8 Persuasion Techniques to Change Anyone’s Mind
There are 8 persuasion techniques that most successful people & famous businesses use. These persuasion techniques work on the subconsciousness , and can yield top-notch results, if understood and used properly. We’ve researched the best techniques out there and summarized them for your reading pleasure. (Most of which are based on Robert Caldini’s Influence: Science & Practice.) Foot in the DoorPrinciple: The foot in the door principle means that prior to asking for a big favor, you should ask for a smaller one. By first asking for something small, you’re making the individual “committed” to helping you, and the larger request acts as a continuation of something technically already agreed upon. Real-life Application: A tourist asks you for directions. As a follow-up, they say they might get lost and ask you to walk them there. You’re more likely to agree to that, than if they straight-off asked the second question.You missed a class and asked your classmate for their notes. Subsequently, you admit to have been a tad irresponsible this semester and ask for the notes for the entire semester . By first asking for the small favor, you increase your chances of getting the big one – namely, a free-ride on your classmate’s notes.You just failed an important midterm and the professor doesn’t offer retakes.You decide to ask for feedback on your work and why you failed, followed by a request for a retake. You’re more likely to succeed in such a scenario, as opposed to directly asking for a retake. Case Study: In the year 1966, two Stanford researchers – Jonathan Freedman and Scott Fraser – decided to test the effectiveness of FITD as a persuasion technique. They divided 156 women into four groups. They called the first three groups, asking a few simple questions about their household kitchen products. Three days later, they asked to personally go through their kitchen cabinet and catalogue their products. The other group was only approached with the second request. The first three groups had a 52.8% compliance rate, while the last group had only 22.2%. Read more on the case study here. Read more on the technique here. Door in the Face Principle: Say, would you mind running around the streets naked yelling how awesome this article is? No? Well, could you at least share it with your friends on Facebook? Door in the face is the opposite of the previously mentioned persuasion technique. First, you ask for something huge they are not going to agree with, then ask for something contrastingly easier. Real-life Application: You ask a classmate to tutor you on that upcoming midterm in Advanced Statistics. Oh, and you haven’t studied at all up to now. The classmate apologizes, saying that they just don’t have the time. And besides, they’ve never even seen you before. Your follow-up request for their notes is, however, granted.You ask your friend to lend you 100$. After the “No,” you ask “can I at least have 20$?”A supermarket has a policy of asking for donations to a charitable cause before asking the customer for payment. Most customers wouldn’t donate, but if the cashier asks them to make a $100 donation and then asks “how about just 5$,” the number of donations rises exponentially.Case Study:A study was conducted on whether DITF technique would help with retail sales. A saleswoman was selling cheese to people walking past a hut in the Austrian Alps. In the first scenario, the hikers were offered a pound of cheese for 4 euros.In the second scenario, the saleswomen first offered 2 pounds of cheese for 8 euros, and after being rejected, asking for a pound for 4. The compliance rates are strikingly different: 9% for the first request, 24% for the second.Read more on the case study here.Read more on the technique here.AnchoringPrinciple: Anchoring is a cognitive bias present in most decision making. How do you know what product is “good,” for example? You compare it to a similar product and make a decision from there.This technique has a lot of different uses, one of the most-used being pricing. Anchoring, if used properly, can be a powerful persuasion technique.Real-life Application:You’re looking to buy a new car, and come across an OK deal for 10,000$. You bargain with the salesman and manage to lower the cost to 7,000$. You go home satisfied & contempt, thinking how much of a bargain it was. The actual value for the car, however, was lower than 7,000$. The initial price of 10,000$ acts as an anchor, so you’ll perceive anything lower than that as a “good deal.”You just got a new job offer, with an initial offer of 2,000$ per month. You negotiate it to 2,200$. Again, as with the previous example, you may be getting low-balled. While a 10% increase over the initial offer may seem attractive, it might still be lower than your actual value.Case Study:The Economist used to have three different subscription options. A) Online for 59$ B) Print for 125$ and C) Print & Web for 125$. On a study done on 100 MIT students, 16 chose option A and 84 chose option C.The experimenter then removed option B and gave the same test to another 100 students. In this case, 68 chose option A and 32 chose option C.The takeaway here, is that people use option B as an anchor. No one would actually chose it, it was just used to increase the value of option C.Read more on the case study here.Read more on the technique here.Commitment & ConsistencyPrinciple: People are prone to be consistent in their actions and beliefs. If you make a person commit to something small, you could use the initial commitment to influence them into doing more for you.Real-life Application:Most of the time, you buy the same brands over and over. When was the last time you tried a new snack or drink?“Can you do me a favor?” “Sure.” “Could you get me a beer from the store?” as opposed to, “Hey could you etc.”You’ve probably heard of how goal setting can help with productivity. The concept is something rarely ever left out of a self-help book. The reason why this is effective is because of consistency: you’re more aware that this is what you want and should strive for when you’ve written it down.Let’s say you work at an NGO and you’re collecting money for a certain cause. Before asking for donations, you can ask the person whether they support the cause. If the cause is just, they’ll most definitely answer positively. By asking such a question first, you’re more likely to receive donations.Case Study:A lot of websites selling a product these days use the consistency principle to get you to sign up for their mailing list. Their pop-ups usually read something in the lines of, “Yes, sign me up. I love free money!” and “No, I’d rather be unsuccessful,”. While that can seem a bit commonsensical , it does help increase conversion rates.Read more on the technique here, and here.Social ProofPrinciple: Most of your friends choose this article for persuasion-based advice. You should too. “Everyone believes this, so it must be true.”Social Proof is one of the most noticeable persuasion techniques. It doesn’t take much to notice that in most social groups there is a high level of groupthink. Someone mentions an idea, and everyone just goes with it – even if they all disagree with it. When making a decision, people look at what their peers do, and act in a similar fashion.Real-life Application:If you have an empty tip jar at your work, you might consider filling it up a bit before beginning the shift. Customers are more likely to tip if they see a filled tip jar rather than an empty one – other people tip, so I should probably do the sameThere is a greater chance you might like a Facebook post if it already has a lot of likes, as opposed to a post with zero likes.The reason most people take up smoking is social proof. Everyone smokes, thus you should smoke too – despite all the health concerns and horrendous taste it comes with.Case Study:In 1935, in an experiment conducted by Muzafer Sherif, several subjects were placed in a dark room with a dot of light 15 feet away. The subjects were then asked for estimates on how much the dot moved. All the participants gave different numbers.On the second day, they were grouped together and asked the same question. This time, they ended agreeing on a completely different number, far from their previous estimates.Read more on the case study here.Read more on the technique here and here.AuthorityPrinciple:Persuasion Experts and 9 out of 10 Jedi think this article is the best source of persuasion-related advice. People look up to authority in any field or subject, thus making yourself seem as a source of authority can take you long way.Real-life Application:Most startups or smaller companies put an “as seen on” logo on their landing pages, if they’ve been featured on major media websites. If a company was on Techcrunch, for example, then it means they’re kinda of a big deal, as Techcrunch don’t cover just anyone.Product X won the best iOS app for 20159/10 dentists think that a specific brand of toothpaste is the best one out there. It also provides clean drinking water to third world countries. And cures cancer.Agencies tend to mention their previous clients on their landing page. This is especially true if they’ve worked with big companiesCase Study:Stanley Milgram, a psychologist at Yale University, conducted a number of psychological studies that later came to be known as the Milgram Experiment. The experiment had three roles – the experimenter, the teacher, and the learner. The teacher, who would be the volunteer, would ask the learner, a hired actor, questions.If the learner answered wrong, the teacher would administer an electric shock. The experimenter kept pushing the teacher to use the electric shock, even after the learner was “crying out in pain.” In most of the cases, the teacher would just go along with the experimenter’s instructions, despite knowing that he was causing another human being extreme pain. 8 out of 10 teachers continued to administer the shocks even after they had stopped hearing any response from their student and believed he had passed out. The takeaway here is that most people are willing to follow someone with authority, even acting on something that is clearly wrong.Read more on the case study here.Read more on the technique here and here.Hand-picked related content:ScarcityPrinciple: This article expires in the next five seconds, unless you share it on Facebook. Scarcity is one of the most-used persuasion techniques used by salesmen and marketers. People tend to want more of things which are in low supply. If you convince an individual that something is only available for a limited time, or is in limited supply, they’re more likely to want it.Real-life Application:Booking.com never fails to point out how there’s only 2-3 rooms left in that hotel, or how 20 other people are also looking at the same hotel.Any product which is LIMITED TIME ONLY DISCOUNT GOING TO CHANGE YOUR LIFE BUY IT NOW.Digital marketers use scarcity by offering their products once a year, for a specific time period, while stressing on how the product is a limited time offer. In a similar manner, offering a discount, but attaching a timer, or a validity date to it. The more you stress on how limited the product is, the higher the conversion rate.Let’s say you’re a door to door salesman. You can pretty much go wild with this persuasion technique. For example, you could say that you’re only in the area for the day or that you’re doing a special, never-to-be-seen-again promotion. Meaning, the customer won’t be able to purchase the product at any other later date.Case Study:In an experiment conducted by Luigi Mittone and Lucia Savadori, 180 students were divided into two groups. One was presented with a product that was supposed to be scarce, and the other a product that was to be abundant. The experiment concluded that students were more likely to choose the good they were told was scarce.Read more on the case study here.Read more on the technique here and here.ReciprocationPrinciple: People tend to feel obliged to return favors. Regardless of whether the person likes the gift, they’re still inclined to give something in return. Having someone feel indebted to you is something that will always be useful, raising your chances of receiving something you want exponentially.Real-life Application:Let’s say you’re raising money to help orphans find a new home. Before looking for potential donors, you could make a small event where the kids make bracelets out of different materials (in a fun way, not the child-labor kinda way). Prior to asking for a donation, you could give away the bracelet, making the potential donor feel indebted.If I had asked you to share this article at the introduction, you probably wouldn’t do it. Now that you’ve learned all sorts of useful persuasion techniques, as well as different case studies, you’re more likely to do so. Right? ?Case Study:A study conducted in an upscale NY restaurant showed that the more generosity the waiter showed, the higher the customers would tip. In the first scenario, the waiter would give away a piece of chocolate to every customer, resulting in an 18% higher tip.In the second, after giving away a piece of candy, the water would start walking away, turn around, and offer another piece of candy of the customer’s choice. This method increased the tip received to 21%.Read more on the technique here and here.Ever used any of these persuasion techniques? We’d be really interested to hear about your results in the comment section below!If you liked the article, you probably want to do what the friendly popup asked for. We won’t spam you. Ever. Except maybe with interesting & insightful articles.Persuasion Techniques SourcesMost of the persuasion techniques originate from one of the best books on the topic, Influence: Psychology of Persuasion. If you want to know more details about each technique, you can get the book here.Influence – Robert Cialdini / Socially Psyched – FITD / Forbes – Neil Patel / Claus Ester, Birgit Neumayr / SimplyPsychology – Compliance / TheEconomist / NLPU – Anchoring / Changing Minds – Consistency / Referral Candy – FITD Examples / IntroPsych / KissMetrics, Social Proof 1, Social Proof 2 / Referral Candy – Authority Examples / Takebackyourbrain – Authority / Referral Candy – Scarcity / Takebackyourbrain – Scarcity / Direct Creative – Reciprocity / BrianTracy – Reciprocity
Resume Wars: Anakin Skywalker vs Darth Vader
In a galaxy far, far away, resumes were drastically changing over time. From a simple, blank piece of paper filled with your experiences, to a beautifully designed, fancy hologram, describing you not only as an employee but as an individual, as well. In the light of the upcoming Star Wars movies, our team decided to create Anakin Skywalker’s resume before turning to the dark side, and after becoming Darth Vader. See how our format works, and how it shows more than just your work experience, disregarding whether you’re a Jedi or a Sith! Before turning to the dark side, Anakin Skywalker was an exemplary Jedi. He studied at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, and after graduation, crafted his own light from three crystals on the planet Ilum. After becoming a full-fledged Jedi, his career seemed bright – having won numerous battles, stopping the invasion of Naboo, and becoming the Counsellor’s personal representative. Everything changed, however, once he started having visions his wife’s failed childbirth, leading him to rebel against the Jedi and eventually turning into Darth Vader. Vader was the opposite of everything Anakin Skywalker represented. He’d committed countless atrocities, from murdering most of the Jedi, to blowing up an entire planet. At the end of the series, however, Darth Vader did end up finding redemption: saving his son’s life, and bringing down the emperor – thus finally fulfilling his destiny. Icons by:Stephen Plaster / Luis Prado / Alex Auda Samora / Christelle Mozzati / Yorlmar Campos / Anthony Rees / Wayne Tyler Sall / Becca / Hayashi Fumihiro / Chris Kerr / Juan Pablo Bravo
11 Online Resumes That Will Get Anyone Hired
Have you considered what it would be like to get hired for that one dream company that’s been lingering in the back of your mind? You’re probably thinking the chances are really odd, right? Most of the time, applicants find it difficult to land a job opening to work for the company of their dreams. At times, it may even seem out of reach… While there are different factors at play, it’s definitely not impossible. Even if you lack the ideal requirements, as long as you can prove yourself through an online resume application, it wouldn’t be a problem. But just before we get straight into it, it’s useful to get a better idea of what an online resume is. What еxactly Are Online Resumes?An online resume is a digital resume with all the standard resume sections but through the web, via the internet. It’s not quite the same as a normal resume format that’s a PDF or text document. Instead, the online resume format is something you would show on the internet where it can be seen online. The big advantage of using online resumes like this is that they can be received almost immediately. Usually, when recruiters are looking for a candidate to fill a particular job posting, they’ll go through online resumes since they’re faster to review. It saves time but more importantly, if it’s done right, it enables you to present yourself as a qualified, unique and valuable worker that’s a good fit for the company. For instance, you’ve probably heard of Nina4Airbnb. One of the most famous online resumes that has been reposted all over the Internet… She went viral pretty fast – got tonnes of attention, and above all, she was hired in her dream company. Sounds really lucky. Maybe it’s a fluke… Well, she’s not the only one. In fact, there are a bunch of other people who did the same thing: created a novel online resume and were swarmed with job offers left and right. With that being said, we’ll take a look at 11 of the most creative online resume examples we’ve seen that got candidates employed in their dream jobs. Take inspiration and notes from them for your next resume application! Want specific inspiration for your industry? Check out our resume examples section that got people hired at their dream jobs! The Reverse Job Application Usually, you’re supposed to be the one frantically looking for job openings on a variety of websites – especially if you’re a fresh college grad. For some, this may be soul-crushing: being rejected time after time doesn’t leave much room for confidence. That’s what happened to Andrew Horner. Instead, he decided to reverse-engineer the entire process, creating a reverse application website. In this case, companies had to go out of their way to meet Andrew’s standards rather than the other way around. And as you’ve probably already guessed, he got hired. The unusual part here is that he never listed any of his skills or experiences. On his website, he focused on describing his personality. There wasn’t as much emphasis on portraying himself as a paper-filling, coffee-brewing potential intern. Link: http://www.reversejobapplication.com/ Google, Please Hire Me Some people go out of their way to get hired in their favorite company. But it’s way, way, way more far than just filling an application. If only it was that easy… Now, this guy here, with his majestic moustache, spent $3,000 of his own capital to make a marketing campaign… The goal was to get noticed by Google. Which in turn, he essentially proved himself and his skills in marketing. That’s one hell of a way to apply for a job, huh? Let me guess what you’re thinking, he must’ve managed to land the job, right? Surprisingly, he didn’t get hired at Google – but he did end up scoring a sweet gig in a San Francisco based startup instead: SigFig, a financial management platform for individual investors. The mustachioed marketer himself described it as a job that makes you want to get up in the morning. Check out his website at http://googlepleasehire.me/ An Amaz-ing Resume Everyone knows that applying to jobs is basically selling yourself and value you can bring over to your new company. Our guy Philippe here, took that concept a bit too seriously… He created a whole online resume website with the Amazon design, and started selling himself – literally. Sadly, the website is currently all out of Phils, as he got hired in his dream company, the Birchbox, one of the leading discovery commerce platforms, operating in both the US and Europe. Link: http://phildub.com/ Nina4AirBNB One of the most common ways to land a job is to blow them away with your enthusiasm. Show the company how much you care – and be genuine. Most people tend to research a lot about the company and try to forcefully impress the interviewer. What Nina did was something along the lines with dedication pumped up to the max. She analyzed the global tourism market, and gave AirBNB recommendations based on her research. If that alone doesn’t show enthusiasm and competence, we don’t know what does. Even after that, surprisingly enough, Nina didn’t end up working for AirBnB. However, despite not meeting her main goal, she described the campaign as a major success. With over 400k visits to her website, 30k to her blog, as well as a huge number of interviews, it’s safe to say she’s with some of the best companies out there. Check out her website at http://www.nina4airbnb.com/ Interactive-Video Game-Resume Robby Leonardi came by with his videogame resume and blew us away. It’s not the stereotypical professional resume format you would see online. His replacement for the resume sections structure was a “game” – a simple platformer where you, the character advances as you scroll down. Just when we thought this list couldn’t get any weirder… Robby mentioned that the website is influenced by the Super Mario games, hence you may have thought that the game looked a bit familiar. Currently, Robby works at Fox News as a web content designer/creator. But taking into consideration his qualifications, we’re pretty sure this guy can work for whoever he wants to work with. Link: http://www.rleonardi.com/interactive-resume/ Also, Portfolio: http://www.rleonardi.com/design-portfolio/ Super Mike’s Super Online Resume Another online resume website example here – from the legend amongst App strategists… His name is Super Mike. Changing the world one app at a time, Mike is famous around the globe. Visionaries of today’s society have described Mike as “the bicycle for your strategic needs,” – Steve Jobs, and “Always two there are, no more; the Brand and SuperMike,” – Master Yoda. Exaggerations aside, Mike’s personal website is comprehensive: a full history of his employment, case studies, coupled with a tinge of humor. He’s also worked for top-of-the-line companies as a strategist, including Ubisoft, Ogilvy, and so on. Link: http://super-mike.com/ Florian for Adidas Just like Nina’s online resume format, Florian goes all in to get hired at Adidas. He lists his work history, passions and interests to explain how exactly he can help develop miCoach. What’s great about this is that it’s short, concise, and straight to the point. With this, he ended up being employed at Adidas. However, after a while, he left in order to work on his own entrepreneurial endeavors. To be specific, Grit – an app that pairs you with professional running coaches. Link: http://www.florianisallin.com/ QR Code Resume https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xs7tLBSENx4&feature=youtu.be How do you get hired in a tough industry like communications straight after completing college? When there’s so many applicants in the communications industry with lots of competition, limited spaces and having limited professional experience, how realistic is getting hired? Well, according to Victor Petit, the aim of the game is to show a bit of creativity – which is what he did, through his QR coded resume. After suffering the pain of looking for an internship without much experience, he decided to think outside the box, landing him a job straight off. Link: http://www.victorpetit.fr/QR-CODE-Talking-Resume E-Bio Martin Ringlein, a design manager at Twitter, created a personal website – with a twist. The style isn’t that of a classic resume. Rather, the resume website format is structured as a timeline to showcase his experience and skills. This is one way to show how skilled you are without having to use a resume filled with plain text to describe yourself. In other words, through his online resume resume website, he’s showing – not just ‘“telling”. Therefore there’s more meaning and impact behind his application. Currently, as a high-end professional, Martin isn’t looking for a job. The website itself acts more of a personal bio where employers can easily see what he’s about. Link: http://marty.com/ The Anti-Resume Manifesto Let’s face it – traditional resumes are outdated. It tells what companies you’ve worked for, what jobs you’ve taken, how experienced and skilled you are… That, however, can be very irrelevant. And the way it’s presented can be very generic and common. The conventional resume format doesn’t show who you are as a person, whether you’d be a good culture fit, nor does it show your other relevant skills. And that’s exactly what we’re trying to change here at Enhancv. It also turns out that David Crandall holds the same opinion as us. He’s created the anti-resume manifesto, which explains that he’s not just another cog in a machine. Instead, you would conclude that he’s a talented individual, a superhuman asset and an absolute stud who could bring tonnes of value for any company. Link: http://www.slideshare.net/davidcrandall/my-antiresume-manifesto (Side note: our online resume service is one thing, but our resume scanners are another. Click here to use our resume checker so you can see how good or bad your resume is!) 11. Enhancv’s Online Resume Templates Maybe this is one you didn’t expect, but Enhancv’s online resume templates work pretty well in terms of the creative side of things. One factor we’re trying to change is the conventional standpoint towards the way resumes should be built. For the most part, candidates are using online resume builders that aren’t formatted to catch the employers attention. Because of this, it won’t resonate strong enough for the recruiter to feel a strong connection with you. On the other hand, a strategy that our online resume builder helps you implement are the visual aspects of your resume. For example, two colour combinations, resume icons, and engaging resume format designs. If you’re not too sure where to start, I suggest starting here so you can get into the zone where more ideas begin to emerge! [[ image here – https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ENqRiraUy2KoY2hKj0lvlorVAUqJqibu/view?usp=sharing ]] Conclusion Did you notice the pattern from the examples listed? Hint: all those guys and girls got hired… It all begins with understanding your company and their values. How can you meet their expectations? Can you express your personality in a way that attracts the hiring manager and sets you apart from all the other job seekers in the workforce? Creativity isn’t easy. Simultaneously, it’s not as hard as you’d think. Start by deciding on an online resume format that works for your job opening. Don’t be afraid to think differently and unconventionally. Most of the time, people want to see if you have something new and different that you can bring to the table. If you want to learn how to tap into the power of online resumes, like our Facebook page to get our new guide as soon as it comes out! Alternatively, you can find 23 more creative resume examples by clicking here. From the online resumes listed, it proves that landing a high or dream job position isn’t exactly impossible. Rather, it comes to show that if you put some effort into your job-search, coupled with a bit of creativity and research, you can pretty much get hired anywhere. References: Nancy Young / Taylor Casti / Chris Lake / Vivian Giang / Lauren Fisher / Matthew Wauters / Ellis Hamburger / Ryan Lum / Miranda Miller / Upasna Kakroo / Lisa Eadicicco / Benjamin Snyder / Jenny Che / Chris Matyszczyk / Samatha Murphy Kelly / Add Dugdale / Liv Siddall / Jack Marshall / Ben Woods / Scott Dockweiler / Jenn Tardiff / Brenna Ehrlich / Aleksandra Sagan / Rich Dematteo / Thomas Frank / Ashley Lutz / Anna North / Melissa Stanger / Patricia Laya / Alyson Shontell / Will Oremus / Catharine Smith
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