Persuasion architecture, 7 user manipulation mechanisms

The cognitive perception of ourselves and those around us prevents us from giving an objective assessment of what is happening. The world around us is perceived through the prism of our own beliefs and self-indulgence.
Think about how you make decisions? What are they based on: on logic, emotions or psychological attitudes?

For example, Masha, believes that Vova, who is always late for work, is a terribly disorganized person who does not know how to manage his time.
At the same time, Vova is late for work because she is forced to wash, feed, put on a little daughter in the morning and take her to the kindergarten. Masha herself comes almost on time only to work, in all other cases she is always late. Masha blames the traffic jams for her delays, the alarm did not work, and the relatives who distracted her.
95% of businessmen fail in the first 1-2.5 years, believing that they know their consumer and can force him to buy his product. The thought: “I know how my customer thinks,” is the main mistake of a novice businessman.
In fact, the buyer himself does not know how he thinks.
That is why large companies have several marketers to sell their products.

Internet marketers who have learned the characteristics of cognitive perception have developed several mechanisms that can “turn on” hidden behavior mechanisms.

A chicken that hears the call of a chick will take care of any object that makes such sounds. The human brain is much more complex than the chicken. Nevertheless, with the help of certain attitudes it is possible to induce a person to perform certain actions.
Are you ready to become an architect of persuasion?

Here are 7 mechanisms that can change human behavior.

• Gift touch;
• Confirmation of intent;
• Crowd effect;
• Authoritarianism;
• Deficiency;
• More less;
• The highlight.

Consider these mechanisms in more detail.

1. The gift of touch.

The essence of this mechanism can be expressed in one short phrase: I tell you - you tell me.
Some kind of hidden mechanism, laid down by nature, prompts a person to provide a reciprocal service for an unselfish gift. Many say in such cases: "I just do not want to be due."

The followers of Buddhism were the first to understand this mechanism. People in bright orange clothes constantly give out something: flowers, muffins, books, and then ask for donations. If you have been rendered a service, you also strive to do something pleasant for this person.

How to apply?

Users need to give something useful. For example, book publishers give several chapters of a new book online for free to read. If you are selling a product, first give the user a mini-book on how to use or care for this product. A gift can be a ticket, a discount coupon, a product catalog, and so on. After completing the act of giving, it is important to immediately ask for a response service, for example, sign up for useful information materials, leave your email address, evaluate products, take a test, leave a comment about the service.

The one-touch technique involves redirecting the user to an offer to purchase goods immediately after delivery of the gift.
The technique of a series of touches involves strengthening relationships with a potential client through 3-5-7 touches.

2. Confirmation of intent.

The essence of the method: each person is responsible for his words, if once he confirmed his commitment to the brand in writing, he will not give up his words.
Briefly, this can be expressed in the following phrase: "I said that I like it, so I like it."

How to apply?

Using the Dar-Touch mechanism, you can force the user to leave a record in the social profile. The record on the “wall” in the profile is a kind of “act of intent”. So that words do not diverge from deeds, many are willing to pay money even for unnecessary things.

3. The effect of the crowd.

The bottom line: the desire to go with the flow, to be like everyone else is indestructible in a person, because 1000 people cannot be wrong ?!
Everyone is trying to determine for themselves what is the norm in society. Having decided, he tries to follow generally accepted postulates. The crowd always attracts new participants. A lot of research has been done on this topic.

How to apply?

A previously unknown musical composition with a large number of “likes” is more often downloaded and evaluated positively than the same composition with a minimum number of positive reviews.

A product with a lot of comments is bought more often. Hits, blockbusters, bestsellers are becoming popular precisely because they were originally announced as such. It has long been noted that a book has the best sales if it says: best seller on its cover.

Now think about how the first print run of a book could become a bestseller if it just got out from under the printing press?

In online stores, you can often see the following messages: "People who bought this product were also interested ..."; "Recommended ...".
Another marketing trick in this series: default settings.
Our subconscious mind tends to consider the basic settings as the only correct ones. As a rule, the necessary setting is laid in such settings. For example, insurance or additional goods are automatically added to the basket: a table for the TV, a soft pillow for a chair, a cleaning agent for the mirror.

4. Authority.

People always listen to the opinion of an authoritative specialist in a particular field.
Famous personalities are often involved in the shooting of the commercial. People in medical gowns who advertise toothpaste are more trustworthy than people in sweaters or sportswear.

How to apply?

On Twitter, users often follow links and purchase goods if the tweet belongs to a famous person. In the store, the comment with the most votes becomes authoritarian. That is why some stores allow guests to rate the comments of other users.

5. Deficit

Psychological effect: "I will leave, and I will not get anything, others will take."
The word "deficit" is familiar to all natives of the former Soviet Union. In the USSR, almost everything was swept away from the shelves, which in the slightest degree was of any value: from soap to TVs. And it doesn’t matter that the size is not yours, you don’t smoke, you don’t have children - you have to take it!

The shortage of goods in the country of the Soviets is the dream of a Western marketer. In the United States, a study was conducted that confirmed the hackneyed truth: less always has more value. Water in half-liter bottles is bought more often. A package with two crackers is taken more often than a package with ten.

Of course, the buyer finds for himself a whole series of excuses that are not related to the psychological effect, for example, “I prefer to use a small package”, “I do not need more”.

It is not known who first invented to create an artificial deficit. But the most successful example of creating artificial excitement is well known: dietary supplements of Karl Renborg. It was Renborg who used the artificial deficit in order to distribute goods that no one needed at that moment - this was a truly ingenious move.

How to apply?

Musicians and artists periodically give the last concert of their career or arrange a sale of paintings to mark the end of their creative careers, and then continue their activities until the next close.
The latest concert tickets are always sold faster and better than the first. Closed beta testing of the product attracts more users. The last three items in the catalog are more likely to be bought.

This mechanism came to us from distant ancestors, when food shortages were the main cause of high mortality.

Closing sales are the most effective way to attract a lot of buyers and sell goods.

6. More is less.

“Everything is known by comparison,” said Friedrich Nietzsche.
Most people cannot adequately assess the cost of goods, which is why they are compared with existing offers, choosing the optimal ratio of price and quality.

How to apply?

In the restaurant business, there is such a thing as an “anchor dish”. The price of the anchor dish is always overstated, other positions compared to it are perceived as relatively inexpensive.

Internet service providers often use several bundled offers when selling services; one of them has a very high price and includes a lot of services that are not needed by the average user.

When selling a product, you can offer the buyer several options: just a product, a product with a lifetime service, a product complete with an additional product, consultation or a specialist’s visit to the house and service for 5 years.

7. The highlight.

The human brain always seeks to optimize the cost of resources for processing information. We pay less attention to familiar things, objects, events happening around us. The eye stops at the brightest element of the environment; best of all, we notice unusual, unusual things.

How to apply?

A bright button of an unusual shape will attract more attention and ensure a high level of sales.

Experts say: a bright large order button increases the level of sales - this is a true and false statement at the same time. This conclusion was made due to lack of knowledge and lack of skills for a more detailed, in-depth study of the issue by specialists.

The bright red button does not work on its own, it works because it is a bright spot on the general background, that is, an irritant. If large red buttons are installed on all sites, the effect of irritation will subside, sales will fall.

The most successful sellers use interesting, vibrant design elements on their websites: buttons, order forms, product card design, etc. Periodic design changes have a beneficial effect on the sale. But you need to change only individual elements.

The highlight can be anything: an unusual design, a non-standard offer, a promotion, a competition, an appeal, a slogan, a gift.

Each method is good in its own way and contains a lot of possibilities. For each type of business, it is necessary to test certain elements: change the price, quantity of goods, the essence of the proposals. In the end, trial and error will establish the perfect formula for your business.
Putting the obtained theoretical knowledge into practice, you will get positive results, and then you can feel like a real architect of persuasion.

The material was prepared on the basis of Robert Chaldini's book “Psychology of Influence”.