Getting People To Say Yes!

Some time ago, one of the blogs I read (I can’t recall which one) mentioned a recently published book, Yes! 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive by Robert Cialdini and others. I took a trip to the local Barnes and Noble, perused the book and decided it might be worth reading. It’s been a good choice.

 The original blog post divided books into three categories: 1) why did I waste time and money on this book; 2) this book is interesting, but how do I make use of it?; or 3) this is something I can put into practice right now. If your life involves persuading others to adopt a particular course of action (even the parent of a two year old faces that challenge), then this book probably has something you can put to use right away. 

I admit that I have mixed feelings about the book. Adopting specific tactics to make our message more persuasive can, at first, seem manipulative. That’s always a temptation.

 Nevertheless, if we believe that persuading others to take a particular course of action will be better from them and contribute to the common good, I think we have a responsibility to frame our message in ways that will get the best possible hearing and encourage a response we desire. I believe that as long as we aren’t simply trying to persuade out of self-interest alone, using techniques of persuasion can be completely ethical. 

As I read the book I find many practical tips on how to frame a message in a way that will be more persuasive and have already started using some of them. I like that fact that the authors have not just given their opinion, but try to back up what they say with scientific study. 

Here’s an example. Offering people too many choices can actually decrease people’s response. The authors site the example of pension plans that offer individuals a myriad of options as to how their pension money will be invested. Often employees are overwhelmed by the choices and actually are less like to enroll because it takes so much work to make their choice. 

A similar type of study was done that involved offering either six types of jam or 24 flavors of jam in a display in a store. Researchers found that only 3% of the people who approached the more extensive display bought jam. By contrast, when only six choices were offered, 30% of those who looked at the display bought jam. 

The implications of this research are manifold. If you are selling many versions of the same product, it might be beneficial to offer fewer options. Even at home, parents may want to limit the number of choices offered to children regarding toys to play with, books to read or things to eat. 

This is just one example of the current research on persuasion that the authors offer the reader. They go on to describe how using negative examples of unwanted behavior can actually increase the amount of that behavior, how being the brightest person in the room can be a detriment, and how getting people to take a very small step can lead to much larger commitments. There’s lot of interesting and useful information is his book. I’d recommend it.