Whenever your prospects turn on the TV, read the paper, commute to work or check out their phones, they are bombarded with a thousand persuasive ads. This goes to show that all day long, you are competing with everyone else for your prospects’ attention. Understanding these eight persuasion principles gives your business an edge over this competition. Let me show you how you can trailblaze the path of least resistance to your prospects’ eyeballs and wallets.
- Think and speak like your readers. Anticipate and tackle your customers’ greatest objections. Create your campaign in response to your readers’ viewpoints and struggles. Consider their past experiences as well as the current pressures they might be facing right now. Don’t get deluded with your own opinion –ask them!
- Appeal to emotions. People are mostly irrational. Passion and emotions trump logic any day. Do this persuasion principle the right way,and you can override your prospect’s rational thinking.
- Scarcity. Understand that your customers are far more likely to act to avoid loss than to gain something. People will buy much readily if an item is rapidly diminishing in supply. A word of cautionthough: your customers can smell a scarcity lie even from a mile.
- Reciprocity. Give your prospects something of value first. Offer them a small token like a voucher, a discount coupon, a free ticket, a trial membership or a free product. Give them something exclusive. Better yet, personalize it. Let them feel indebted to you. This will make them comply and more likely to buy with your subsequent requests.
- Social Proof. There’s a reason why brands spend millions on celebrities. Approval and endorsement from someone famous is strong social proof. People tend to trust products that are popular. Ratings, reviews and users’ testimonials equate to “wisdom of the crowds” which makes it easier for your prospect to justify buying your product.
- Consistency and Commitment. People stick with known brands not because they are loyal, but because they are naturally consistent. The fastest way to get a new customer is to make them comply with a small commitment. It may be as simple as signing up to your mailing list, but this act is the first step to make the dominoes fall in your direction.
- Liking. Associate your product with the same values and emotions that your prospects want to feel and possess. Engage in an intimate conversation inside their heads. Make them nod, smile or gasp in awe.Behave and speak not as a salesperson, but as a caring friend.
- Authority. Your prospects are more likely to believe and follow experts –people who look like they really know what they are doing. Use authority by quoting a research/survey or by alluding to titles, roles, and experiences.
Persuasion is all about tapping into your prospects’ inner motivations, dreams, secret desires, hesitation, and fears. When you understand your customers intimately, persuading them to trust andbuy from you becomes easy.