Weapons of influence - Deepstash
How to Sell Anything

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Effective communication

Persuasion techniques

Closing a sale

How to Sell Anything

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Weapons of influence

Weapons of influence

Fixed action patterns

Such patterns reduce brain strain by allowing us to act without thinking in every situation.

This can also be used for duping us.

  • Reciprocation
  • Commitment and consistency
  • Social proof
  • Liking
  • Authority
  • Scarcity

Contrast principle

We perceive things which are presented one after the other differently than those shown in isolation.

i.e. Cloth sellers will try to make the buyer buy the most expensive item on their list first.

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Liking

Liking

What causes liking?

  • Physical attractiveness – positive characteristic of a person dominates how others view that person
  • Similarity – We like people who are like us
  • Compliments – We are phenomenal suckers of flattery

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Reciprocation

Reciprocation

We try to repay in kind, what another person has provided us.

Creating an uninvited debt.

i.e. Most people find it difficult to leave without buying anything after trying a free sample.

Reciprocal concession

i.e. First make a request that ...

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Social proof

Social proof

The more the number of people doing it, the more we believe that the behavior is correct.

  • Canned laughter
  • Tip jars

To prevent falling for this you should recognize when the social proof is deliberately faked.

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Commitment and consistency

Commitment and consistency

Once we have made up our minds, we don’t have to think about it again.

We are more consistent in our commitment if we believe that we did it for our purpose rather than external pressure.

Ask yourself, “Would I make the same choice again?”

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Scarcity

Scarcity

The thought of losing something motivates us more than the idea of gaining something of similar value.

We believe that things that are difficult to own are usually better than things that are easy to hold.

i.e. The passion of an indifferent lover surges when a rival comes in.

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Authority

Authority

We obey authorities mindlessly in a lot of cases:

  • Titles
  • Clothes and other outward appearances

Ask yourself, “is this authority truly an expert?”

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Exploiting our mental shortcuts

Phishing emails manipulate us via mental shortcuts. There are seven shortcuts or psychological principles of influence that can be exploited by phishers. These include authority, commitment, liking, perceptual contrast, reciprocation, scarcity and social proof.

An example o...

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