The story of a few words that increased conversion rate by 15.5%

One of the Cialdini principles of influence says that when people see you as an authority, they rely on your knowledge and experience and look for your guidance.

Picture this: Shopify's founder praises a book, "Influence," on a podcast, and it soars from obscurity to the top three on Amazon overnight.

Why?

Authority speaks louder than numbers.

The obvious implication is that before we try to influence anybody, we should honestly inform them of our credentials, our experience, and our knowledge on the topic that constitutes our authority standing on that topic.

And that's true, but it turns out it's not so straightforward.

There's a twist.

Flaunting your expertise can backfire, making you seem boastful and less trustworthy.

If you present that positive information about yourself, you lose credibility in the eyes of the audience.

They'll like you less, and they'll see you as less trustworthy as a consequence.

What can you do if you truly are that expert?

Let's say you're in a situation in which you're dealing with a group that is unfamiliar to you.

You are an expert on the topic.

What do you do to arrange for them to recognize your expertise without having to lose influence points?

A great example came with Stephen J Martin's subtle yet powerful tweak in a London real estate agency's script.

He was called in to help a real estate agency in London with a lower-than-expected conversion problem.

What he found out is that when the receptionist took the call, she would say:

"Are you interested in residential or commercial real estate? What area of London are you most interested in?"

Then she would get that information and say,

"Let me connect you with Jonathan," or "Let me connect you with Janet."

She was connecting people with the right experts, except she didn't properly introduce them as experts.

So what Steve asked her to do?

He asked her to say:

"Let me connect you with Jonathan, who has the most experience with commercial real estate in Knightsbridge."

Or

"Let me connect you with Janet, who is our expert at residential real estate in Kensington."

The result was a 15.5% increase in conversions from callers to customers.

Not only this solution was absolutely free, it was also completely ethical.

The receptionist was sending people to the most qualified realtor in the company.

She just didn't say so.

It is often that the lack of knowledge leads to costly mistakes, and the new skills give a significant breakthrough.

Learn about other Cialdini Principles through a program designed by Cialdini Institute.

Click here to learn more.

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