5 Techniques of Social Influence That You Need to Know

How to understand that you are being manipulated by someone else? Psychologist talk about how to learn and recognize the basic manipulative traps and avoid them when you’re working with the clients.

Basic Ideas

Techniques of social influence are actively used by sellers, marketers and advertisers, it’s common. However, not to get on a hook of someone who’s on the other side is a primary task of each seller, marketer or advertiser. To be smarter than the customers is always hard. So, you need to know the techniques of social influences because they may encourage you to commit ill-considered actions, and the consumers — useless purchases, first of all.

Most often, we do not realize what exactly makes us take a step, which we may regret afterwards.
Having learned to recognize traps placed by manipulators, we can avoid it.

I saw many successful companies that spent a lot of resources developing strategies to influence their consumers, it’s common. Forces are clearly not equal, because when you’re a customer is one thing, and when you’re a seller is another, nevertheless, to understand how we are manipulated, pushing for the fulfillment of quick and impulsive actions is vital for both.

Robert Cialdini, a Ph.D of Psychology & Marketing at Arizona State University, calls certain people pre-suasion professionals. By this notion R. Cialdini have in view all those people, who knowingly and specifically apply their manipulative means of influencing people, seeking for their compliance. Compliance is such behavior, which is shown in response to a direct requirement or a request to act in certain way, but not otherwise. So this very professionalism in obtaining compliance is directly based on the use of different social impact techniques, and in practice shows impressive results, indeed.

The use of manipulative techniques is based on the use of the so called regulatory influence. There are certain norms of society that regulate us, and there are two types of them: the norms of duty, or responsibility, and the norms of reciprocity. Depending on the kind of norms on which the influence is based, two modifications can be seen in the regulatory impact. In turn, various manipulative techniques are based on the use of one or another version of the regulatory impact.

The theory has its roots in the Freudian believes that the superego is formed within every person’s psyche, that is, every individual from the earliest childhood gets acquainted and assimilates a sufficiently large number of social norms that are imposed by his parents/society on him/her.

Despite the fact that people are familiar with the norms of duty and responsibility from childhood, not all of them are internalized to the point of being represented in self-consciousness. If the norms are included in the self-statement of the individual, then they, due to various mental mechanisms, begin to influence human behavior. So, a lot of things happen at subliminal level, that is subconsciously. And this may be used by manipulators to their best.

If we like the way a person looks like, we automatically begin to associate with him/her only positive features: honesty, reliability, sense of humor, etc. It is obvious, especially during the courtship period of dating: each wants to draw the most detailed portrait, the information is not enough, we have to build hypotheses. And to change the first impression is extremely difficult — even if you have such a chance.

Not only a person can be cute or even beautiful, but also a company’s website or a beauty parlor. This is certainly an argument in their favor, but it must be decisive only if the appearance is the only thing you need to make final decisions.

2. Deficiency principles

If it is difficult or even impossible to get the desired, it only becomes even more valuable and desired for us. An original Hermès bag can cost several thousand pounds and can be delivered only two years later after the order is made. And this is not because Hermès production facilities do not allow certain number of bags production. It’s more likely to be arranged by a wise marketing. So, don’t be silly!

If you create an image of deficiency of the product or exclusivity of your services, this is gonna work like a magnet to the customers. There is an interesting historical fact that supports the idea: only after the peasants were told that the potatoes were the property of the state, and the fields were fenced and taken under guard, all potato harvest was immediately stolen from there. The moral is — fruit often tastes sweeter when it’s forbidden. And that’s another manipulation.

In reality, we face the use of deficit technology on the Internet nearly every day. Did you notice that hotel booking websites insistently warns that only a few cheap rooms remain, the counter counts down the time until the end of the final sold out, and so on? This approach drives people making fast decisions, hurry up or buy everything in advance, etc.

3. Emphasis on similarities

We like people similar to us, it’s common, as well as those who share our interests and views. The same’s with the products or whatever it may be.

Unconsciously, we are inclined to trust people of our own circle. Strangers are referred to this circle according to their appearance. It is not the gay coat that makes the gentleman, however.

Scammers have long enjoyed this. Their chances of getting money out of someone are much higher when they look appealing and behave in certain way. So, beware.

4. Manipulations based on authority

We usually trust in what influential people say. Subconsciously, we even often seek for someone’s word of wisdom and follow it blindly simply to avoid the heaviest responsibility of making our own decisions.

In this case, an expert often becomes someone who has the necessary attributes for this. If the status of the expert deceives our vision, he/she definitely deceives our mind too! Whom will you trust more while choosing a new face care cream: an expert in cosmetology in a white gown or a lousy housewife from the street? The answer is obvious.

5. Dependence on social approve

Finally, we hope for and like when our actions are approved, and our preferences are shared by others. That’s why we’d rather look at a crowded restaurant than empty. Familiar, eh?

It is enough to demonstrate that certain point of view is quite popular and is approved by society. That is why on the majority of website services you will sure find a testimonials section with the most grateful customer appeals.

P.S. Happy New Business Year!

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