Cialdini's principles
Conversion and UX
Conversion and UX
Robert Cialdini described seven principles that influence choices: reciprocity, commitment, social proof, liking, authority, scarcity and unity.
In marketing you use them to make an existing, honest reason visible: real references (social proof), demonstrable expertise (authority) or genuinely limited stock (scarcity).
Combine sparingly. A page using all seven reads as a sales pitch and lowers trust.
Tip
Use scarcity only when it is genuinely true, such as real limited stock. That builds trust and keeps you within the rules towards consumers.
Related terms
- Social proofSocial proof is the effect where people base choices partly on what others do: reviews, customer logos, user counts and cases.
- Call to actionA call to action is the button or line that moves a visitor to the next step: request a quote, call, add to cart, book a call.
- CROCRO is conversion rate optimisation: getting more out of the traffic you already have through research and experiments.
- CopywritingCopywriting is writing with a purpose: text that explains, convinces and leads to an action, in the reader's language.