The field of persuasion has been well researched over recent years and there is plenty scientific evidence of what is successful.
Two of the best-known and best-selling books on the subject are Psychology of Persuasion by Kevin Hogan and Influence by Robert Cialdini.
Both authors are experts in the study of human behavior in this field and each has drawn up a list from their research of the things that make a difference.
The list below summarises the 10 Laws of Persuasion as listed in Kevin Hogan’s book.
- Law of Reciprocity: When someone gives you something of perceived value, you immediately respond with the desire to give something back.
- Law of Time: People will behave differently depending on whether their primary time orientation is present, past, or future.
- Law of Contrast: When two things, people, or places that are relatively different from each other, are placed nearer together in time, space, or thought, they appear to be more different from each other.
- Law of Friends: When someone asks you to do something and you perceive the person has your best interests in mind, and/or you would like them to have your best interests in mind, you are strongly motivated to fulfill the request.
- Law of Expectancy: When someone you respect and/or believe in expects you to perform a task or produce a certain result, you will tend to fulfill his expectation whether positive or negative.
- Law of Consistency: When an individual announces in writing (or verbally) that he is taking a position on any issue or point of view, he will strongly tend to defend that belief regardless of its accuracy, even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary.
- Law of Association: We tend to like products, services, or ideas that are endorsed by other people we like or respect.
- Law of Scarcity: When a person perceives that something he might want is limited in quantity, he believes the value of what he might want to be greater than if it were available in abundance.
- Law of Conformity: Most people tend to agree to proposals, products, or ideas that will be perceived as acceptable by the majority of other people or a majority of “the group.”
- Law of Power: People have power over other people to the degree that they are perceived as having greater authority, strength, or expertise.
Click here to see Robert Cialdini’s Six Rules of Influence