Best Practices in Sales: The Six Principles of Persuasion

The Six Principles of Persuasion

 

 

I wish that I could take credit for the information that I’ll be sharing in this blog – but as I tell my clients – I’m only as good as the information that I repeat!

 

Dr. Robert Cialdini is considered the foremost expert on persuasion and influence. As I’ve written in previous blogs, he has written several books and has an excellent website. I encourage you to check out www.influenceatwork.com.

 

Dr. Cialdini has come up with these six principles of persuasion. There are worth committing to memory:

 

1.     Reciprocity:  People want to return a favor. When you do something for someone, like providing information – they’ll want to do something for you in return. Give something to get something.

 

2.     Scarcity: We deem things to be more valuable if they are hard to get. Perceived scarcity will create demand.

 

3.     Authority: People tend to believe “experts.” If someone who I believe is an “expert” said it, it must be true.

 

4.     Consistency: If you can get someone to verbally commit to or agree with an idea, they are more likely to stand behind their comments. We tend to stand behind our “stated” beliefs with action.

 

5.     Consensus: People will look for “social proof” of their ideas or actions. Do others “like me” feel the same way or do the same thing? This is why social networks are so important.

 

6.     Like-ability: We tend to believe and buy from people we like.

 

If you want to be more persuasive (and in sales, you need to be) – make sure you integrate these six principles into your selling style and process. It can make the difference between a winning year and a mediocre one.