It can be easy to think of effective communication and marketing as an “art.” However, the reality is that the most substantial strategic communications plans are based on science. Leveraging the science behind effective messaging, audience engagement, and consumer behavior is key to developing effective communications campaigns.
Dr. Robert Cialdini’s Seven Principles of Persuasion
Dr. Robert Cialdini, Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Marketing at Arizona State University, presents seven principles of persuasion based on his extensive psychological research. These principles are widely recognized as the foundation of successful persuasive communication. As outlined in Dr. Cialdini’s professional resource Influence at Work, they are:
Reciprocity: People feel obliged to “payback” a favor, item, service, or behavior they receive first.
Scarcity: If people believe there is less of something, they will want it more.
Authority: People are more inclined to trust credible experts.
Consistency: People like to be consistent with their previous behaviors.
Liking: People tend to be more agreeable toward people they like—that is, people who give them compliments, cooperate with them, and are similar to them.
Social Proof: People will reference the behaviors of others, mainly when they are unsure what to do or think.
Unity: People are more easily influenced by people with whom they share an identity.
Persuasion in Strategic Communication
When strategically and ethically implemented, these principles can influence audiences, leading to favorable outcomes. But how can the seven persuasion principles be applied to strategic communications and marketing campaigns?
The principles can be woven into each step of the communications lifecycle, from planning to implementation. When determining target audiences, leverage the consistency principle and look for people who have aligned with your organization in the past. Focus on creating a strong, authentic brand that consumers deeply identify with to use the unity principle. Maximize the authority principle by quoting experts in your organization in press releases and highlighting their credentials online. Share testimonials and user-generated content (UGC) to harness the social proof principle.
Understanding Consumer Behavior
Using science to create optimized messaging is only one piece of the puzzle. It is also essential to understand consumer behavior. According to Forbes Communications Council, understanding a user’s “why”—their deeper motivations for certain behaviors and actions—is critical to successfully deploying marketing and communications strategies that resonate with them.
Technology, including AI, plays a significant role in helping marketers understand consumers’ motivations. Data points collected from demographic information and online interactions bring communicators one step closer to understanding the “why.” Still, it is up to them to take a scientific approach to test their hypotheses. Whether or not individuals react to targeted marketing strategies as expected is a good indicator of whether marketers understand consumers’ motivations.
A Closer Look: Neuromarketing
We can dig even deeper into understanding consumer behavior through neuromarketing. According to the Harvard Division of Continuing Education, neuromarketing is “a field of study that incorporates biology and brain activity to predict and even influence consumer behavior.” Neuromarketing involves presenting subjects with stimuli—such as a social media marketing post—and measuring their brain activity. Marketers also track physiological responses to stimuli, including facial expressions, eye movements, and heart rate.
Understanding what resonates with consumers on a biological level gives marketers great insights into crafting their strategic materials to elicit a strong emotional response, thus prompting the desired reaction to their call to action (CTA). Neuromarketing eliminates the possibility of dishonesty from market research, ensuring that marketers can make the best choice for effective communication.
Ethical Communication is Good Communication
Understanding how to optimize messaging and engage with consumers is useful, but deploying these strategies ethically and honestly is essential. For example, do not fabricate expert credentials to optimize the authority principle, and always adhere to data privacy laws when investigating consumer behavior. Unethical marketing and communications practices can harm consumers and destroy brand trust, image, and consumer relationships.
Conclusion
Science, from psychology to data science to biology, is helpful in crafting effective communications campaigns. In a world where consumers’ attention is pulled in a million different directions daily, implementing these strategies helps communicators stand out in a crowd and effectively reach their target audiences.
Blackberg strives to shape the hearts and minds of our clients by optimizing messaging, conducting thorough market research, and executing campaigns at the highest caliber of ethics.
To learn more about our communications offerings, visit our communications services page.
