Boost Your Sales With Cialdini's 6 Principles of Persuasion

In this article we will discuss the 6 principles of persuasion that has been scientifically proven to be an effective tool to increase your sales revenue.  The information provided is based on the research and articles by Dr Robert Cialdini, Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Marketing at Arizona State University.

There will be many unscrupulous people out there that would use this information to manipulate and coerce people into buying a product or service that is not needed or fit for purpose – in short con men / women.  We are going to discuss how you can use this information for ethical purposes.

Persuasion is a talent every business owner, sales person and marketer should study as it will help them improve their outcomes pitching a product, securing investment and getting that new role!

Here are the six principles of persuasion:

1.  Reciprocity

In short this is the behaviour of giving back, whether it be a gift or service that may have been received.  When you give value, people will appreciate that value, which helps build relationships, builds trust and people will want to reciprocate.

An example of this (directly from Dr Robert Cialdini’s research) is that when a server in a restaurant gives you a gift you are more likely to leave a tip.  The study conducted showed that a simple sweet increased the customer was more likely to leave a tip. If the server left 2 sweets the tip increased and if the server engaged with the customer in a meaningful way, the tip was much bigger.

The principle of reciprocity really needs to be built into what you are doing, whether it be marketing or adding value, not by mass marketing but in a personal way that adds value and wants to make that person do business with you.

2. Scarcity

This is the principal that is most abused. You will often see webinars with offers that are for a limited time only and you have to buy now.  There is no reason that this offer could not be extended but the scarcity has been created, essentially a “fake scarcity”.

The reason that scarcity works is that if it is rare, exclusive or a limited edition it will cost more.  Fear of Missing out (FOMO) or Fear of losing out (FOLO) is used to push people over the line.

There are ethical was that you make offers or products limited, an example would be DFS holding there Blue Cross sale over a particular weekend. This is a “not to be missed” event and clients are encouraged to take advantage as they will be able to get products for a cheaper price over that weekend only.

Scarcity is not a new, it is just a good way to get people who are interested to commit now instead of shelving it for the future.  Effectively helping you encourage people to make a decision.

3. Authority

Authority is not something you can give yourself.  People need to feel or learn and experience your authority. You can’t tell people that you are expert, they have to discover this for themselves. You should therefore have specific things that you doing and specific things that you are presenting to people that show your authority.  Examples of this would be testimonials, recommendations, awards and introductions.

Not only do you have to believe 100% in what you say but you need to back it up with social proof or having someone vouch for what you are saying.  Authority is vitally important when trying to share information to convince people to make a purchasing decision.

Not only does it matter what you say but how you deliver it.  If you deliver something but don’t believe in it, people will read this and lose confidence.  You need to believe 110% what you offering and believe 110% that you are the expert and that this product and or service is good for the customer.

4. Consistency 

People want to be consistent in their decisions and follow through with what they have already done.  It is very important for people to make commitments in your sales process, what we like to call micro-commitments.

An example would be in cold calling, where you have to get people to say yes and agree with you. 

If I could save you money, would you be interested? Yes

If I could double your revenue in the next 24 months, would you give me an hour of your time? Yes

This is how encourage people by getting them to make small commitments so that they can feel easier about committing to the next step.

So instead of going from Zero to 1, you are creating little steps of commitment to reach your end goal.  This helps people be consistent with decisions that they have already made.

This shows how important you use the principle of power and concensus to persuade people to make a decision to buy from you.

5. Likeability

People want to do business with people they like, they get on with, they have rapport with, who are relatable.  People like people, with similar interest, common values and common backgrounds. People are more likely to do business with people they like and get on with then someone presenting hard facts and being more analytical.

Be yourself.  This allows you to build genuine honest relationships with people.

Compliment people, people like to be complimented.  Compliment what people have done or achieved as this will help forge good relationships.

6. Consensus

This is based on the consistency and liking, as people generally follow what other people are doing.  Social proof helps show how other people like them have made this choice, other people have done this or bought this and it has worked for them.

One of the examples Dr Cialdini gives is that when you put messages out there, how can you encourage people to go with the herd. People like to follow the herd - if this is what other people are doing, we should be doing it to.  For example, panic buying. If a few people start, others follow.  

This principle has a negative and a positive aspect. Another example,  If an accountant can see a group of accountants making a great choice, they will be encouraged to make that same great choice.

This demonstrates that if you need to convince a group of people to buy from you, then you need to demonstrated that other like-minded people, have already successfully purchased your product and or service.

This can be seen on a lot of websites with language such as trending and most popular.

In conclusion, these principles work when you apply them ethically and the right one for the situation. If you apply them, it make the difference.

How Can We Help

We help Marketing and Sales teams create the inspiration, space, and participation that unlocks a whole new level of performance. We don’t do this with posters and powerpoint. Instead, we start with an invitation—a chance for teams to pilot new ways of working and eliminate Marketing and Sales divisions that have been standing in their way for years. In successive waves of disciplined experimentation and learning, teams have the ability to methodically align their narrative. Along the way, we offer advice, facilitation, and guidance.  If you are interested in learning more, sign up for a complimentary initial consultation/discovery meeting. Schedule yours today, and let’s see if we can help.