitri the Lover

Dimitri has blazed his way into the internet consciousness in less than a week, starting with a couple of voicemails showcasing his talent in meeting and seducing "elegant" women, followed by the appearance of the "Official Web Site of Dimitri the Lover, Canada's greatest lover and seducer." Do a google search and you'll learn a bit more about Dimitri's past.

What struck me immediately after seeing the site is that Dimitri the Lover had to be a marketing campaign for...something. Maybe a movie or a web series. But so far, there doesn't seem to be anything more than a guy with a shady past who seems to be very good at marketing himself.

In a way, I enjoyed seeing something this entertaining rise through the internet ranks that wasn't powered by a brand with a savvy marketing team. It's another reminder of the power of the digital age and provides a fresh stream of YouTube parodies like this one.

Then again, Dimitri could still end up being a piece of "The Love Guru"'s marketing mix.

Comments

[Matt K.]

I'm not so sure this is viral marketing for any product. "Pickup artists" seem to have become public figures and, in some cases, brands in their own right (e.g. "Mystery", Neil Strauss, Paul Janka). A good portion of the attention these guys seem to get is highly negative, though. Wouldn't it be very dangerous for a product to be associated with that sort of response to a viral marketing effort?

[adam stewart]

Not always. Take J.C. Penny's recent "leaked" ad that hinted at teen sex. They ruffled their feathers at the release and denied involvement, but the edgy ad and publicity got people talking about them for the first time in a long time.
http://gawker.com/tag/jc-penney/?i=5019200&t=play-the-teen-sex-ad-blame-game

[JP]

"I don't care what the newspapers say about me as long as they spell my name right." (P.T. Barnum)

[Matt K.]

The JC Penny ad got generally positive initial reactions, though, in the form of ad awards and lots of "isn't that cool and funny and edgy" attention on the web. So if JC Penny was involved in the ad at all (I believe that a lawsuit or settlement would indicate that this is not the case, the absence of one might suggest that it is), then they craftily get the best of both worlds by getting positive brand attention without being harmed by potentially negative backlash from a different set of people than those initially exposed to the ad.

That seems to be a different case than the monolithically negative response to Dimitri. If this does turn out to be something done for a recognizable brand, even if followed by a bid for plausible deniability of the campaign itself, play out?

My conjecture is that it is merely an individual making a very enthusiastic, self-promoting play for status as a minor celebrity.