Tag Archive for: psychology of persuasion

Persuading Personality Types: The Driver/Pragmatic

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We’re on the final group in our look at the best ways to persuade people based on personality type. Our final group is the driver/pragmatic and as the name implies, people in this category are “driven.” They thrive on challenges and have a strong intrinsic motivation to succeed. They are practical, focused and results oriented. They have the ability to get lots accomplished quickly. Pragmatics talk faster than most people, can be very direct and usually get straight to the point. Words that describe people in this category include: action-orientated, decisive, problem solver, direct, assertive, demanding, risk taker, forceful, competitive, independent, determined and results-orientated.

With 96 people (36%) identifying themselves as being the driver/pragmatic personality type, they were far and away the largest group taking the survey which I think is only logical. Think about the kind of person that’s going to read a blog on influence and persuasion – probably a driven person who looks for opportunities for self-improvement.

The second largest group was the influencer/expressive which should also come as no surprise. Leaders, people who need to persuade others, generally fall into the driver/pragmatic and influencer/expressive categories.

As I strongly suspected, the driver/pragmatic personality type is heavily influenced by the principles of scarcity, consistency and authority.

Scarcity

My original hypothesis with drivers was that scarcity would play a big role in persuading them. My reasoning was simple – drivers are used to winning, that’s why they’re usually successful so show them what they stand to lose and you can probably move them to action. The survey results showed this to be the case as this group on the whole was more motivated by scarcity than all the other groups. It’s not that they were always motivated most by scarcity on each question but they were more consistently motivated by this particular principle of influence, choosing it as an answer about a quarter of the time.The survey question I found most interesting was question 1: There’s a popular movie out, one you’ve been thinking about seeing. Which would be most likely to get you to go? Because this was really a social situation it should not be a surprise that most people chose the answer that had to do with liking (A couple of good friends are going) but significantly more drivers, as compared to the other personality groups, said they would go when they learned, “It’s only in theaters till the end of the weekend.” In fact, the ratio of drivers choosing this answer was nearly double the analytics and more than four times the percentage of amiables!

Consistency

Another thought I had about those in the driver/pragmatic group was this; their self confidence makes them believe they’re right so it might seem like they stubbornly hold to an opinion. If you can tie your request to what they’ve said or done in the past (principle of consistency) your odds of success will go up. As Richard Dawson used to say on Family Feud, “Survey says…Yes!” The group that was most motivated by consistency was the analytic/thinker followed by the driver/pragmatic. A full 50% of the time, drivers chose an answer having to do with consistency when that was a possible choice. When an answer dealing with consistency was available, drivers chose it about 10% more often than amiables and 25% more often than people in the influencer/expressive category. I found question 4 most interesting for this group because it was social:

Q – Someone is trying to set you up on a date with a friend of theirs. Which is the biggest reason you decide to go?
A – A good friend reminded you this person has all the qualities you always say you’re looking for in a relationship. Drivers responded to the consistency answer 46% of the time compared to 42% of the analytics, 37% of the amiables and just 32% of the influencers.

Authority

I was right on with my assumption about the principle of authority impacting the driver/pragmatic personality. My thought was this; they don’t care much what the crowd says because they tend to blaze their own trail and are willing to go it alone. However, cite a recognized expert or someone they respect and they’ll pay attention. When an answer dealing with authority was an option drivers responded to it just about half of the time and that figure would have been much higher but the percentage for question 1 about going to the movies had a very low response rate to the authority answer (critics are giving it two thumbs up).

Conclusion

What conclusion can we draw about people in the driver/pragmatic category when it comes to influencing them? I say with some pride, what I originally thought – tap into scarcity by telling them what they stand to lose if they don’t do what you’re asking. Bring to bear information from a person or source they recognize and respect to back up your assertion and if possible, incorporate their words or actions into what you’re asking. Bringing these three principles of influence to bear at one time could make if awfully hard for them to say “No” which means it’s much more likely for you to hear “Yes!”

Survey Wrap

So there you have it, my analysis of the personality/influence survey data. As I shared at the start of this project, I’m not a professional survey administrator nor am I a behavioral psychologist. Perhaps people in those fields will read this and take it several steps further. My goal was simple – to give you some easy to remember insights on a few ways to use the principles of influence in a more strategic way when you clearly know the type of person you’re dealing with. If you have thoughts on this subject I’d love to hear from you so just leave a comment below and I’ll respond as time permits.

Brian

Persuading Personality Types: The Expressive/Influencer

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Day three on the personality types and we’re going to look at the survey data for the influencer/expressive personalities. Expressive people are easy to spot because they outgoing, enthusiastic and operate with a high energy level. They’re idea people who sometimes struggle to see their ideas through to completion. If you need help you can usually count on them to come through. Expressive people enjoy socializing but can be slow to reach a decision. If you’re an expressive person then people might see you as a fast talker, dramatic and somewhat impulsive. Words that describe people in this class include: verbal, motivating, enthusiastic, convincing, impulsive, influential, charming, confident, dramatic, optimistic and animated.

There were 61 people (24%) who self identified as having the expressive/influencer personality on the survey. As a general statement, people in this group responded most to the principles of consensus, liking and reciprocity. This was very consistent with my gut instinct for this personality.

Consensus 

As the name implies, people in this group are influencers. They understand the power of the crowd because they’re usually the ones moving the masses to action. They can also see the benefit of being part of the group.The second survey question really stood out for this group: Which would be most likely to get you to go out to dinner? The overwhelming answer for the expressive people was – There will be a group of people which might make it more fun. More than 66% chose this as the reason to go to dinner, almost triple the response rate than for this answer – You’ve told your friends you want to spend more time with them so here’s your chance. Interestingly the drivers and amiables were pretty evenly split between those two answers. The expressive folks would rather have fun in a crowd than a small group. On two of the other questions where consensus was a possible choice people in the influencer/expressive category clearly chose the consensus answer more than the other groups and on one other question they were very close to being the top answer.

Liking

It makes complete sense to me that expressive people would be motivated by liking too. As the category name implies, they like to express themselves and often that’s talking about themselves – their accomplishments, likes, dislikes, etc. If you talk with someone of the expressive/influencer type, connect on similarities, offer up sincere compliments and ask questions that will allow them to talk. If you can do this you’ll have a better chance to move them in your direction.

Q – You’ve been considering buying a new laptop, one that’s on the more expensive side. Which most influences your buying decision?

A – A friend has the same laptop and loves it.

A third of the expressive type said the friend would be their main reason for buying the laptop. Consider this; every other group chose that answer about 20% of the time or less. That means 50% more expressive people listed this reason than did the other groups. The other groups were much more motivated by authority than were the expressive/influencers.

Reciprocity

Here’s another motivating principle that makes total sense. People in the expressive/influencer group have lots of friends. One way to build your network of friends is by offering help and engaging reciprocity. Because they understand the value of favors they play by the rules and respond to those who’ve done favors for them.Question 6 was interesting:

Q – You’re married and your spouse asks you to do some light home repairs that might take several hours. You do them primarily because:

A – Your spouse does lots around the house so it’s the least you can do.The vast majority, nearly 73%, responded to the “because my spouse does lots” but the highest percentage came from the influencer/expressive people.

Conclusion

What conclusion can we draw about people in the influencer/expressive category when it comes to persuasion? After you’ve surveyed the situation for what’s naturally available, specifically look for ways to leverage liking, consensus and reciprocity. If authority, consistency and scarcity can be worked into your influence attempt, then by all means do so and you’ll know you’ve taken the right steps to be as persuasive as possible.

Brian
influencepeople
Helping you learn to hear “Yes”.

 

Persuading Personality Types: The Facilitator/Amiable

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Up today are the results for the facilitator/amiable individuals. Folks who fall into this group are dependable, loyal and easygoing. They prefer things, people and activities that are non-threatening and friendly. They don’t like dealing with impersonal details or cold hard facts. It may surprise you to know facilitators are usually quick to make decisions. Others often describe amiables as warm people who are sensitive to the feelings of others.

Words that describe the facilitator/amiable are: patient, loyal, sympathetic, team person, relaxed, mature, supportive, stable, considerate, empathetic, persevering, trusting and congenial.

Of those that took the survey, 58 people (22%) considered themselves amiable. When compared to the average response rates, people in this group responded most to the principles of liking, authority and consensus.

Liking

Because amiables are nice, easy going people who focus on more on relationships than tasks it’s probably no surprise to anyone that the principle of influence that would impact them the most would be liking. Liking is important with everyone but much more so with these folks and the influence/expressive type.

The first survey question really stood out: There’s a popular movie out, one you’ve been thinking about seeing. Which would be most likely to get you to go? For each group the overwhelming answer chosen was – A couple of good friends are going. For the driver and analytic about 60% said that was their reason for going to the movies but three out of four amiables said this was why they’d go.

The other question that was noticeable was the last on the survey:

Q – Someone at work needs your help. You’re hesitant at first because you’re pressed for time before your vacation. You decide to work overtime and help mostly because:

A – It’s a long-time friend.

Half of the amiables said they’d stay late for the long-time friend where the average for all people taking the test was slightly more than a third.

Authority

I have to admit I was surprised by the data that showed authority was a big motivator for amiables. The choices for all groups, except the influencer/expressive, were above 50% when the question involved money (buying a laptop or car, changing careers). In fact, with each of those questions the percentage of amiables choosing the authority answer exceeded the average for all groups.

When it came to buying the car the overwhelming percentage of people taking the survey were inclined to make a choice based on consumer reports, an authority. While 71% of the influencer/expressive and analytical/thinkers stated this as their reason, a whopping 81% of the amiable/facilitator and driver/pragmatics based their buying decision on the recommendation from an authority.

Consensus

The other principle that deserves mention for the amiable/facilitator group is the principle of consensus. My initial hypothesis was that consensus would be a big motivator for people who are also motivated by liking. My thought was the amiable would be the kind to go with the flow and want to get along with everyone. I still believe this is true although my data had it third on the list. I had one question that was truly a dud when it came to consensus.

Q – You’re married and your spouse asks you to do some light home repairs that might take several hours. You do them primarily because:

A – Your spouse reminded you that other spouses generally do these kinds of things around the house to help out.

For this question the average person chose this answer 2% of the time (6 out of 265 people). It could be that many people taking the survey were not married but I suspect the conversation in the house where someone “reminds” you what other spouses do would probably produce resentment. If I’d done a better job giving a reasonable choice on this one I suspect there would have been many more choosing the consensus answer.

Conclusion

So what do I conclude about people who fall into the amiable/facilitator group? Again, start by look for naturally occurring principles. When you have the opportunity to plan ahead for a persuasion situation involving the amiable/facilitator, look for ways utilize liking, authority and, based on my hypothesis above, consensus in your communication. As for the remaining principles – reciprocity, consistency and scarcity – the data showed these to be about equal when it comes to motivating the amiable. If one of these remaining principles fit well into the situation then go for it. Keeping these simple tips in mind will increase your odds for success.

Brian
influencepeople
Helping You Learn to Hear “Yes”.

Persuading Personality Types: The Thinker/Analytic

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Today we begin to dig into the survey results for the different personality types starting with the thinker/analytical group. People that predominantly fall into this category are generally systematic, well organized and deliberate. They appreciate facts and information presented in a logical manner and get satisfaction from organizing and completing detailed tasks. Analytical people can be viewed as cautious, highly structured people who adopt a rule-oriented approach to life. Words that describe the thinker/analytic include: controlled, orderly, precise, disciplined, deliberate, cautious, diplomatic, systematic, logical and conventional.

In the survey, 48 people (18%) participating fell into this category making it the smallest of the four groups. When compared to the average response rates, analytical people tended to respond most to the principles of authority and consistency.

Consistency

This was no surprise to me. The analytic spends time thinking before acting or talking so they will probably be confident in what they’re doing or saying. Tap into prior words or deeds and you can move them to act. When it came to consistency, one question that really stood out was: You get invited to a wedding and it’s the same weekend you planned to start your family vacation. The couple mentioned the date when they set it but you forgot about it when you planned this vacation. You decide to go and the biggest reason is:

The answer that had to do with consistency – You told them, “Absolutely we’ll be there,” when they mentioned it shortly after setting the date – was far and away the top choice for all personality types but even more so for the analytic. Nearly every analytic, 94%, said that would be their reason for attending the wedding. With two other questions, at least half of the analytics responded by choosing the answer that was associated with consistency. Their response rate was much higher than the other three groups. The questions and answers were:

Q – Which would be most likely to get you to go out to dinner?

A – You’ve told your friends you want to spend more time with them so here’s your chance.

Q – Someone at work needs your help. You’re hesitant at first because you’re pressed for time before your vacation. You decide to work overtime and help mostly because:

A – The person mentioned how valuable your input was on a similar project a few months ago and you want to maintain that reputation.

Authority

Authority was a big motivator for each group except the influencer/expressive. So what stood out for the analytical person? As you might expect, someone who thinks a lot and deeply will carefully consider the claims of an expert. The survey results show they were more motivated by answers that had an authority bent than each of the other groups. A few questions (buying a car and buying a laptop) had high authority responses from each group. In fact, the drivers and amiables were a little more motivated by authority than were the analytics when it came to answering these questions. My take on that interesting fact is that analytics are probably already comfortable with their technical knowledge of these items.

However we look at it, when it comes to spending relatively significant amounts of money most of us like to look to those who are more knowledgeable than we are. The question that caught my eye for the analytics was:

Q – You’re trying to decide about whether or not to leave the company you’ve been at for more than 10 years for a new opportunity. Which plays into your decision most?

A – You read in several business magazines it’s one of the top companies to work for.

Nearly 70% of analytics said this would be their reason for working at the new company compared to just over half the people in the driver and amiable groups. Only 43% of influencers were motivated by this answer. By contrast, the scarcity answer – you know they only hire a handful of people each year into this prestigious training program – was far less motivating for the analytical people than the other groups. The average response rate for all people was 35% but only 21% of analytics chose this answer. Maybe analytical types aren’t so motivated by prestige and exclusivity?

When it came to the remaining four principles of influence – reciprocity, liking, consensus and scarcity – I was surprised to see reciprocity was the most impacting principle. In my original article on this subject my hypothesis was that consensus would be most influential because I thought analytics would like to “play the odds” and go with the crowd like we used to see on “Who wants to be a Millionaire?” However, what should not come as a surprise is the fact that reciprocity motivates everyone, just not to the same extent, because most of us are raised being taught to say “thanks” when someone does something for us. Some parents take it farther and teach kids to “return the favor.”

Conclusion

When I conduct a Principles of Persuasion workshop I emphasize that people should look for naturally occurring principles. You never want to force something and come across as a manipulative salesperson. Understanding what motivates different personality styles allows you to prepare in advance then naturally structure your requests in a way that will help you be most persuasive. When it comes to persuading the analytical/thinker type, look for opportunities to incorporate authority and consistency into your presentation. By all means, if reciprocity, liking, consensus and scarcity naturally present themselves then work them in and you’ll have the best chance to succeed.

Brian
influencepeople
Helping You Learn to Hear “Yes”.

Persuading Personality Types: Survey Overview

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In May I wrote an article I called “Influence Approaches for Different Personality Styles” which turned out to be one of my most-read blog posts to date. In that article I shared four basic personality types:

  1. Driver/Pragmatic
  2. Expressive/Influencer
  3. Facilitator/Amiable
  4. Thinker/Analytical

After defining each I made some suggestions on what I thought would be the best influence approaches for each of the different personality types. To the best of my knowledge there was no research on the subject of persuasion and personality types so I decided to gather my own data using a blog post titled “Personality Types and Decision Influencers – A Short Survey.” I wanted to find out how people thought they might respond in different situations to different influence approaches.

I gathered data from 265 respondents, sliced it, diced it and looked at it every way I know how. Although I’m good with numbers and spreadsheets I decided to bring in the help of an expert with numbers. Alex Timm is a young intern at State Auto and to say Alex is insanely smart is not going far enough. He’s a triple major at Drake University – studying math, accounting and actuarial science – and going into his senior year he’s got a 4.0 GPA! If that’s not enough, he’s already passed three parts of his actuarial exam. I’m being really nice to Alex because I might end up working for him someday. You can find Alex on LinkedIn.

Here’s what Alex had to say about the survey, “I am very surprised to see such a strong statistical significance in the results. This especially applies to the effects of consensus on the expressive personality type. In fact, with this group you would see results this extreme less than 1% of the time if there had not been any sort of relationship!”

What I plan to do this week is share the results of the survey so you’ll be better equipped to persuade people based on their personality type. Today I just want to give you some background on what I did and why. Then each day this week you’ll see a new post that focuses on a different personality type.

Let me start with this disclaimer – I’m not a professional pollster, nor am I a behavioral psychologist. This was not an experiment; rather it was simply an attempt to find out how people thought they might respond in different situations to specific influence approaches.

I recognize when asking people which personality style they think they are there will be some bias. By that I mean, there will be people who classified themselves as one personality type when in reality, if they took a profile, might realize they are different than what they thought.

I can tell you from personal experience, when I took a personality survey during my first job I thought for sure I was a Driver/Pragmatic because I was very focused, very motivated and driven when it came to just about anything I participated in. However, when I took the survey I realized I wasn’t a Driver/Pragmatic, although I had some of those traits. I actually had more of an Analytical/Thinker bent and when I took a similar survey nearly 25 years later I still fell into the predominantly in the Analytical/Thinker category.

Having shared that potential flaw, I’m willing to bet most people were fairly accurate because the personality descriptions I shared were pretty detailed.

Because this was my first attempt at an extensive survey I definitely learned a lot. For example, as I analyzed the results I clearly saw some answers were duds because so few people chose them. Another thing I might do differently in the future would be to have questions specifically geared towards personal situations and different ones for the work environment. I had a few people tell me none of my answers would be compelling enough for them to take action in some instances. Unfortunately no survey will be able to address valid reasons for every participant.

My goal was to find out which answer would potentially have the most impact on a decision. But remember, this is just at amateur’s attempt to try to get a handle on something where there’s not been any research.

Let me tell you a bit about the survey itself. The survey was exactly the same for each personality type. By steering people to a particular survey it allowed me to gather data by personality type very easily.

Each survey had 10 questions with three possible answers.

  • Answer “A” was always an opportunity for someone to choose a relationship answer where they would have been taking action based on liking or reciprocity.
  • Answer “B” dealt with uncertainty so the answer either had to do with consensus or authority.
  • Answer “C” was related motivation which meant the choice was either based on consistency or scarcity.

The way I laid it out there were five questions where each of the six principles of influence was a potential answer. Let’s look at the first question so you can get some insight into what I was looking at and analyzing. After each personality type you’ll see the percentage that chose each answer.

“There’s a popular movie out, one you’ve been thinking about seeing. Which would be most likely to get you to go?”

  • A. A couple of good friends are going. (liking)
  • B. Critics are giving it two thumbs up. (authority)
  • C. It’s only in theaters till the end of the weekend. (scarcity)

While each group was clearly motivated by liking, the most popular answer with each group, the Expressive/Influencer (68.3%) and Facilitators/Amiable (74.1%) were statistically much more motivated by this answer than the Driver/Pragmatic (59.4%) and Thinker/Analytical (60.4%).

Another couple of notable things about this question were the Thinker/Analytical (27.1%) were more motivated by answer “B,” which had to do with authority, than were the other groups. The Driver/Pragmatic (22.9%) were far and away more motivated by scarcity than the other groups.

One question does not a survey make but aggregating the data to look for trends is what allowed Alex and I to spot things we think you’ll find helpful when it comes to persuading people after you have a handle on what type of personality they are. So hang on with me for the next four days as we dig into each of the personality types. If you have questions or feedback feel free to comment below and I’ll do my best to answer you.

Brian
influencepeople
Helping You Learn to Hear “Yes”.

The Will to Prepare to Win

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Vince Lombardi, Hall of Fame coach of the Green Bay Packers, once said, “Most people have the will to win, few have the will to prepare to win.” Think about that for a moment. Everyone wants to win, whether it’s sports, business or life in general. When we compete on the athletic field we want to win the game. In business perhaps it’s winning a new client. In life “winning” can be defined in many different ways but each of us has our own thoughts about what will bring us some measure of happiness and security. Each of these could be defined as “winning” in their own ways.

For any of you who follow sports I’m sure this makes complete sense. We know nobody becomes an Olympic champion without countless hours of hard work and practice. That’s the will to prepare to win. We know nobody becomes a professional athlete without a tremendous amount of dedicated work and preparation. Again, the will to prepare to win. However, when it comes to business quite often people start to view things differently. Based nearly 25 years in the business world, most of that time as a sales trainer and sales coach, I can confidently tell you business people don’t appreciate preparation in the same way athletes do. For salespeople preparation might be role playing to sharpen current skills and learn new ones in a safe environment. It’s necessary work in order to be successful and is just as essential for salespeople as practice is for athletes.Too often people think they’re good salespeople because they have “the gift of gab” or because they know how to think on their feet. Those traits are certainly helpful because being a good conversationalist and being able to think on your feet make you appear confident in your sales presentation. However, there are other things I believe separate good salespeople from great salespeople. I think great salespeople have the will to prepare, so they do things beyond just the moment of the meeting. In the Principles of Persuasion workshops I stress that it’s not what you do in the moment that ends up being persuasive as much as what you do before that moment. It’s the ground work you lay that helps you become a person of influence, a person who’s able to persuade others to your way of thinking. It’s the will to prepare to win.
So what does the will to prepare to win look like in sales? I usually tell people you can’t just determine how successful a salesperson is simply by observing what they do on a sales call. For example, two people could go on a sales call and essentially say and do the same things and yet one person might be consistently more successful. How could that be if their sales calls are virtually identical?What really needs to be analyzed isn’t so much what happened during the sales calls as much as what happened before the sales call. Again, it’s not unlike sports. How someone prepares for the game is what really makes the difference. Being able to hit the winning shot or taking the momentum late in the game is usually due to proper preparation. And so it is in sales. If I’m successful during a sales call maybe it’s because I didn’t just drop by, say hello and then throw out some sales pitch to a prospective client. I think the successful salesperson calls the customer to set up a meeting beforehand. They discuss the agenda then follow up that phone conversation with an email confirming the date, time and agenda. The really smart salesperson will resend that email, or a similar one, the day of the meeting to make sure the meeting is still on and to reinforce the previously agreed upon agenda. When they arrive, after getting past the small talk and rapport building, they get down to business and remind the client of the agenda. Did you catch what happened? In what I just laid out the customer has seen or heard the agenda four times! This results in the customer being mentally ready to engage with the salesperson on the agenda items. The client is thinking about their current state, products, needs, the salesperson, etc.
I contend that the salesperson who consistently follows a process like I’ve outlined stands a much better chance of making the sale. As I noted earlier, the same things could be observed during the sales call where the salesperson walked in – greets the customer, states the agenda and gets down to business – but the big difference is with the customer because they’ve just heard the agenda for the first time and aren’t nearly as ready to engage on the agenda topics as what I laid out in the previous scenario.

Taking time to do what I outlined is an example of the will to prepare to win. Taking the extra time to make sure that those “little” things are happening will help the salesperson consistently follow through and make more sales.
It’s no different than athletics, but as I said earlier, sometimes there is a real disconnect when it comes to business. Whatever your profession or passion, do you have the will to prepare to win? Without it you’ll never attain all that’s possible.
Brian
influencepeople
Helping You Learn to Hear “Yes”.

Influencers from Around the World: Are the Six Principles of Persuasion Really Universal?

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Did you know there are only two Cialdini Method Certified Trainers (CMCT) in Asia today? That’s right, only two, and my guest blogger this week is one of them! I had the good fortune to meet Hoh Kim in January 2008 when we trained together in Arizona under Dr. Robert Cialdini. Hoh has the distinction of being the first person to present Dr. Cialdini’s Principles of Persuasion (POP) workshop in Korea. Hoh is a very bright guy, having written his master thesis on intercultural communication at Marquette University in Milwaukee, WI, in mid 1990s. You can find Hoh on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter in case you’d like to establish contact with him. His website is The Lab h and he also writes a blog called Cool Communications. As part of my Influencers from Around the World series Hoh graciously offered to share some of his insights on the differences between East Asians and North Americans when it comes to influence and persuasion.Are the Six Principles of Persuasion Really Universal? What about in Asia?The world has become smaller due to the globalization of business and social media such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. People now have more interaction than ever with people from other parts of the world. Case in point; my relationship with Brian and his other guest bloggers from around the world.As a Korean POP trainer, and a person who is interested in intercultural communication, I’ve been intrigued as I’ve observed how the six principles of influence can differ based on culture, especially between North America and East Asia. Let me share my thoughts on this.First of all, based on my experience and many case discussions with Korean POP workshop participants, I believe the six principles of persuasion really are universal. The only difference would be the “weight” of some principles in different cultures. When I trained under Dr. Cialdini and his Influence at Work (IAW) staff I remember him sharing with us his belief that the principle of social proof (a.k.a. consensus) should have more “weight” in East Asia than North America, while the principle of consistency should have more “weight” in North America than East Asia. I’ve see this to be true with both principles.Social Proof in East AsiaGenerally speaking, Koreans are more sensitive to how others think or act when they decide something than Americans are. One of the old wisdom sayings in East Asia is “the nail that sticks out gets hammered down.” To East Asians harmony often means being the same with others. Contrast that with North Americans who seem to be more comfortable being different and independent from others.This is related to individual vs. collectivistic cultures, and it’s reflected in many ways. For example: 1) In the US the family name is the last name, but in Korea it’s the first name. So, in Korea, I am called “Kim Hoh” but in the US I am known as “Hoh Kim.” 2) In the US when referring to an address people start from the things nearest to them – building-street-city-state-country. In Korea it is exactly the opposite because we talk about country-state-city-building.
3) When I first came to the US one of my difficulties was ordering sandwiches. In Korea when I order a tuna sandwich that’s it because everyone literally gets the same sandwich. However, in the US, to properly order a tuna sandwich I have to answer several “personalized” questions. What bread, what cheese, what vegetables, what sauce, etc. There are many choices to make a unique sandwich for a unique person.Neither way is better, they’re just different. East Asians feel more comfortable, relatively speaking, being the same as each other than North Americans do. Understanding this you begin to realize the principle of social proof will be more persuasive in East Asia than in North America.Consistency in North AmericaThis month my American thesis advisor, who has studied intercultural communication most of his life, visited Seoul with his wife. When I met with him it was the first time I’d seen him since I left graduate school at Marquette in Milwaukee 13 years ago. We had a dinner together and talked about relationship difference between Americans and Koreans.He told me, “In America, almost all relationships are contractual.” Then, he asked me, “What would be the opposite words ‘contractual relationship’ in Korea? In the US, I think we don’t have one.” I thought about that question and even discussed with my Korean friends. Guess what – to Koreans the opposite the idea of “contractual relationship” would be “humanistic relationship” because a “contractual relationship” is often interpreted “not human” in my culture.Why is that? There’s also historical difference. For example, Americans historically had to move, meet and work with all people they often consider strangers.Korea, however, is different. First, the country is small (Korea is smaller than California) and Koreans didn’t have to move or be “pioneers” like Christopher Columbus was. One fifth of Koreans have their family name as Kim. That doesn’t mean we’re all the same because there are different versions of Kim, such as Kim from the region A, Kim from the region B, etc.A contract is something you need with strangers to clarify things and ensure you’re on the same page. There’s less need for contracts with your friends and family. Historically, Koreans have lived in the same town for a long time (that’s not necessarily the case today) so didn’t need to be contractual. One more difference is that American contracts are normally more comprehensive in length and detail. This difference is actually reflected in communication styles. It is called “high vs. low-context.” North America is a low-context culture while East Asia is high context culture. That means North Americans put more focus on language codes rather than context, whereas East Asians have more emphasis on context than North Americans.Here’s a simple example; when Americans say “yes” that means “yes.” But, East Asians, when they say “yes” often don’t mean “yes” in the literal sense. You have to read East Asian’s facial expressions, gestures, and not just listen to the language. In other words, you have to read the “context” of the overall communication. Here’s another scenario; when an American thinks the room temperature is hot, he or she might ask, “Would you mind if I open the window?” In Korea you would often hear, “Oh, it’s a bit hot,” while in fact the person thinks it’s too hot. If the other person catches the context they will open the window for the other person.
In low-context cultures where most of the meanings are in the language codes, it is often “contractual,” rather than leaving it up to understanding context.

Now, you might see why consistency has more “weight” in North America. Contracts are a standard to set the consistent expectation between parties. People who are more familiar and feel more natural about contracts think consistency is more important than cultures that are not. Of course, this doesn’t mean East Asians simply ignore consistency. However, it is clear to me that Americans put more emphasis on consistency, what they’ve said or done in the past, than Koreans do. In turn, Koreans put more weight on social proof, what everyone else is doing, than Americans. The differences come from cultural differences. Culture is a value system, and values are the things that people believe are important. And different societies put different weight on different things. Because of this the principles of persuasion are influenced based on value systems of different cultures. The conclusion is this – while there could be some different “cultural weights” of some principles, I can tell you as a Korean, six principles of persuasion do work in my part of the world too. HohIf you have comments or questions I’m sure Hoh would be happy to address them for you.

 

Brian
influencepeople
Helping You Learn to Hear “Yes”.

 

“Consistency, thou art a jewel,” Shakespeare

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“Consistency, thou art a jewel,” is a well known quote sometimes ascribed to William Shakespeare. Whether or not it originated with him isn’t nearly as important as the reality that consistency can be a jewel when it comes to your ability to persuade people.

As a principal of influence consistency tells us people want to be seen as consistent in what they say and what they do because generally people feel better about themselves when their words and deeds match. That simple understanding gives you a great opportunity to persuade people because if you can align what you are asking for with something someone has previously said or done then the odds of hearing “Yes!” increase dramatically.

When I teach the 2-day Principles of Persuasion workshop it’s not uncommon for people to misapply the use of consistency during the learning process. This happens when they think about their own consistent behavior and try to use that as a lever to get someone to say “Yes!” You consistently doing good work, good deeds, being on time, etc., are great attributes, but that’s really not the application of consistency as a principle of influence. Going back to our definition, the principle tells us that other people want to be seen as consistent in what they say and what they do. Therefore we need to align our requests to match their prior words or deeds to increase our odds for success.

When you’re consistent in the things you say and do that builds credibility for you in the eye of others. It enhances your personal authority and becomes a reason someone might ask for your assistance. For example, if you’re a consistently high performer at work people come to depend on you. Or, if you’re always meeting deadlines people see you as a go to person when they need something done right away. Those can help your career immensely but that’s not applying the principle of consistency because in neither situation are you trying to persuade the other person.

However, when you need to make a request of someone else, tapping into their prior actions can be a powerful way to get them to do what you want. As an example, if a customer talks about how much they like your company, or a particular product, those would be perfect to incorporate into your request to get them to try a new product. Consider the following: “Sally, I really appreciate you sharing all the things you liked about our Bass-O-Matic. It makes me feel great to hear how happy you are with it. Since you’ve enjoyed it so much I naturally thought you’d want to be one of the first to try the Bass-O-Matic 2.” While Sally might try the new product without you referring to her prior words you’d have a much better chance of making the sale by reminding her of how satisfied she was with the prior purchase.

So maybe you’re thinking, “This sounds good but I don’t know if it will really work.” Influence People relies on science rather than good advice so here’s a study that was done that shows how potentially powerful consistency can be.

On a beach in the New York City area some social psychologists arranged to have a person lay down a blanket near a stranger then set a radio on the blanket. Next the person got up to take a walk on the beach and soon after they left, someone associated with experiment came along and “stole” the radio. The experimenters wanted to see how often the unsuspecting person would say or do anything about the robbery they were witnessing. On day one only four out of 20 people said or did anything about the theft in progress.

The experiment was repeated on day two, doing everything exactly the same except for one thing. On the second day, just before the person was to head off for a walk, the person turned to the stranger near them and asked if they would, “watch my things.” Naturally everyone agree to this simple request. Now, when the thief came along 19 out of 20 people intervened and a few people even tried to physically restrain the would-be thief!

Think about this for a moment; the only difference between day one and day two was a simple question. How would you feel if the person came back, saw their radio gone and asked, “What happened to my radio?” and you had to tell them someone stole it. “But you told me you keep an eye on it?” If you’re like most people you’d feel pretty bad and that’s the motivator because no one wants to feel bad when they can avoid it.

This is one simple application of this principle of influence. If you keep reading Influence People you’ll learn how to tap into this principle. Do so and consistency will truly become a jewel for you because it will help you hear “Yes!” far more often when you make requests other people.

Brian
influencepeople
Helping You Learn to Hear “Yes”.

Personality Types and Decision Influencers – A Short Survey

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A few weeks ago I posted an article called Influence Approaches for Different Personality Styles. It was my most read blog post to date so I decided to follow it up with something different, a reader survey.

In that article I mentioned there were no scientific studies on the relationship between personality types and influence approaches. What I shared was my personal opinion on which principles of influence I thought would be best to use with the different personality styles. The lack of information got me thinking more about the subject so I decided to gather my own data. But, in order to do so I need your help.

I’d like you to read the general personality descriptions below, decide which best describes you, and then click on the associated link to take a 10 question multiple choice survey. While no description will fit you perfectly choose the one that you think best represents you.

A. You thrive on challenges and have a strong internal motivation to succeed. You’re practical and very focused on getting results. You get lots accomplished very quickly. You talk faster than most people and you’re direct and to the point. You’re often viewed as decisive. Words that describe you include: action-orientated, decisive, problem solver, direct, assertive, demanding, risk taker, forceful, competitive, independent, determined and results-orientated. This is the pragmatic/driver personality. If this describes you, click here to take the survey.

B. You are very outgoing and enthusiastic, with a high energy level. You’re an idea person, but usually struggle to see ideas through to completion. You enjoy helping others and enjoy socializing. You are usually slow to reach a decision. People often think of you of as a talker, dramatic and impulsive. Words that describe you include: verbal, motivating, enthusiastic, convincing, impulsive, influential, charming, confident, dramatic, optimistic and animated. This is the influencer/expressive personality type. If this describes you, click here to take the survey.

C. You are dependable, loyal and easygoing. You like things that are non-threatening and friendly. You don’t like dealing with impersonal details or cold hard facts. Usually you’re quick to reach a decision. People often describe you as a warm person and sensitive to the feelings of others. Words that describe you include: patient, loyal, sympathetic, team person, relaxed, mature, supportive, stable, considerate, empathetic, persevering, trusting and congenial. This describes the facilitator/amiable individual. If this describes you, click here to take the survey.

D. You are known for being systematic, well organized and deliberate. You appreciate facts and information presented logically. You enjoy organization and completion of detailed tasks. Others may see you as being cautious, very structured, someone who adopts a rule oriented approach to life. Words that describe you include: controlled, orderly, precise, disciplined, deliberate, cautious, diplomatic, systematic, logical and conventional. This describes the thinker/analytic. If this describes you, click here to take the survey.

Each survey question will put you in a different situation and ask which of the three responses would be the biggest factor in you saying “Yes” to a request. While each potential answer might factor into your decision to one degree or another please choose the one you think would most impact your decision.

If you want to take the survey please do so before June 30th. That’s when I’ll close the survey and begin to analyze the data. Look for a July post where I’ll share the results. Thanks for taking a few minutes to participate; I appreciate your help on this project.

Brian
influencepeople
Helping You Learn to Hear “Yes”.

Helping Teens Balance Peer Pressure and Authority Figures

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A week ago, Abigail graduated from the 8th grade. To most people, that’s not a big deal—unless you happen to be a parent. Like most things kids do—sports, school plays, and moving on to the next grade—they’re not terribly significant events in and of themselves, but they help shape who we are and who we become.

What’s significant about Abigail’s situation is that entering high school next year will be a HUGE change—much more than for the typical kid. You see, she’s gone to the same school her whole life, Polaris Christian Academy, with basically the same group of friends. There were only a dozen kids in her class and just four girls, including Abigail.

In the fall, she’ll attend Westerville South High School, which means she goes from the small, private Christian school environment to a huge public school—from a tiny class to one that will have more than 400 students! And did I mention that none of the kids she knows will go to her new school? It could make for a lonely, difficult time.

In early May, she posted on Facebook, “Another awards chapel were im the only one left in my row, 9 yrs of that, hmm getting kinda tired of it :/” As a parent, seeing something like that breaks my heart.

Consensus—that desire to be part of the crowd—is an incredibly strong psychological force, especially for kids. Not being part of the group is tough because they’re fighting physical pain when they’re excluded. That’s right: being excluded from a group registers in the brain as physical pain! Watch this short video of Dr. Robert Cialdini as he explains this interesting scientific finding.

So how’s a parent to deal with this?

I believe there’s potentially good and bad in everything. Some “good” things become bad when we abuse them, and some “bad” things turn out to be good for us if we deal with them the right way. As a parent, one of my responsibilities is to help Abigail learn this truth so she can overcome obstacles and enjoy life to the fullest.

All of this started me thinking, and I noticed something about her personality. While all her friends were doing things together when they were younger, Abigail worked for four years to earn her black belt in taekwondo. When her girlfriends all went out for cheerleading, she didn’t—because it wasn’t for her. When they all played basketball over the winter, she passed to play club volleyball, where she didn’t know anyone. While her friends were all on stage for the plays the last few years, Abigail decided she’d rather be backstage working the lights.

After thinking about this, I told Abigail I was proud of her. She didn’t quite get it, but I explained that she showed strength of character to be okay with not being a part of everything everyone else did. If she can deal with not partaking in the fun activities her friends were doing, and if she can deal with the feelings of being singled out because she didn’t get awards when most other kids were recognized, then I have confidence she’ll be her own person as she takes this big step in life and moves into a totally foreign environment in high school.

On a similar note: several years ago, while at camp, Abigail didn’t finish all her food, so the camp counselor said she’d have to sing in front of the other campers. She doesn’t like to sing, so she dug her heels in and said she wouldn’t. And despite the fact that her mom was sitting there watching—embarrassed, I might add—Abigail didn’t give in.

Again, I saw this as a learning opportunity. After that incident, I told Abigail that her mom had shared the story with me, and that I was proud of her. She had a hard time understanding that one, too. I explained that she shouldn’t just do what everyone asks her to—or tells her to—and that the camp incident was good training. I followed that up by telling her she’d have to accept the consequences that come with saying “no” to people, and that there would certainly be consequences for saying no to an authority figure like a teacher.

I hope you see where I’m going with this.

As I wrote earlier, consensus can be a powerful psychological force, and sometimes it can lead us to do things we ought not to. By the same token, authority is a powerful influence as well. Sometimes we do things simply because someone we perceive to be an authority tells us to. Part of learning to navigate life as an independent adult is knowing whom to say “yes” to—and whom to say “no” to.

So here’s my encouragement to those of you who are parents:
Understanding how the principles of influence can be used against you or your kids is just as important as learning how to ethically use them. Talk to your kids about this, because it will give them the tools necessary to make better, more informed choices.

You’ll be glad you did.

Brian
influencepeople
Helping You Learn to Hear “Yes”.