Nudge

“These two words increased sales by 18%.” Robert Cialdini

82 snips
Feb 23, 2026
Robert Cialdini, social psychologist and author famous for Influence, explains social proof in everyday persuasion. He recounts a Beijing restaurant that boosted sales by changing two words. Short, practical examples cover using ‘sold out’ vs ‘unavailable’, leveraging similar others, and showing upward trends to sway choices.
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INSIGHT

Companies Signal Popularity To Leverage Social Proof

  • Organisations intentionally display social proof signals like '50 million sold' or 'trending near you' to leverage trust.
  • Examples include McDonald's historic signs and Netflix highlighting trending shows to influence choices.
INSIGHT

Similarity Makes Social Proof More Persuasive

  • Social proof works stronger when the reference group is similar to the observer.
  • Cialdini notes 'consumers like you' and 'trending near you' outperform generic mass claims because similarity makes cues diagnostic.
ANECDOTE

Localized Norm Wording Raised Tax Compliance

  • HMRC letters adding 'the majority of UK residents pay their taxes on time' raised compliance from 67% to 71%, and 'in your town' to 79%.
  • Localising the norm (region, town) increased effectiveness in the tax compliance experiment.
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