So how can you use the subconscious factors that come into play when people make decisions? These are some of the most common:
1. The sympathy rule: It may seem obvious, but people will say “yes” more often to someone they know and like, rather than to a complete stranger. Familiarity, through repeated and ongoing contact with someone, increases this, as long as the contact is positive rather than negative. Likeability includes physical appearance, which is why advertisers use beautiful models to sell products, rather than ordinary-looking models. Within your own industry, think about the people who have reached the top of their game, who are appreciated, respected, and known for their ability to persuade other people. What do they have that attracts other people? Being associated with these people can have a “halo” effect on those around them.
2. The reciprocity rule: One of the most powerful social “rules” is the rule of reciprocity, whereby people feel compelled to return a good deed to someone who has done a good deed for them. There was once an experiment where sociologists sent Christmas cards to complete strangers to test how strongly they would feel compelled to reciprocate and over 95% of them returned the cards, even though the sender was a complete stranger to them. According to sociologists and anthropologists, this rule makes it possible to develop ongoing relationships and the sharing of knowledge and resources that is beneficial to society as a whole.
3. The social validation rule: Given some other clues, or a limited time to make a judgement, most people will react towards others by copying the behavior of the people around them. If other people act nice to you, then you will encourage the same behavior from others. An older, less attractive man can make up for his “deficiencies in him” by acquiring a “trophy wife” that will increase the man’s perceived value when others see him with a younger, more attractive woman.
Another example is when potential employers may view a long-term unemployed person negatively, even if they are highly skilled and experienced, as people will automatically attribute their lack of employment to some inherent character flaw or weakness rather than an underlying situation. external. At the same time, someone who seems to be in high demand, say the CEO of a major company, can effortlessly attract better job offers and bigger pay packages, even if her performance is rather lackluster. “Success breeds success,” the saying goes, and when people Appear successful, other people unconsciously look for other positive factors to explain that person’s success and overlook their failures.
4. The rule of authority: People are more likely to believe, follow the recommendations or instructions of someone they believe to be an expert in some way, even if their expertise is in a completely different area than the one requiring a decision. Having a Dr in front of your name or a PhD after it will also increase your perceived authority, even if it’s not relevant. Another way to demonstrate authority is through the external symbols of it, even if they are not supported by anything; status symbols in the form of titles, clothes, cars, houses (even zip codes) are part of this.
5. The “Reject-Then-Withdraw” Rule: This rule is largely based on social pressure that pushes people to return favors. By applying for an extreme request that you know will be rejected, you can follow up with a lesser request, the one you wanted all along, which will have a better chance of being accepted.
6. The public commitment rule: When someone makes a commitment in a way that actively, voluntarily, and publicly engages the person, it increases the likelihood that the person will follow through on that commitment. This is a large part of what weddings are all about. Why are they so elaborate and public? Why are vows exchanged in front of family, friends and witnesses? Why does society require a marriage certificate or contract signed by both parties in a public place?
The public and ritualized way in which people marry increases the probability that promises will be kept, because internal and external pressures will require the married couple to fulfill what they have promised in public.
Similarly, during other types of negotiations, it is important to agree and write down small commitments, even if they are small steps on the way to the much larger commitment that is sought.
7. The scarcity rule: This can be summed up as “Scarcity breeds desire.” (see also under “Social Validation Rule”). People tend to assign more value to things when they are perceived to be less available. The use of this principle for profit can be seen in the “limited offer” and “end today” tactics. On a personal level, by having a unique or uncommon skill or experience (a “USP”) that makes you a rarity, you can create a demand for your product or service that might not otherwise exist. Never put your mobile phone number on your business card; this makes it a little more difficult to contact you and also suggests that you have so many contacts that you need to restrict your availability to all of them.
8. The Reverse Psychology Rule: People use reverse psychology to “trick” people into choosing the opposite of what they really want, by playing on the knee-jerk human reaction against being told what to do. A real life example of this was used in the promotion of the classic Queen song “Bohemian Rhapsody”, which is 5 minutes and 55 seconds long when played in its entirety. At the time of its release in 1975, most record companies thought it was too long to play on the radio, but Freddie Mercury gave a personal copy to his good friend, DJ Kenny Everett, with specific instructions NOT to play it. knowing everything. well, that Everett wouldn’t be able to resist, which turned out to be the case. If he has ever suffered from insomnia, he will know that deliberately concentrating on trying to fall asleep will have the opposite effect and make the problem worse.
9. The simple theme rule: a theme is a verbal image that communicates ideas far beyond the basic meaning of words. If you’re invited to a party with a theme, say, a murder mystery or an Italian, you’ll already know largely, without being told, what to wear, what you’ll be doing at the party, the type of music, the type of food, and so on. so on. The theme has already given you a “word picture” that conveys a lot of information. Having a “microbrand” that moves with you will instantly convey “Brand You.”
10. The “how you say it” rule
It’s easy to assume that a sentence like “I can’t promise you that result.” it has only one meaning, but in reality, the emphasis and tone provide much of the actual meaning. To test this, look at each of the sentences below, each with a different word emphasized and followed by the implied meaning.
one. I I can’t promise you that result. (But maybe Someone else may.)
2. me can’t I promise you that result. (There is no way That’s possible.)
3. I can’t fiance you that result. (But you May get it anyway.)
4. I can’t promise you that result (But I can promise to Someone else.)
5. I can’t promise you that Outcome. (But I can promise you other good result.)
6. I can’t promise you that Outcome. (But I can promise you something.)
The meaning of what we say is determined by the words we emphasize and the words we minimize, and if you can’t promise someone that price, you can say “I can’t promise you that RESULT”, and the listener can still feel good about the situation, especially if you immediately follow up with something else you can promise.