I
bought this book on the basis of its promise to explain ‘the art of split-second mind control: flipnosis. It has an incubation
period of just seconds and can instantly disarm even the most discerning mind…
Flipnosis is black belt mind control… Kevin Dutton’s brilliantly original and
revelatory book explores what cutting edge science can teach us about the
techniques of persuasion.’
Just
the job, I thought. There are certainly many workplace situations in which it
would come in handy to know how to employ the mind-tricks of a Jedi master,
combined with the irresistible persuasiveness of a Don Draper. Our job
is all about persuasion: encouraging colleagues to achieve a goal; convincing
clients that a strategy or execution will be successful, or that a fee proposal
is good value; influencing an audience to change their opinion and/or
behaviour.
So,
for the benefit of W2O readers, can this book really show you how to bend
others to your will? Er, no. But there is some interesting stuff in there.
It’s
a populist science book (written by an academic but an accessible read for
non-boffins) containing a number of entertainingly explained examples of
stories and experiments relating to surprising feats of persuasion, from
talking a would-be jumper down off a ledge to persuading a burglar not only not
to burgle your house, but to give you his contact details so you can send the
police round to pick him up. These stories are interesting but difficult to
turn into any practical application.
It’s
not until page 215 that we get to the general theory of Flipnosis. This is it: there are five major axes of persuasion.
1.
Simplicity
2.
Perceived self-interest
3.
Incongruity
4.
Confidence
5.
Empathy
Handy
acronym: SPICE.
1.
Simplicity
The
brain prefers to process simple information. In flipnosis, only information
essential to the communication of the message is included in the message. Key
example given in the book is the way that when politicians are running for
election their policies become more basic.
The book quotes Professor of
Psychology Luke Conway: “Simplicity sells. No-one marches to rallying cries
that say, ‘I may be right, I may be wrong, let’s dialogue.”
(Personally,
I wouldn’t vote for anyone who used ‘dialogue’ as a verb, regardless of their
policies. Pedants unite!)
Dutton
also suggests that aphorisms and slogans are memorable and persuasive for this
reason. Research conducted in Texas showed that people found rhyming statements
more likely to be perceived as true and accurate than ones that didn’t. e.g. ‘Caution and measure will win you
treasure’ researched as more genuine than ‘Caution and measure will win you
riches.’ Hence, one assumes, ‘Nothing sucks like an Electrolux’ and ‘Don’t just
book it, Thomas Cook it.’
2.
Perceived self-interest
In
order to do what you want, people need to see what’s in it for them. So couch
your argument in those terms. Dutton quotes a number of experiments to show how
people tend to act in what they believe to be their own interest. He also cites
the way in which Terry Wogan rebutted criticism of his £800,000 salary –
‘That’s only two pence per listener’ as a way of reframing the number to
benefit his detractors.
3.
Incongruity
Incongruity,
the unexpected, works in persuasion because it distracts us from what we should
be focusing on. It is, apparently, the psychological equivalent of a magician’s
misdirection of the audience’s attention. A bizarre experiment was conducted
that suggested people were more likely to buy cupcakes from a market stall if
the vendor described them as ‘half-cakes’ and followed this up with the
tag-line, ‘They’re delicious!’ While the brain is confused by the incongruity,
the ‘confident, empathic nano-hypnotic suggestion’ can be introduced to win the
sale while cognitive resistance is disabled. ‘Half cakes? Wha-? Oh, they’re
delicious – I’ll take two.’
The
book also cites ‘Avis – we’re
number two so we try harder’ as an example of an ad campaign that employs a
counter-intuitive approach to ambush expectations and take the emotion hostage.
I’m wondering if we should go further and recommend a campaign along the lines
of, “The new Honda brillig and the slithy toves. It’s a great drive!” Anyone know whether the Stella
‘Reassuringly elephants’ execution was actually more effective than conventional
‘reassuringly expensive’ ones?
4.
Confidence
If
you don’t trust someone, if you don’t have confidence that things will turn out
as they say, then what’s the point in listening to them? Apparently this is why
TV experts often appear against a backdrop of books – to lend authority to
their opinions. And I guess it’s also why cosmetics ads often feature
scientific institutes, 'laboratoires', 'the science bit', people in white coats and testimonials from
self-evidently beautiful celebrities.
5.
Empathy
Another
bizarre exeriment here: people who were (falsely) told they shared a birthday
with mad monk Rasputin were likely to be more lenient in their judgement of his
misdeeds than respondents who weren’t.
Empathy
is the reason why, if we feel strong political allegiance to a certain party
for emotional reasons, it’s very hard to use rational arguments to get us to
change loyalties.
Apparently,
a highly effective tool in getting aging Afghan warlords with many young wives
to cooperate with the CIA is to make them a gift of a case of Viagra. I also
expect it’s why, when you’re trying on clothes in a shop, the assistant will
pay you compliments – you feel good, you’re more likely to buy.
So
that’s Flipnosis. ‘Persuasion as nature
intended it. Before language dumbed it down.’
I’m
not convinced these principles are going to turn me into the Obi Wan Kenobi of
agency management – "These are
exactly the concepts you are looking for” – but I think there's some
interesting stuff here to consider next time you’re trying to persuade a client
to consider your point of view, or wondering how to create an effective campaign.
And the next time a shop assistant says to you, as you try on a shirt, "I love your shoes, where did you get them?" you can think to yourself – I know your game, pal! Your Jedi empathy trick won't work on me! (Unless, of course, he's already disabled your defences by describing it as a 'half-shirt'.)
