Daniel Crosby, Ph.D. (256) The Art and Science of Influence

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Daniel Crosby, Ph.D. www.incblot.org daniel@incblot.

1 Daniel Crosby, Ph.D. (256) The Art and Science of Influence

2 You are influential! Who am I to be influential? We typically don t think of ourselves as influencers because we fail to see that the common thread running through most of the triumphs and tragedies of our lives is our ability to exert influence.

3 Power and Responsibility With great power comes great responsibility - Peter Parker The things you will learn today are real and powerful The appropriateness of their application is our responsibility

4 Prisoner s Dilemma What is the best communal outcome? How does this play out over time? if the other initially confesses? if the other initially remains silent?

5 RECIPROCATION People return kindness for kindness, and malice for malice Transcends cultures, allows us to build societies

6 What would you say? Client: Thanks so much for assisting me with that, it was a huge help! You:??? Typically we give away the power of reciprocation by explaining away our service Next time try: I know you d do the same for me if asked, or, No problem, that s what long-term partners do.

7 Choose One

8 SCARCITY People want what they cannot easily have People act with a sense of urgency when they perceive opportunity slipping away

9 Leveraging Scarcity Emphasizing limits on supply or time when promoting an idea Rewarding a desired behavior if performed within a specific amount of time Highlighting the uniqueness of a given persuasive appeal or idea

10 Which is more persuasive? Acting on this will provide countless benefits, such as Failure to act on this will be very detrimental to what you re trying to do, for example People are TWICE as upset about loss as they are excited about gain. Be sure to emphasize the opportunity cost of failure to act.

11 The Art of Scarcity People are motivated by the rare but attainable Making an idea, product, or behavior out of reach will prompt dismissal Be sure to connect the dots on how to get from here to there

12 AUTHORITY Milgram Experiment Son of Jewish refugees of WWII Wanted to examine motivation of Nazi soldiers 65% compliance rate 90% compliance when authorities disparaged student

13 The Power of Expertise Would you choose a cardiologist with 5 or 20 years experience? Would you choose a therapist with an M.S. or a Ph.D.? In groups build one another up and let others know your partner s expertise Individually humbly but accurately let others know why you are qualified to weigh in

14 Authority and Honesty All products, services, and ideas have weaknesses Individuals find experts who acknowledge weaknesses more credible Immediately follow coverage of weaknesses with discussion of strengths Promote believability and open the door for your strongest points to be heard

15 COMMITMENT AND CONSISTENCY We want to be seen as consistent We want others to be consistent doing so allows us to take cognitive shortcuts Once we have made a decision, we begin to devalue all other options

16 Power of Commitment Initial Choice Commit Amnesia

17 Foot in the Door California housewives asked to take a five minute survey Three days later, asked if six men could spend two hours rummaging through cupboards Those who had agreed to the short survey were more than twice as likely to consent

18 Power of Labels Homogenous group with respect to grades and behavior Randomly assigned as poor, fair, or gifted Arbitrary category was the best predictor of final grades

19 Power of Labels Rosenhan Experiment 12 subjects, 5 states Hearing thud All given Dx and Rx Some incarcerated for months Not a single subject was discovered by doctors Discovered by fellow patients

20 CONSENSUS The Asch Experiment Most people are followers Doing what others has done offers us yet another cognitive shortcut This is our most popular dish.

21 Asch Experiment

22 Leverage the Unseen They

23 Influence the Influential Hard truth: The merit of an idea does not predict its adoption rate as well as its adoption by influential others does. John Lancaster invented a cure for scurvy that took 200 years to catch on. The most influential people in a group are usually slightly more gifted than the masses, but similar in other important ways.

24 LIKING We are most easily influenced by people we like and who we perceive to be like us. You see me with this symbol on my shirt, what assumptions do you make about me?

25 Who do we like? Physically attractive halo effect People who pay us compliments sincere or otherwise People who make us laugh People with whom we share a common struggle

26 Matching Don t parrot! Tone Content of conversation Use of humor Body language Dress Pace

27 Be a Detective of Personal Brands People brand themselves in myriad ways Cars, clothes, haircuts, pictures, relics are all peoples attempts at being understood on their own terms Find and build on similarities Take an interest

28 Influence in Summary Reciprocation Scarcity Authority Commitment and Consistency Consensus Liking

29 Thank Twitter

A B C. Copyright Allyn and Bacon 2005

A B C. Copyright Allyn and Bacon 2005 A B C 1 A B C 2 A B C 3 A B C 4 Asch, 1951 How many of you own something from one of these companies? 5 Fads 6 Lecture 10 Social Influence 7 Social Influence Have you ever: Asked a friend what was appropriate