An ode to Robert Cialdini... and another tool to print out & tape to your wall (or clip to your fridge at home)

"Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion" is one of my favorite business books of all time.  As someone who has always been fascinated by those factors that most influence behavior & decision-making, I'm naturally interested in the "art of persuasion".  Not to mention the little fact that persuasion, done well and through an ethical prism, is a key success factor for developing effective, sustainable marketing programs.

In expressing my reverence for Mr. Cialdini while still (hopefully) providing readers with valuable marketing nuggets, I've put together a little cheat sheet of his famed laws of persuasion.  For each "commandment", I've included examples of how it is commonly employed within marketing.  However, each of these laws can be leveraged across many of life's little domains - from getting your child into that perfect school to getting bumped up to first class en route from Dallas to San Francisco.  

Enjoy, and please share your experiences with these laws - the good, the bad and the ugly.  Be they related to marketing or how you've employed them in other facets of your life.

CIALDINI LAW OF INFLUENCE	MARKETING EXAMPLE
Reciprocity You giving to me makes me really want to give back to you – I feel indebted. I owe you! Call it a form of closed-loop Karma if you like.	The free trial, an unexpected free gift with your purchase A free whitepaper, free e-newsletter Telling customers you’ve donated $15 to the charity of their choice before they’ve even completed a purchase (there are many ways to engineer this)
Scarcity People hate to miss out on something, even if it’s something they don’t like! Human evolution made us into hoarders, and we can't seem to shake the habit.	The “closing window” – “last chance”, “only one week left!” “Act now while supplies last!” “Here today, gone tomorrow – don’t delay!” “Limited-edition” products – art prints, coins, Barbies, Star Wars figures
Likability We want to do nice things for people we like. We’re also more likely to trust & listen to them. So whom do we tend to like? 1) People we have lots in common with 2) people who love to tell us how great & good-looking we are! (We just can’t get enough praise)	Celebrity & athlete endorsements “Our product is for smart, attractive people, just like YOU!” (Oh, how I blush… keep talking!) Why car salespeople try to learn early on what you both have in common. The closer you feel to her, the more you like her and are liable to trust her.
Authority People wearing nice suits. Police officers. Firefighters. Doctors. We become zombies in the presence of such authority figures in their domains of expertise. “I’ll do whatever you say…”	Power of “Opinion Leaders” – featuring Consumer Reports’ positive review of your product, including an endorsement from Seth Godin on the back of your book (although he has been kind of spreading the wealth lately…) Getting H&R Block to endorse your new tax software or Suze Orman to endorse your new no-load mutual fund)
Social Proof They seem to like it, so there must be something good about it. Aka, “the bandwagon effect”, “wisdom of the crowds”.	Testimonials (especially from people like yourself) Power of word-of-mouth, customer reviews Long lines outside a night club (even though the club is often half-empty).
Consistency / Commitment My current actions must align with my prior actions & commitments. Contradictory behavior makes me very uneasy.	“Foot-in-the-door” technique - getting someone to make small commitments to lead up to much bigger commitment. Getting user to register for free e-newsletter or to become “fan” on Facebook before offering user fee-based offerings.
Contrast We always evaluate our situations using some type of reference point – whether we’re evaluating the “goodness” of our incomes, spouses, children, education, etc. Marketers & salespeople engineer reference points for you for certain purchase settings. E.g., when you’re buying a new car, the salesperson wants you to think about the $1k “option” to install heated tush warmers relative to the $40k you’re already spending for the car, and not the 3% interest you’d earn by instead putting the $1k into your savings account.	For only $19 you can get 6 more inches of legroom for your flight from NYC to LA! The flight’s already $450 – what’s $19 more for 5-hours of comfort? “How about this nice $200 tie to go with your new $2k suit? You’re already spending $2k, why not spend a mere 10% more and make the suit perfect!”

Click here to download PDF of Cialdini persuasion table

How can I start using this information today?

• Clarify your goal or objective.  For example, "I want to increase the ROI on my email acquisition spend" 

• Go through each Cialdini law one-by-one and ask, "How might I use it to improve my email acquisition efforts?"  For example, for "social proof", you may decide to test the inclusion of testimonials or "seals of approval" from leading authorities within the body of your email.  For "likability", you may test emails with imagery of people who closely resemble your target market - from the clothes they wear to the surroundings in which they live.   

No Moral Judgments
A quick side note to those who feel "persuasion" is a four-letter word. To be clear, I'm not looking to generate a forum for moral soap-boxing. These laws exist whether we like it or not; a consequence of human evolution, and without their development we'd likely have gone the way of dinosaurs.  Like Cialdini, I believe these laws can be used for good, for bad, and for everything in between.  At a minimum we should all be aware of them since they do have such a profound impact on our daily lives.  Now that I got that off my chest... enjoy!




More from R. Cialdini plus other great persuasion content 

• Yes!: 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive ("Applied Cialdini" - terrific book!)

• DishyMix podcast interview with Robert Cialdini

• Great presentation with the supporting audio on persuasive UX design from Andy Budd. 

• 6 elements for creating influential web experiences - copyblogger podcast

• How To Win Friends And Influence People by Dale Carnegie (I consider Dale the grandfather of persuasion, particularly within the work context)

read more

Injecting some Maslow into your marketing

What would you say if I told you that just a few miles off the coast of Australia was a tiny island where a man's success was indicated by the colorfulness of his shirt? Think male peacocks or Seinfeld-as-pirate, whichever is easier to visualize.

For fear of defaming the semester I studied anthropology in London, I will leave the "anthro-isms" to the anthropologists. That said, we in the US are as knee-deep in symbols as the aboriginal cultures of Papua New Guinea. Of course, most of our symbols have been manufactured by companies competing for our attention & disposable income - and some of them have done remarkable jobs imbuing seemingly ordinary "objects" with profound meaning.


American Express & Maslow
Case in point - American Express, a company that successfully turned a tiny piece of plastic, into a symbol that represents the fulfillment of one of Maslow's core human needs: the need to feel significant. Companies, such as Amex, that successfully transform their products & brands into symbols that represent the fulfillment of a Maslow need are often some of the most successful.

This has no doubt been one of the biggest success factors for American Express since it introduced its charge card fifty years ago. The card quickly became a powerful symbol of one's success (and hence significance); pulling it out from one's wallet generated a profound "buzz", filling one with feelings of pride, accomplishment, and a rush of endorphins. Pretty wild to think that a little piece of plastic (or back then, a piece of paper!) could mimic the feeling one might get from a quadruple espresso or pulling up to one's high school reunion in a shiny red Porsche.


How to inject Maslow into your marketing
While your company or product might not have the tailwind of 150 years of brand-building at its back as Amex does, thinking about how to inject aspects of Maslow's hierarchy of needs into your marketing is an absolute must.

The key to achieving this is to first identify which of Maslow's needs is addressed by your product or service - and yes, it may address more than one. Then, ask yourself the following questions to stimulate your thinking and get the ball rolling:

1) How can my marketing better communicate how the benefits of my service satisfy this Maslow need?

• Example: the old “reach out & touch someone”AT&T ads are a perfect illustration of taking the core Maslow need filled by phones - social connectedness - and bringing it to life in compelling, emotive ways.


Note: if you don't see the video of the old AT&T ad on your browser, the link to the ad can be found here on YouTube.

2) How can I link my product touch points & brand elements to reinforce the fulfillment of this Maslow need? Are there tweaks or enhancements I can make to my service that would enable it to provide even greater fulfillment of the Maslow need?

• Example: Imagine you do marketing for a group of upscale lounges in your town. One of the core Maslow needs you would likely be trying to satisfy is the need to feel important. In thinking about how to add touch points or brand elements to support the fulfillment of this need, you may consider adding to your lounges amenities such as bathroom attendants, coat checkers, well-garbed doormen, and servers who address patrons as Mr/Ms .

3) Are there aspects of my product that undermine the success with which it satisfies this Maslow need? How can I remove or reduce them?

4) Are there other Maslow needs I should try to satisfy in order to provide even greater value to my customers, and perhaps attract new customer segments?

• Example: a simple, yet highly successful move made by many manufacturers of home appliances has been to tap into the Maslow need for beauty by imbuing every-day appliances with style, color and form. In fact, in his excellent book, A Whole New Mind, Daniel Pink devotes an entire chapter to this trend, and retailers such as Design Within Reach have successfully exploited it.
  

As always, feel free to send me an email or leave your comments & questions. Best of luck in your endeavors and in building some Maslow into your business! It's well worth your time & energy!






Other posts on Maslow:

• Innovating around Maslow's needs

read more

How to spur innovation using Maslow's hierarchy of needs

Abraham Maslow, the psychologist from Brooklyn who is famous for his 'hierarchy of human needs' has contributed more to the discipline of marketing than he ever would have probably imagined. Mind you, Maslow probably spent little if any time contemplating marketing so he likely would have been ambivalent towards his contribution.

Regardless of Maslow's intentions when he devised his famed hierarchy of needs, his pyramid provides us with some extremely powerful innovation exercises for business, particularly with respect to products & marketing.

One such exercise that I run through frequently is to explore how I might inject one or more of Maslow's needs into an existing product or service to help differentiate it. For example, meditating on the esteem need begs the question of how I might make my customers feel extra special, important, and worthwhile.

With respect to the need for self-actualization, which is strongly associated with giving to others, I am led to think about giving a share of profits to charities selected by my customers. As a purely hypothetical example, let's say for every $100 car insurance premium paid by a customer, $2 will be given to a charity of the customer's choice, which she gets to select while paying her premium online.

In using Maslow's hierarchy as a potential playing field for innovation, it is critical to first identify the core benefits provided by the product you're looking to innovate around - whether it be security, guidance, hope, pleasure, saving time or money, etc. Only once you have a clear grasp of the core benefit of your product will certain needs within the hierarchy begin to resonate, and will opportunities for innovation in your marketing or the product itself begin to "pop".

More to come on innovating around Maslow's hierarchy in future posts - I have some neat frameworks & tools for you to use which will beef-up your Maslow-muscle. As always, feel free to contact me with any of your questions, comments or thoughts.

----------

Other posts on Maslow:

• Injecting some Maslow into your marketing
  

read more

How to spur innovation using Maslow's hierarchy of needs

Abraham Maslow, the psychologist from Brooklyn who is famous for his 'hierarchy of human needs' has contributed more to the discipline of marketing than he ever would have probably imagined. Mind you, Maslow probably spent little if any time contemplating marketing so he likely would have been ambivalent towards his contribution.

Regardless of Maslow's intentions when he devised his famed hierarchy of needs, his pyramid provides us with some extremely powerful innovation exercises for business, particularly with respect to products & marketing.

One such exercise that I run through frequently is to explore how I might inject one or more of Maslow's needs into an existing product or service to help differentiate it. For example, meditating on the esteem need begs the question of how I might make my customers feel extra special, important, and worthwhile.

With respect to the need for self-actualization, which is strongly associated with giving to others, I am led to think about giving a share of profits to charities selected by my customers. As a purely hypothetical example, let's say for every $100 car insurance premium paid by a customer, $2 will be given to a charity of the customer's choice, which she gets to select while paying her premium online.

In using Maslow's hierarchy as a potential playing field for innovation, it is critical to first identify the core benefits provided by the product you're looking to innovate around - whether it be security, guidance, hope, pleasure, saving time or money, etc. Only once you have a clear grasp of the core benefit of your product will certain needs within the hierarchy begin to resonate, and will opportunities for innovation in your marketing or the product itself begin to "pop".

More to come on innovating around Maslow's hierarchy in future posts - I have some neat frameworks & tools for you to use which will beef-up your Maslow-muscle. As always, feel free to contact me with any of your questions, comments or thoughts.

----------

Other posts on Maslow:

• Injecting some Maslow into your marketing
  

read more

Wilton Stentz, the Yoda of online marketing...

All marketers know how important successful communication is - whether you're trying to build brand awareness, maintain the loyalty of an existing customer base, or influence key decision makers at work.

The Law of Association
While there are several core 'laws' that underlie successful communications, few are as crucial and as powerful as the law of association.

The law of association is based on the solid yet simple notion that in order to communicate effectively with anyone, you need to work with the material that already exists inside of their heads. Al Ries & Jack Trout underscored this premise in their classic book, Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind.

The law of association is particularly powerful when you are introducing something new to people, especially when it is complex, hard to "size up" or hard to visualize. Through using what is already in people's heads, you can instantly communicate in a manner that is both clear & compelling.

Who the heck is Wilton Stentz?
Let's use the title of this article as an example of the law in action. Now you probably don't know who Wilton Stentz is, but you most certainly know our friend, Yoda. Let's imagine that Mr. Stentz is a wise & experienced online marketing consultant who lives in Zurich. Now I could simply say these very words to you and you would be able to comprehend them; whether you would really hear them & remember them is a different matter. But when I look into your mind to identify something that represents wisdom & experience in a rich & visually compelling way, I come up with an association that immediately brings Mr. Stentz's attributes to life. When Wilton is compared to Yoda - in an instant - you "get it".

"It's the Rolls Royce of..."
To touch upon a few additional examples, you've probably heard the law of association used with respect to a a famous luxury automobile brand. Ever had someone tell you, "It's the Rolls Royce of... so-and-so"? Or, how about the brilliant use of the law by baby toy manufacturer, Baby Einstein? What parents don't want their children to become as brilliant as Albert Einstein?

Looking at current events you can see the law of association playing out in the presidential primaries on the Republican side. Just have a look at what Fred Thompson has tried to do, attempting to associate himself with former President Reagan. Perhaps it was a clever idea; however, one requirement that Fred seems to have overlooked is that the law requires there to be real integrity behind the association that is made. There is no substitute for this requirement, nor will there ever be.

The law of association has a rich and varied set of applications within communications, and I look forward to exploring them in future posts.

read more

Innovation via your inner consumer voice

All of us walk through the world with our own mental filters... our filters determine what we pay attention to and what we block out... when I walk down the streets of New York with a certain friend of mine from college, I notice all the dogs that trot past us... he notices the different architectural styles that imbue the many buildings ... for him the dogs are invisible... for me, the buildings.

However, there exists a quiet world which we both share. One all of us have in common, yet often pay little attention to... our inner voices. Those little whispers. So faint that they often go undetected. So what does this have to do with innovation? Everything.

Marketers must learn to hear their own whispers
For consumer-based marketers especially, it's essential to develop a refined ear. One that can tune into our own little day-to-day whispers -- particularly those whispers that relate to the products, services and consumer needs that underpin our businesses. It's through listening to these whispers that deep insights & innovation come bubbling up to the surface.

We all know that consumers do a notoriously poor job of communicating their unmet needs. Much of this is because most people have not developed the capabilities for tapping into their inner voices. And despite the many tools & sophisticated approaches, marketing research continues to have difficulty drawing out those unmet needs. This is why the onus falls on marketers to cultivate their own consumer inner voices.

Whether you're maniacally thumbing through a magazine in an unsuccessful search for the front-page article, or trying to figure out how to place an order at the funky new sandwich shop on your block, learning to "listen" to your day-to-day thoughts & feelings can provide tremendous opportunities for innovation. As I mentioned above, this is particularly relevant & powerful if you are also a consumer of the very products or services that your company sells.

Innovating around your inner consumer voice in the shower
Let's take a brief example of innovating around one's inner voice... there I am a few weeks ago taking my nightly shower before I go to bed. As I look down at the soap dish I notice that the soap is completely worn out - a thin slab of what was once a thick, meaty bar of glycerin. This situation is one that I have probably experienced hundreds of times in my life and yet not until a few weeks ago did I come to register the discomfort it creates. The soap was too small to be effective for washing yet it still has some useful life left. What I typically do is grab a new bar of soap and leave the old bar to slowly decompose in the soap dish, creating a soupy, soapy water concoction in the dish. For whatever reason, I cannot bring myself to simply throw away these tiny bars of just-about-unusable soaps.

It was only then, when I had acknowledged my discomfort, that I was able to think up ways to innovate around this discomfort which had remained dormant to myself for so long. Standing there in the shower I came up with a few decent concepts. One such concept was a contraption for tossing unusuable soaps into, which after getting filled-up with soaps, would act like a molding vice, mushing the soaps together, and producing a brand new bar of soap. Viola! While perhaps not a patent-worthy concept, that is besides the point.

The opportunity for innovation in the above example stemmed directly from becoming mindful of a mundane, everyday experience that generated displeasure for me, albeit not one of the 'life or death' variety. However, in today's modern world, with most of our basic needs already met, much of the opportunities for innovation lie within this 'valley of the subtle'; hence the need for marketers to refine their inner consumer voices. It is one of the key capabilities for marketers to develop in order to better identify opportunity areas for effective innovation.

Some of my favorite books on innovation

• Thinkertoys: A Handbook of Creative-Thinking Techniques (2nd Edition) 

• The Innovator's Toolkit: 50+ Techniques for Predictable and Sustainable Organic Growth

• Serious Creativity: Using the Power of Lateral Thinking to Create New Ideas

read more