This psychologically-proven approach offers a more effective way to move individuals at scale.
In sociology, there is a concept called “herd mentality” which says that humans are like pack animals. When we examine a lot of people doing something, we assume it’s the right thing to do. “Whether the question is how fast to drive on a certain stretch of highway or how to eat chicken at a dinner party, the actions of those around us will be important in defining the answer” Robert B Cialdini.
Tell me something, what one thing you don’t like about the tv show Friends? (Assuming you are not living under a rock and have seen the show if you haven’t omg go see it).
Canned laughter. It's everywhere in the show and we all find it phony and fake. Yet, the directors employ it after every funny/not-so-funny line. Why is that?
Because experiments show that, canned laughter causes the audience to laugh longer and makes the material funnier. Moreover, it's more effective for poor jokes. Hang on, now I know how Ross got away with his “funny” jokes.
Furthermore, we are regularly influenced by terms like a best-seller, 10 Million views, most reviewed, and trending number 1 on youtube. Aren’t we?
Social Proof in Marketing?
Buying is a decision-making process. You decide what’s gonna work for you the best. Since your decision is affected significantly by people around you, social proof provided at this stage will ease the decision-making stage of your prospect.
Once the decision is made, the right people would give you their hard-earned bucks even if they must stand in a long queue.
In this present digital age, a shit ton of buying is done online. So much so that you can even buy the new model tesla in a few clicks. Adapting, brands all over the world create social proof around their brand using, you guessed it, customer reviews.
According to Nielsen’s global study in 2012, 92% of all customers trust recommendations from people they know. Conversely, 70% of the people will count on suggestions from people they don’t even know before making a purchasing decision.
“When you say it, it's marketing. When your customers say it, its social proof” Andy Crestodina
There is no surprise that big brands like Airbnb etc already utilize the power of social proof. Let’s see some successful examples, shall we?
Airbnb: 2.9 million hosts like you worldwide
Dropbox: More than 450,000 teams use Dropbox Business
Shopify: Over 1,000,000 businesses in 175 countries have made more than $155 billion USD in sales on Shopify
Uber: Setting 700+ cities in motion
These businesses have huge tractions. If you own/work for a medium-small sized business, here are 3 proven examples you can use to utilize the power of social proof or impress your boss with.
1. Video testimonials. Video>Text
What’s the first thing you see before buying anything online? Customer reviews. Most average businesses rely on text reviews, which works yes. But you’re neither an average person nor do you want an average business, do ya?
Take it to the next level to “wow” your rich-potential customers, create massive trust and social proof along the way with Video Testimonials
Also, 72% of People prefer to watch a video over reading a text. So use this to your benefit and kick some ass.
Check out these 21 Powerful Video Testimonial Examples To Inspire You
2. Case studies: Show them you mean business.
Case studies are a way to make your potential clients say, “Ok, so they have done it in the past, therefore, they can do the job for us too”. Adding to that, case studies will bring in a more quality high paying audience.
Pick a business/client you worked with recently and answer two questions in your case study.
a. What was the problem this business/customer was facing?
b. How your business was successfully able to solve that problem and delight them.
Using Case Studies Can Increase Sales By 185% (Here’s How To Create Your Own)
The cherry on top: Add a video/written testimonial at the end of your case study to back it up.
3. User-generated content: the social media gold
Imagine you go to this new restaurant, and order your meal. It looks great, you snap it and post it on social media.
When you get home, you find out that your snap was reposted on the restaurant's business page.
How special would you feel? In return, you’d visit again, recommend it to all your friends and family, and spread the word. That’s what happens when you make the customer the hero of your story.
If you need inspiration, check out the Instagram presence of Starbucks and Me undies. They regularly post user-generated content to make their customers feel special and provide social proof to their potential audience.
These 3 simple yet effective things when done right, will communicate directly with the emotional-decision making brains of your potential customers. Eventually moving them to take action.
Wait, there is a catch. This psychological marketing strategy would cost you absolutely nothing. Check out these golden-nugget resources that I have linked to and you will be well on your way. Still, if you ever need my help to make your pockets greener, shoot me an email
Talk soon?
Peacee.
P.S Here is something I find really interesting. Humans have a strong emotional desire to stand out from the crowd yet we are surprisingly influenced by “what other people are doing”. Such a paradox innit? I guess we all want the same thing in a different color? “Canned laughter”
