How Liking Effect works for your sales according to Cialdini?
Everyone knows about the importance of this effect, which will make your sales a success or a failure – “effect of personal sympathy” (Liking Effect). However, there is a new, unexpected turn in the understanding of this concept, making it the sales rule number 1 according to Robert Cialdini’s system.
First rule of sales
Sympathy for a friend is one of Cialdini’s most famous principles of influence and it means the following: if you want to influence someone, try to please him. The quickest way to create sympathy is to find what you have in common.
In his new book, “Pre-Persuasion: The Revolutionary Method of Influence and Persuade”, the authoritative psychologist opens a new understanding of sympathy. If you want to influence people (customers), you need to create the belief that they like you. Then people will find that you will never let them down and will always take action in your common interests.
Customers who feel loved and appreciated are the basis for a strong and lasting relationship with you as a professional or a company.
After all, people sincerely believe that you care about them and wish them only good.
The most important is this feeling should be sincere: a sales person will never achieve long-term success by manipulating in a false or unethical manner.
Flattery leads to sympathy
One of the tactics to stimulate sympathy is flattery. Strangely enough, but it is effective in situations where the flattery’s motives are especially suspicious. Researchers at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology published the following interesting information in the Journal of Marketing Research:
“The results show that even outright flattery has a persuasive influence on the automatic reactions of customers.”
But in spite of the fact that faked flattery produces its effect, it is not worth telling lies. Just find something in the audience that can be turned into a sincere compliment.
The role of the right moment
Cialdini emphasizes the importance of the right moment. This is the reason for the title of his book “Pre-Suasion” – referring to the actions that take place before trying to persuade. Immediately after you have flattered the client, you need to apply your Sales Pitch to sell the product.
Another described principle “priming” is also associated with a wise timing. The meaning of it is in the introduction of a variety of incentives that change the behavior of people immediately. As a rule, people are completely unaware that their actions were influenced.
Look we have so much in common …
Stressing similarities is another powerful tactic of building sympathy. If someone tells you that you went to the same school, support one football team or have a common hobby, then you are more likely to succumb to his conviction.
Some salespeople try to find (come up) common attributes for each of their customers. For example, if the buyer grew up in Porto, then such a manager would come up with a beloved grandfather, who was born and grew up in the north of Portugal, not far from Porto. Of course, grandfather does not exist. This approach is very risky. It is much easier to cause sympathy with the help of honesty. A small conversation or a cursory examination of the potential client’s office usually helps to find real things that unite you or interests.
Dr. Cialdini summarizes that if someone looks like us, then we believe that he is the same as us and that he will love us for the same reasons.
To sell a product or service, do not try to be liked. Instead, show your customers that you like them.
Based on: neurosciencemarketing.com
