3. Status signalling
● Frederick the Great (intentionally) kickstarted the overwhelming popularity of
potatoes by making them a royal vegetable only to be consumed by the royal
family.
● In trains, the standing spot with a view is more appealing than a seat without
(unless the former is next to the toilet).
● A handwritten wedding invitation is more enticing than an email invitation.
An appeal to our subconscious desire for status
4. Trust Signalling
● The vigorous training of black cab drivers reassures our safety.
● The extra fries you get at Five Guys.
● Offering musical tickets at discounted prices sold less than offering them at
full price.
● If IKEA was convenient, it would be too good to be true.
“If they can afford to have costly measures, their brand is trustworthy”
5. Placebo Signalling
● The more we pay for a painkiller, the stronger we feel its effects.
● The ‘door close’ button in elevators is often fake.
● Red Bull is expensive, tastes bad and is sold in small cans. Therefore it is
‘potent’.
● Banana liqueur is delicious in the Caribbean. Horrid in the UK.
● Wine tastes better when poured from a heavier bottle.
Psychological effects can create physical ones.
6. How to be an alchemist?
What you can do to start thinking psycho-logically
7. Opposite of good is also good
● Not many people own this product, so it must be good.
● Lots of people own this product, so it must be good.
● Very long letter selling a product is reassuring because it is long.
● Very short letter is reassuring because it is short.
● Dutch town traffic experts improved traffic safety by removing road markings
altogether.
Always consider the opposite of a conventional idea
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8. Same thing, different expression
● The airgate is closed so it will have to be bus, but the bus will drive you all
the way to passport control so you don’t have to walk far.
● The product is expensive, but you will soon find it’s worth it.
● This airline doesn’t offer free meals, drinks or checked luggage, but the
flights are very cheap.
Change the context of the problem and a turn a negative into a positive
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9. ● Why do people go to the doctor? To get reassurance.
● Why do people hate standing in the train? Because of the
status that comes with sitting.
● Why do people not like when the flight is delayed? Because
there is no certainty over for how long.
What is the real why?
There are no silly questions, post-rationalisation often obscures the psycho-logical motivation
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