How time of day affects decisions
The decisions you make at the end of your day are likely to differ from those you make earlier on.
Even if you are a highly trained doctor.
That’s what researchers discovered when they tracked 204 doctors over 17 months and 21,867 visits.
As the day wore on, the doctors prescribed more unnecessary antibiotics. 5% more, in fact.
Decision fatigue has a bearing on the types of decisions we make.
While researchers have different theories on why and to what extent, as a general rule...
Dealing with painful people
You'll likely encounter three types of painful people in business. Know-it-alls, People Pleasers and Obstinates.
In this 7 minute clip I share how to identify each, and what to do to influence them.
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How long do I put up with this?
I've been having serious computer issues recently – repeated crashes and lots of frustrating downtime.
The immediate cause is iMovie, the video editing software I use. I've been putting up with these problems because I know how to use the software and all my videos are stored there
However, this isn't just a technology issue; it's a behavioural one.
I'm sacrificing productivity and sanity for the comfort of familiarity.
By clinging to what I know, even though...
The eyes are half way down, so why don't we think that?
It always surprises me that our eyes are half way down our face. I tend to draw them a little higher, and it turns out I’m not alone.
It’s called “eye placement bias”, our tendency to place the eyes higher than the halfway point. While more pronounced in younger children, the effect seems to stay with us as adults.
This despite us seeing faces all around us, everyday.
There are various theories as to why, one being the value we place on eyes
We...
When to reveal the solution
“The form in which thoughts occur to a writer is rarely the same as the form in which they can be absorbed by the reader.” Steven Pinker.
It’s the one quote I keep at my desk, reminding me that a logical narrative does not always result in an engaging one.
Bottom line? We need resolution near the start, not at the end.
Here’s what I mean.
I’ve noticed most of us tend to communicate in the following order:
Problem – journey –...
The best time to reengage customers
Have you ever experienced that bittersweet feeling when you are watching a TV series or reading a book you love?
You don’t want it to end but you also can’t wait to see how it does.
Our customers experience this too.
It’s called the One-Away Mere Completion effect. In short, people feel most engaged in something just before they complete it.
This is exciting, because it tells us two things:
1 Pay attention to what completion means. For example, would buying this...
Three things you shouldn't do if you want to influence behaviour
Three things you shouldn’t do if you want to influence behaviour.
- Make things pretty
- Normalise inaction
- Don’t ask why
Which of the three surprises you most?
If you want to know exactly what to do in your business, Just Do This.
One empty desk
When real estate legend Barbara Corcoran advertised for new staff in the competitive New York market, she wrote three simple words.
“One empty desk”.
Not only did this differentiate hers from the pages of ads seeking “sales person”, it hit a major psychological button.
Scarcity.
In a world of content abundance and scant attention, how can you make what you do, who you are, scarce?
Learn more about how to influence action using behavioural techniques.
Don't challenge the status quo. Change it.
You know what I’m sick and tired of being told to do? Challenge the status quo!
It’s seen as a power move. Leaders do it. Heroes do it.
Enshrined in vision statements and implored from the keynote stage, challenging the status quo is what we need to do to succeed, right?
Easy to say, hard to do.
Pointing to what needs to change or setting a vision for what a changed state looks like is the easy part – it’s hypothetical.
Actually embedding change is a behavioural...
The unchangeable core of marketing
A software firm increased email open rates by 20% and sales leads by 31% and a financial services training company increased engagement by 10%.
How?
If you were one of 400 senior marketers at Intuit Mailchimp’s From Here:To There conference, you already know the answer.
In one case it had to do with adding CEO to the sender’s address and in another, a first name to the subject line.
If you are curious about what else I covered, marketing news site B&T have just...
