Psychology of influence 1. Cognitive dissonance – the “Jiminy Cricket” effect What marketers professional know is that if you can influence someone sufficiently to change a behaviour, the new behaviour can alter somebody’s self-image. Making commitments Rather than simply asking me to do something, ask me to confirm that I will do that thing. Two factors will enhance the power of my commitment : a. The more public that commitment is then the stronger its effect will be – get them to commit in front of other people b. The more permanent that commitment is then the stronger its effect will be – get them to put their commitment in writing or put their name to it. 3. Expectation – the ‘doing what is expected’ effect The greater the level of credibility that you can portray, the stronger this effect will be. This is the ultimate form of influence. Great leaders can only be leaders because people are prepared to follow them. 4. Reactance – the ‘black is white’ effect Rather like inanimate objects, human beings react to an imposed force, and the more pressure put on us, the more we resist. If we feel our freedom of choice or action is being limited, we will oppose that force. This is called reactance. 5. The credibility paradox – the ‘narrower is deeper’ effect The narrower and more particular a claim is, the less we tend to question it. We assume that, because the claim has been honed to a high level of precision, it must be correspondingly accurate. 6. Decision fear – the ‘too much choice’ effect When you have to make more of an effort to make a decision, the prospect of getting that decision wrong seems more uncomfortable. Therefore, as the number of options you have increases, not only does the difficulty of making a choice grow; so do the consequences of getting wrong. 7. Comparisons – the ‘black and white’ effect Human beings seem predisposed to consider things in the context of other things around them. For example, people are perfectly happy with what they have, whether it is their car, home,, or salary, until they learn that the person next to them has something more or better. 8. Pattern interrupts – ‘shock, awe and laughter’ a. Confusion If you can’t dazzle them with brilliance; battle them with nonsense. b. Shock Strange as it may seem, sometimes a well-chosen use of shouting, swearing or physical gesture can change behaviour radically. c. Humour Not only does the humour charm us and trigger likeability; it also signals confidence and hence credibility.
Posted on: Wed, 03 Sep 2014 18:54:25 +0000
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