HARNESSING THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION
The Journal “Harnessing the Science of Persuasion” has been praised by the journal market as one of the best books or journals written in the past ten years. Everyone in the field of developing a new product concept must understand the essentiality of the science of persuasion. The book discusses the six principles that consumers employ to make decisions while in the supermarket (Morgan et al., 2017). Adequate knowledge of the principles of persuasion is important because it helps producers to present their products in a compelling fashion to survive the challenge of concept screening. The book Discusses all the six cues of persuasions, as outlined below.
Authority (Designed by experts)
The Principle of authority states that tend to go as per the conclusion of the experts or the concerned authority (Morgan et al., 2017). Consumers do not care about the nature of the conclusion. All they care about is that it came from an expert or a certain authority. According to the consumers, experts are knowledgeable and experienced, and thus they save them time and energy to think about things from scratch. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
The Principle of Consistency
The Principle of consistency states that when a customer or consumer encounters uncertainty when making a decision, they all tend to choose the option that is in line with their beliefs and also their past experiences or behavior (Morgan et al., 2017). In case the beliefs and the behavior of consumers fail to match, they experience psychological discomfort referred to as Cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance is an excellent encouragement for consumers to try to be consistent in their decisions.
The Principle of Scarcity
The Principle of scarcity states that the consumer mind is hard-programmed to develop a high value for all scarce commodities (Morgan et al., 2017). When an opportunity progresses to become less and less, consumers automatically attach incredible value to such an opportunity. The reaction is most probably due to the fear of potential complete loss of the opportunity. This is referred to as psychological reactance.
The Principle of Reciprocity
The Principle of reciprocity argues that human beings have a naturally existing tendency to give back favors (Morgan et al., 2017). Human beings do not care whether the favors were invited or not, they just pay back the favors naturally. There is a wonderful feeling that human beings develop when they pay back a favor to a friend or anyone else. The feeling is a contribution of several factors such as the innate sense of fairness and social contract. There is also the partial contribution of the fact that there is a social reward for reciprocity. Reciprocity is like a social cohesion builder in that it enhances social cooperation, development of relationships, and even new communities. This Principle explains the cause of the guilty feeling when one receives a Christmas gift from a friend that you never sent one. In that case, the mind is programmed to pay back the favor in some later occasions.
The Principle of liking
The Principle of liking was designed by celebrities. The Principle argues that human beings are programmed to copy or agree with every person that they have an affinity with (Morgan et al., 2017). This includes all people that we like, those that we have admiration for or those that we find to be attractive. It is the Principle that is responsible for the creation of new social bonds between new persons.
The Principle of the Social Proof
This Principle was designed by people. The Principle explains that when human beings encounter uncertainties when making decisions, they borrow from the choices and activities of other people who have been in the same situation (Morgan et al., 2017). In cases when something stands out to be popular in society, the perception is that its popularity or dominance is proof of its correctness or quality. In other words, this is the implementation of classic peer power.
From my understanding, I am convinced that the most effective of all the principles of persuasion is that of authority or expert’s design. Human beings, however, how educated or informed, have no time to think or analyze a product simply because an expert has provided their conclusion about the product. The Principle is of much help because it provides an insight into how advertisers make use of authority agencies or experts to convince the consumers about the quality and performance of their product. Through the Principle, I understand why some toothpaste brands make use of dentists to advertise their brands. The effectiveness of the Principle is based on the fact that consumers have unquestioned trust with their experts. They appreciate that they are not as informed as to the experts (which is true), and therefore, the expert is in a position to make the best decision for them considering their knowledge of the product and their experience in the industry. There is nothing simpler to influence than a person who trusts you. Therefore, the experts have the most chances of compelling or convincing the consumers about the goodness and quality of a particular product or commodity.
References
Morgan, N., Duarte, N., Hill, L. A., & Cialdini, R. B. (2017). Influence and persuasion. Harvard business review press.