Steven Bartlett, CEO of influencer network Social Chain, which has a following of over 200 million people on its social media accounts, has provided his top tips on what you must know about humans in order to succeed as a marketeer in this fast paced and ever changing industry. At the heart of Social Chain's marketing activity is one simple desire -  to influence and persuade an audience to feel something, so that they do something. That may be to watch a video, to download an app, to buy a shoe, to donate to a charity or to follow a brand’s social media page.

1. Consensus / Social Proofing / Conformity

Exposing someone to the opinions or actions of the majority will drastically increase the chances of them following that majority! Instead of trying to tell potential customers why they should check out the new product we were marketing, we instead focused on communicating that hundreds of thousands of people just like them had decided to check out this new product this week. 

In more traditional forms of marketing, messages like: “9 out of 10 people recommend ….” are good examples of social proof being applied. Amazon’s use of customer reviews next to their products is another, as is the little drop-down box on ecommerce websites that lets buyers search products by “Most Popular”.

2. Example of Execution

When you feel that someone has done something nice for you, you are much more likely to do something nice for them. The first mover to offer something nice, even as a stranger, creates a sense of obligation that makes the receiver feel indebted to them.

An example Steve gives is... In a study, the giving of a mint with the bill increased a waiter's tip by 3%, and giving two mints resulted in a 14% increase in tips. But if the waiter leaves one mint, walks away, stops, turns around and says “but for you nice people, here’s another”, tips increase by 23%! This increase shows that people are influenced not just by what is given, but by how it is given.

3. Scarcity

Scarcity is defined as the perception of products seeming to become more attractive when their perceived availability is limited. For instance, human behaviour is such that we are likelier to purchase something if we’re informed that it’s the very last one or that a special deal will soon expire.

If you’re running an ecommerce website and an item listed sells out, for the love of god, don’t delist it. Put a big fat red ‘SOLD OUT’ label on it which will serve as a reminder to potential customers that items on this website are in limited supply, and if they don’t buy what they want now, it may soon be unavailable.

4. Authority

People will follow the lead of credible and knowledgeable experts - When customers are making a purchase decision, they often look for an endorsement from a person with authority on the subject to serve as a guide. The science says that if an authority figure has endorsed the product, people are more likely to buy.

5. Liking

If you like me, you’re more likely to say yes to me! Establish rapport at every opportunity you get.

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