More Lessons in Persuasion: Using "the Power of Because"

•  
  amay@...07/08/08 Report as spam
  1

  Old News

  Really this is very old news. In fact the study to which you refer was done in the late 1970's or early 80's. In a communications project I tried the same experiment and it proved fairly successful but again, the only detriment in the experiment was allowing someone to jump a queue. The theory changes when asking for money. We found the technique worked best in rebutting objections but not in a close. Keep the close short and simple because one already assumes the initial reasoning offered to induce a sale was offered in the initial pitch which will have been loaded with "because." But again, I think "because" is much more effective in rebuttals because they are short and focused.

•  
  kfp755007/09/08 Report as spam
  2

  Money changes everything

  I agree that this changes drastically when you're asking for money. Just think about the bum on the street begging for money. I'm sure many of you have experienced this and often times, the bum uses a because (sometimes even a good one). Yet, how likely are you to give him anything, even when faced with a "Please, can you spare some change so I can get some food because I'm a hungry, homeless, disabled veteran of Vietnam"? This ploy may work sometimes, but if the person feels that they really have something to lose, they will be much less inclined to do it. Cutting in front of someone in a copier line is a bit too benign to glean anything useful from it, I think. Didn't your mother ever ask you, "if everyone was jumping off a cliff, would you do it too?"

•  
  pam@...07/08/08 Report as spam
  3

  Because we really want your business...

  Near the end of a presentation, we tell our customers that we really want their business. We tell them that their business is important to us, and that getting their business is critical to our strategic plans. And it is. The "because" has to be relevant to the customer. A weak because is akin to the door to door vacuum salesman saying that he needs this sale to win a contest. That works for some, but not for most of us selling B2B.

•  
  mrosenthal07/08/08 Report as spam
  4

  RE: More Lessons in Persuasion: Using

  come up with some new material

•  
  chrisdesouza07/08/08 Report as spam
  5

  RE: More Lessons in Persuasion: Using

  Try this in New York!

•  
  gsbigger@...07/09/08 Report as spam
  6

  Root Cause trumps '...because'

  My 'because' is likely to work when it agrees with yours (serves the other person's interests as well). The copy machine situation likely differs from results that would occur at an emergency treatment center, or even ice cream store (dare to try it on an HOA or United Nations issue?). The challenge is to get 'factual' alignment between the parties - then the 'reason' (emotion) can encourage 'closure'. Otherwise, the results might be akin to 'pushing a snowball uphill in July'... (http://unettednations.wordpress.com/snowballuphilljuly/)

•  
  hfGJMJpfu707/20/08 Report as spam
  7

  RE: More Lessons in Persuasion: Using

  This article justs reminds me of another "How-to" take advantage of others. Is teaching others how to take advantage of others really the best use of our time???