Andy Crestodina
@crestodina
orbitmedia.com/blog

Persuasion Research…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research… Cognitive Bias Research…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research… Cognitive Bias Research…
Social Psychology…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research… Cognitive Bias Research…
Social Psychology… Brain Scan Studies…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research… Cognitive Bias Research…
Social Psychology… Brain Scan Studies…
MRI Research…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research… Cognitive Bias Research…
Social Psychology… Brain Scan Studies…
MRI Research… Non-Rational,
Unconscious Decision Making…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research… Cognitive Bias Research…
Social Psychology… Brain Scan Studies…
MRI Research… Non-Rational,
Unconscious Decision Making…
Sociology…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research… Cognitive Bias Research…
Social Psychology… Brain Scan Studies…
MRI Research… Non-Rational,
Unconscious Decision Making…
Sociology… Eye-Tracking Studies…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research… Cognitive Bias Research…
Social Psychology… Brain Scan Studies…
MRI Research… Non-Rational,
Unconscious Decision Making…
Sociology… Eye-Tracking Studies…
Behavioral Economics…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research… Cognitive Bias Research…
Social Psychology… Brain Scan Studies…
MRI Research… Non-Rational,
Unconscious Decision Making…
Sociology… Eye-Tracking Studies…
Behavioral Economics… Behavioral
Science…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research… Cognitive Bias Research…
Social Psychology… Brain Scan Studies…
MRI Research… Non-Rational,
Unconscious Decision Making…
Sociology… Eye-Tracking Studies…
Behavioral Economics… Behavioral
Science… Brain Science…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research… Cognitive Bias Research…
Social Psychology… Brain Scan Studies…
MRI Research… Non-Rational,
Unconscious Decision Making…
Sociology… Eye-Tracking Studies…
Behavioral Economics… Behavioral
Science… Brain Science… Social
Neuroscience…

Persuasion Research… Social influence
Research… Cognitive Bias Research…
Social Psychology… Brain Scan Studies…
MRI Research… Non-Rational,
Unconscious Decision Making…
Sociology… Eye-Tracking Studies…
Behavioral Economics… Behavioral
Science… Brain Science… Social
Neuroscience… Neuromarketing!

Which sign will keep
him on the path?

Jedi Marketing Tricks
“These are not the droids
your looking for…”
Obi-Wan Kenobi

"The vast majority of past visitors have stayed on the
established paths and trails, helping to preserve the
natural state of the Sequoias and vegetation in this park."
"Many past visitors have gone off the established paths
and trails, changing the natural state of the Sequoias and
vegetation in this park."
"Please stay on the established paths and trails, in order to
protect the Sequoias and natural vegetation in this park.”
"Please don't go off the established paths and trails, in
order to protect the Sequoias and natural vegetation in
this park.”

"The vast majority of past visitors have stayed on the
established Others’ paths and behavior, trails, helping Positive
to preserve the
natural state of the Sequoias and vegetation in this park."
"Many past visitors have gone off the established paths
and trails, Others’ changing the behavior, natural state Negative
of the Sequoias and
vegetation in this park."
"Please stay on the established paths and trails, in order to
protect the Sequoias and natural vegetation in this park.”
Desired behavior, Positive
"Please don't go off the established paths and trails, in
order to protect the Sequoias and natural vegetation in
this park.”
Desired behavior, Negative

Which sign worked?
Source: Pat Winter, PhD,

SOCIAL PROOF

“When people are free to do
as they please, they usually
imitate each other.”
Eric Hoffer
Social Philosopher

Endorsement from Influencer

Trust from Awards and Memberships

source: Baymard Site Seal Trust Report

Testimonials = supportive evidence

Never make a testimonials page

Call to Action Conform

Signup Box Best Practices
1.Prominence
2.Promise
3.Proof!

Before…
After…

1900% increase. Not bad!

Everybody’s doing it!

As seen in…

As seen in…

Social Media Widgets

Social Proof Can Backfire!

10 Ways to Offer Proof
1. Testimonials
2. Endorsements
3. Social Media Shares
4. Social Media Widgets
5. Certifications
6. Number of happy customers
7. “Our most popular” Best-seller
8. Studies and Statistics
9. Press Mentions
10. Reviews

“When you say it, it’s marketing…
When they say it, it’s social proof.”

PRIMING

How to double sales…

source: Get closer to your customers by understanding how they make their choices

Priming & Anchoring

More is Less
Don’t give too many options on landing pages!
All varieties…
Top seller only…
+ 233% Conversion Rate
+ 40% Average Order Value
+ 366% Average Revenue / Click
source: Adlucent

Too Many Options
source: 5 Easy Tips to Improve Every Blog Design

LOSS AVERSION
& SCARCITY

pain of loss > pleasure of gain

Language of Scarcity and Loss
Operators are standing by.
Please call now.
Save your data
Tickets available now.
Buy now and save $10.
If operators are busy,
please call again.
Don’t Lose your data.
It sold out last time.
Don’t throw away $10.

6 Ways to Leverage Loss/Safety
1. Rebates
2. Trial Periods
3. Free Samples
4. Early bird registration
5. Countdown Clocks
6. Limited Supply
Remind readers what they’ll
miss, risk or lose by not choosing you.

#FOMO

Contrast
source: Ted.com “Nancy Duarte: The secret structure of great talks”

WRITING TIPS

List Order: Serial Position Effect
Readers have higher attention and retention
for items at the beginning and end of lists

Word Choice: Short, Simple
Success rates after rewriting a health care site
for an 8th grade level readability…
source: NN Group, Lower-Literacy Users: Writing for a Broad Consumer Audience

Headlines: Emotions Get Shared
Content that evokes specific emotions
is more likely to be shared…
source: What makes online content go viral?

Format for Readers Scanners
source: 5 Easy Tips to Improve Every Blog Design

VISUAL TIPS

Use of Images
Are articles by
neuroscientists
more credible
when they include
images of fMRI
brain scans?
What if the image
is irrelevant?

Yes. Pictures = Persuasion
Source: Neuromarketing, Brain Image Bias

Colors, Trucks and Hegwig Von Restorff
Source: Techwys, Heatmaps for Improved Landing Page Conversion

Action Colors & Conversions

Eye Tracking Studies show…

…you look where they look!

Are you an optimist? Or
pessimist?

Baskerville…
“If a one kilometer asteroid had approached the
Earth on a collision course at any time in human
history before the early twenty-first century, it would
have killed at least a substantial proportion of all
humans.”
Comic Sans…
“If a one kilometer asteroid had approached the
Earth on a collision course at any time in human
history before the early twenty-first century, it
would have killed at least a substantial
proportion of all humans.”

Baskerville, the most credible font
Source: New York Times, Hear, All Ye People; Hearken, O Earth.

More Brains…
• List of Cognitive Biases (Wikipedia)
• Web Design Tips Based on Brain Science
• 15 behavioral marketing posts you shouldn’t miss
• Stanford Web Credibility Lab
• List of 81 Neuromarketing Books
Anything by…
• Robert Cialdini
• Gregory Ciotti
• Derek Halpern

Andy Crestodina
@crestodina
orbitmedia.com/blog