persuasion When people are buying gifts for others, social proof is one of the most effective tactics that a sales clerk can use."21 Many salespeople find great success in telling clients that a particular product is their "bestselling" or "most popular" on hand because such a tactic increases the social validation of the product in the mind of the buyer. When customers feel that something is more popular, they spend more money to acquire it, even if there is no proof other than the salesperson's word. So it is with advertising: Simply asserting that a product is in superhigh demand or that it is the most popular or fastest selling, etc., seems to provide proof enough! When consumers think a product is popular, that's often all they need to go out and buy it. The creation and use of social validation is rampant: Clubs make their spots look like "the place to be" by allowing huge waiting lines to congregate outside their facilities, even when the place is practically empty inside. Salespeople often recount the many other people who have purchased the item in question. Sales and motivation consultant Cavett Robert said it best: "Since 95 percent of the people are imitators and only 5 percent initiators, people are persuaded more by the actions of others than by any proof we can offer."22 Making Social Validation Work The power of social validation can be used to your benefit in any persuasive situation. If your product or service is socially validated, people are most likely to use it or to switch to it. People are always looking around and comparing themselves to see if they line up with everyone else. If they feel a discrepancy between where they are and where everyone else is, they will most likely conform to the group standard. Consider the following ways you can enhance the effects of social validation to your benefit: 1. The larger the group, the better. The larger the group, the more people will conform. Social theory shows us that when a group grows, so does conformity to that group. 2. The greater the familiarity, the better. The more a person can identify with the group, the more that person will be influenced to change their behavior and opinions. Social validation is more powerful when we observe people we consider to be just like us.23 3. The clearer the principle of social validation, the better. Find the best use of social validation in your product or service. Is it the best selling, the most popular, used by the elite, the fastest growing? Is it part of a trend or is it the industry standard? Who uses it? Do you have testimonials from other clients or users? The Law of Scarcity Get Anyone to Take Immediate Action Without a sense of urgency, desire loses its value. -JIM ROHN ONLINE AUCTIONS DRIVE ME NUTS. In most auctions, I find an item I like and I put in what I think is a reasonable, winning bid. I promise myself that I won't bid higher. But I always get caught. When I get the outbid notice, I can't believe somebody outbid me. persuasion