To Persuade & Influence #1
from Big Little Man.com Blog 8/13 enhanced by Peter/CXO Wiz4biz
Using Persuasiveness for Influence is one of the most important skills anyone can learn because it is useful in countless situations. At your business, at home, & in your social life, the ability to be persuasive & influence others can be instrumental for achievement of your goals & being happy. Learning about the tricks of persuasion can also give you insight into when they’re being used “on you”. Here are nine (9) of the best tricks to be persuasive and influence others:
Framing
Framing is a technique often used in politics. A popular example of framing is inheritance taxes. Politicians who are opposed to inheritance taxes will call them death taxes. By using the word death instead of inheritance, all kinds of negative connotations come to mind. Framing is ofter quite subtle, but by using emotionally charged words, like death, you can easily persuade people to your point of view.
Mirroring
Mirroring someone is when you “mimic” their movements. The movement can be virtually anything, but some obvious ones are hand gestures, leaning forward or away, or various head & arm movements. We all do this unconsciously, and if you pay attention you’ll probably notice yourself doing it. The key thing to remember are to be subtle about it and leave a delay between the other person’s movement and your mirroring, 2-4 seconds works best.
Scarcity
This is one that advertisers use a lot. Opportunities, whatever they are, seem a lot more appealing when there is a “limited availability”. This can be useful to the average person in the right situation, but even more importantly, this is a method of persuasion to be aware of. Stop and consider how much you’re being influenced by the fact that a product is scarce. If the product is scarce, there must be a ton of demand for it right? Ethically, should you use this tactic to sell your product?
Reciprocation
It’s the old saying, “Do unto others…”. When someone does something for us, we feel compelled to return the favor. So, if you want someone to do something nice for you, why not do something nice for them first. In a Business setting, maybe you give them a “free” sample or let them have a “free” trial. It doesn’t matter where or when you do it, the object is to grow the relationship.
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