Apply the six principles of ethical persuasion (reciprocity, commitment, social proof, authority, liking, scarcity) to product design, copy, and sales. Use when the user mentions "social proof", "persuasive copy", "why users don''t convert", or "ethical persuasion". For deal negotiation tactics, see negotiation. For viral word-of-mouth, see contagious. Trigger with 'influence', 'psychology'.
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name
influence-psychology
description
Apply the six principles of ethical persuasion (reciprocity, commitment, social proof, authority, liking, scarcity) to product design, copy, and sales. Use when the user mentions "social proof", "persuasive copy", "why users don''t convert", or "ethical persuasion". For deal negotiation tactics, see negotiation. For viral word-of-mouth, see contagious. Trigger with 'influence', 'psychology'.
Framework for applying the science of persuasion ethically and effectively. Based on six decades of research into why people say "yes" and what makes them comply with requests.
Core Principle
People don't make decisions rationally. They use mental shortcuts (heuristics) that can be triggered to influence behavior. These shortcuts evolved because they're usually reliable—but they can also be exploited.
The foundation: Understanding the psychological triggers that drive human compliance allows you to design products, messaging, and experiences that naturally align with how people actually make decisions.
Scoring
Goal: 10/10. When reviewing or creating persuasive elements (features, copy, flows, campaigns), rate them 0-10 based on adherence to the principles below. A 10/10 means ethical, effective application of influence psychology; lower scores indicate missed opportunities or ethical concerns. Always provide the current score and specific improvements needed to reach 10/10.
The Seven Principles of Influence
1. Reciprocity
Core concept: People feel obligated to give back to others who have given to them first.
Why it works: Humans are wired to avoid being indebted. The obligation to repay is so strong that it can overpower other factors like personal preference or fairness.
Key insights:
The gift must come first (before the request)
Personalization increases power
Unexpected gifts are more powerful than expected ones
Even small gifts create obligation
The return favor often exceeds the original gift
Product applications:
Context
Reciprocity Trigger
Example
Free trials
Give full access first, then ask to pay
Spotify Premium trial → subscription
Content marketing
Provide value upfront (guides, tools)
HubSpot free CRM → paid tools
Referral programs
Give reward to both referrer and referee
Dropbox: both get extra storage
Onboarding
Unlock a premium feature temporarily
Grammarly: free tone detection trial
SaaS
Provide unexpected value or support
Personalized setup call for new users
Copy patterns:
"Here's a gift for you..." (before asking)
"We've upgraded your account..."
"As a thank you for signing up..."
"We noticed you needed help with X, so we..."
Ethical boundary: Give genuine value. Don't create artificial debts or exploit obligation.
Core concept: People want to be consistent with their past statements, beliefs, and actions.
Why it works: Inconsistency is psychologically uncomfortable. Once we've made a choice or taken a stand, we encounter personal and interpersonal pressure to behave consistently with that commitment.
Key insights:
Small initial commitments lead to larger ones (foot-in-the-door)
Public commitments are stronger than private ones
Written commitments are stronger than verbal ones
Active commitments (user-generated) are stronger than passive ones
Self-perception: we infer our attitudes from our behavior
Product applications:
Context
Commitment Trigger
Example
Onboarding
Start with easy yes, build to larger asks
Duolingo: "Can you commit to 5 min/day?"
Progressive profiling
Small data requests that compound
LinkedIn: add photo → headline → experience
Goal setting
User publicly states a goal
Strava: "I want to run 50km this month"
Social proof generation
Ask for review after positive action
Airbnb: review request after good stay
Habit formation
Track streak publicly
Snapchat streaks, GitHub contributions
Copy patterns:
"What's your biggest challenge with X?" (commitment to a problem)
"How much would you like to save per month?" (numerical commitment)
"Would you like to join X people who've already...?"
"You said you wanted to achieve X. Let's start with..."
Onboarding sequence:
Get micro-commitment ("What brings you here?")
Small action (click, choice, input)
Public or written commitment (goal, preference)
Reinforce consistency ("Based on what you told us...")
Ethical boundary: Don't lock users into commitments they didn't freely make. Allow easy reversibility.
Robert B. Cialdini, PhD is Regents' Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Marketing at Arizona State University. His research on the psychology of influence has been published extensively and is widely cited. Influence has sold over 5 million copies worldwide and is considered the foundational text on persuasion science. Cialdini has consulted for Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, and nonprofits on ethical influence strategies.
Overview
Apply the six principles of ethical persuasion (reciprocity, commitment, social proof, authority, liking, scarcity) to product design, copy, and sales.
Prerequisites
Access to the authentication environment or API
Required CLI tools installed and authenticated
Familiarity with authentication concepts and terminology
Instructions
Assess the current state of the authentication configuration
Identify the specific requirements and constraints
Apply the recommended patterns from this skill
Validate the changes against expected behavior
Document the configuration for team reference
Output
Configuration files or code changes applied to the project
