Thoughts

Change is Gonna Do Ya Good?

by Michael Whitlow, Senior Vice President

Let’s get one thing clear up front. I am an early adopter. While I’m more a trend follower than a trend setter, I’m usually a pretty fast follower.

My Plymouth Horizon, my TI calculator, my Motorola bag phone, my Sharp Wizard, my funny colored vacuum cleaners and many other gadgets attest to this tendency. As I enjoy the latter half of my life, I am often appalled at how much money I’ve spent for this stuff. In spite of my new, non-acquisitive perspective, I recently came very close to biting on that iPhone.

What is it about me and my change-seeking behavior? Is it normal?

Change is an interesting animal. Since we’re in the business of helping bring about change on behalf of our clients, I am especially interested in just what makes a grown-up person accept or seek changes in his or her life. Particularly those polyester suits in the 70s…

We have a lot more weapons to influence change these days. The Web and all its constituent parts have opened up many new avenues since I began this journey a few years back. But are there really any consistently effective ways to help change along?

Popular literature investigates change and just why it happens. In the book What's the Matter with Kansas? How Conservatives Won the Heart of America, we got a peek at how the Republicans gained acceptance in the heartland as something other than the aristocratic minority familiar to us Easterners.

So just what is it that makes us willing to change, whether our votes or our buying habits? Robert Cialdini’s Influence: The Psychology of Change, written over 20 years ago, still provides a great source for those of us who get paid for making change happen.

Cialdini’s studies teach us that one path to influence is reciprocity. If I send you a holiday card, you are likely to add me to your list. I also can become your buddy via LinkedIn, Facebook, MySpace or one of a hundred other social networking sites.

People do tend to return a favor. The catch is just how to make that happen when the favor requires some sacrifice. It gets harder to find methods of inducing reciprocity as we move away from the virtual world, but companies like TALK Marketing and others are continuing to explore the value of reciprocity in the change equation.

Cialdini also notes that once members of our target audiences commit to our cause, idea, goal or product trial they are more likely to follow through. Get people to place their bet on a horse, he says, and see just how confident they will become in that horse’s ability to win.

As to the other aspect of his second weapon of influence – consistency – I only have to look at myself. Even when I know that someone wants to sell me something, I still engage with them. I commit to speaking with the young man at my front door about how I enjoy working on things around the house, and minutes later I’ve ordered a four-year subscription to Popular Mechanics. It would be inconsistent for me to say “no” after bragging about my capabilities around the house.

The third arrow in our influence quiver is social proof – people do things they believe other people are doing. Look! Up in the sky! (See?) In the public relations business we have to be adept at using this principle. While I may scratch my head at the Hanna Montana phenomenon, I better not get in the way of the mob of 12-year-old girls trying to get their concert book signed by Ms. Cyrus.

What now may be called viral marketing is in part based on the role that liking plays in changing behavior. My mother, a very likeable person, sold World Book Encyclopedias (some of you will remember these from before Wikipedia). Tupperware, Amway, jewelry, lingerie and many other products are sold using the principle. Politicians raise money by having people contribute to their friends. Attractive people are used to influence the rest of us because they are instantly likeable.

People will tend to obey authority figures, Cialdini’s studies also noted. This fifth weapon of influence is behind the headlines and photographs from Abu Ghraib certainly, but there are millions of less smelly versions of the same authority concept at work. From Dr. Welby to Dr. Phil, we have all experienced this psychological use of authority at work. My first electric toothbrush? You guessed it – recommendation of my dentist.

Finally, scarcity generates change. My iPhone fantasy didn’t include camping out in front of the phone store to gain the privilege of paying a lot of money for this new device. But, I did search high and low for the Wii so that I could become a hero to my son (didn’t find it). I also attended the opening of the Mormon temple in Maryland in the late 60s because I knew I would never again be able to view the architectural mysteries of the Latter Day Saints place of worship after the dedication. Whether artificially promoted or real, scarcity is a powerful influencer in our consumer society.

One of the challenges in our business is the ethical use of these weapons of influence and change, and herein rests a central truth of our business that’s hard to ignore: In order for us and our clients to be profitable, we have to use these principles in ways that assure we will be able to use them again. People in whom we influence changes in attitudes or behaviors must benefit from these changes.

We can help effect change using these concepts, but we must be mindful of the ways we use these six tools so that we will continue to have permission from those we seek to influence.