Persuasion Techniques

Limit Your Availabity

People are more likely to buy something if they learn that it is the last one or that the sale will be ending soon. An artist, for example, might only make a limited run of a particular print. Since there are only a few prints available for sale, people might be more likely to make a purchase before they are gone.

Appeal to Social Needs

Television commercials provide many example of this type of persuasion, where viewers are encouraged to purchase items so they can be like everyone else or be like a well-known or well-respected person.

Use Loaded Words and Images

Television commercials provide many example of this type of persuasion, where viewers are encouraged to purchase items so they can be like everyone else or be like a well-known or well-respected person.

Create an Anchor Point for Your Negotiations

The anchoring bias is a subtle cognitive bias that can have a powerful influence on negotiations and decisions. When trying to arrive at a decision, the first offer has the tendency to become an anchoring point for all future negotiations. So if you are trying to negotiate a pay increase, being the first person to suggest a number, especially if that number is a bit high, can help influence the future negotiations in your favor

Go Big and Then Small

This approach is the opposite of the foot-in-the-door approach. A salesperson will begin by making a large, often unrealistic request. People often feel obligated to respond to these offers. Since they refused that initial request, people often feel compelled to help the salesperson by accepting the smaller request.

Utilize the Power of Reciprocity

This is known as the norm of reciprocity, a social obligation to do something for someone else because they first did something for you. Marketers might utilize this tendency by making it seem like they are doing you a kindness, such as including "extras" or discounts, which then compels people to accept the offer and make a purchase.

Get Your Foot in the Door

This persuasion strategy involves getting a person to agree to a small request, like asking them to purchase a small item, followed by making a much larger request. By getting the person to agree to the small initial favor, the requester already has their "foot in the door," making the individual more likely to comply with the larger request.

Create a Need

This type of persuasion appeals to a person's fundamental needs for shelter, love, self-esteem and self-actualization.