Category: Simon Smith

(I always check my stats! Here is a previous article that has “Topped the Charts” in hits last month!)

Actually, if your friends jumped off a bridge, you probably would go with them. Especially if you owed them one, had told them earlier you would do it, liked them, and saw any of them as a bridge-jumping expert. And definitely if the bridge was closing soon, with your time to jump running out.

So suggests Robert Cialdini in Influence, the classic book on persuasion first published in 1984 and republished this year. On a recent trip, I bagged a new copy and became immediately engrossed. Cialdini takes readers on a journey through the psychology of persuasion, demonstrating through facts and anecdotes how we’re easily manipulated—and easy to manipulate—through the application of six psychological “weapons of influence”: reciprocation, commitment and consistency, social proof, liking, authority and scarcity.

Reading the book, it dawned on me that we employ few of these weapons in interactive marketing. To help change that, here’s an overview of Cialdini’s weapons, followed by an example of how we can use them to profit online:

Reciprocation

Ever wonder why charities give trinkets such as address labels and keychain identifiers? Because they know a seemingly simple yet astoundingly powerful fact: when you give people a gift, they’re far more likely to comply with future requests. More than twice as likely, some studies show. Why? We have a built-in need to balance social favours. It’s unconscious, reflexive and difficult to turn off, because it works so well in most circumstances. Takeaway: Give gifts to increase compliance.

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