Make More Sales By Invoking the Principle of Reciprocity

A researcher conducted an experiment in 1971 to determine how he could influence people to buy from strangers. In his experiment, two people were invited to take part in an "art appreciation study". However, unbeknownst to the other, one of them was a stooge planted by the researcher.

During a short break, the stooge left the room and returned a short time later. In some cases, he returned with two cans of Coke, one of which he offered to the other person as a gift. In other cases, he returned empty-handed.

Later, in a seemingly unrelated way, the stooge said that he was selling raffle tickets, and offered them to the other person. The researchers discovered that the people who had been given a free Coke bought twice as many tickets as those who hadn't!

This is the rule of reciprocity: When you do somebody a favour, they feel an obligation to return the favour.

It doesn't even matter if you like the other person. In a variation of the experiment, the stooge did various things that made him likable or disagreeable to the subject. Even when the stooge was rated as not likable, the subject still felt the urge to repay the favour.

It goes even further. In another variation of the experiment, the stooge who gave the gift said "The Coke machine accidentally gave me two cans, so here's one for you." Even in this case - when the gift was seemingly the result of an accident - the subject still felt obliged to buy more raffle tickets.

How do you use this on your Web site?

You've probably figured out already while reading this that one very effective technique is to give away something free on your site. It could be a free e-book, a useful spreadsheet, a free entry in a competition, a gift voucher, a self-assessment quiz, a free sample, a training course, or any number of other similar things.

One particularly effective technique is to write a special report that establishes your credibility and promotes your business. This report is a simple document you create in Microsoft Word and convert to PDF. In it, you identify the top 5, 7 or 10 problems your clients and customers face, and then you briefly describe how to solve them. Don't fill it with promotional material for your business - focus on providing value, and let the reciprocity principle work its magic for you.

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