The Language of Persuasion

INTRODUCTION

Persuasion is a kind of human communication designed to influence others by modifying

their attitudes, values, or beliefs. However, persuasion is different from influence. While
influence is a desired change in mindset, persuasion involves acting on that changed mindset.
Persuasion is, thus, an intended action or behaviour.

The following preconditions must exist for persuasion to occur.

 There must be a goal. The sender must have a purpose when he or she attempts to
persuade others.

 There must be a desired outcome. The sender must motivate the recipient to commit
to a desired course of action.

 The outcome must be voluntary. There must be an element of free will on the part of
the recipient. Coercion is not persuasion.

 The sender must have a planned strategy to execute the persuasion process. A series
of communication activities should be followed to bring about the persuasion process.

ATTITUDES, BELIEFS, VALUES, AND BEHAVIOUR

It is generally presumed that attitude influence behaviour, and that most organizational
strategies are aimed at uncovering the prevailing attitudes of customers, employees,
stakeholders, and other recipients. Attitudes are thus relatively stable predispositions to
respond positively or negatively towards external stimuli. Attitudes are also changeable. They
are learned. People do change their perception about people, events, places and situations. On
the other hand, beliefs refer to what people perceive to be true or false. The statement "I
believe in miracles indicates belief in the existence of miracles, Values refer to the right or
wrong and good or bad aspects of something The statement "I value marriage indicates that
the speaker thinks marriage is a good thing

As mentioned previously, the purpose of persuasion is to attempt to change the values,

beliefs, and attitudes of the recipient to induce a desired action. This gain in behaviour or
intentional action is the result of persuasion. This can be verbal when the receiver says what
the speaker wants him or her to say. It can also be physical-when the receiver does what the
speaker wants him or her to do.
THE PROCESS OF PERSUASION
The rational model of behaviour suggests that people are essentially logical and consistent in
their approach and that they think and behave in predictable ways. It is represented in Exhibit
5.1

V B A ACTION
+ =

People support those ideas that are concurrent with their beliefs (B) and values (V). On the
basis of their beliefs and values, they develop an attitude (A) or a predisposition toward
something. For example, people who hold different beliefs or values on euthanasia will
typically have different attitudes towards it. A person who does not think that mercy killing
frees an individual of suffering will not favour euthanasia. In other words, a person who
values life under all circumstances will not be persuaded to support euthanasia

There are series of steps involved in a persuasion attempt

Step 1: Analyse the Audience

The first step is to understand the needs, motivations, values, beliefs, and attitudes people
have towards the proposed idea. This can be done through surveys, by talking and listening to
the audience, and through the experiences of others. For instance, proceeding with the
example of euthanasia, suppose the persuader concludes that the audience is negatively
disposed towards euthanasia he or she has the following options

 Attempt to change the belief that mercy killing is wrong under all circumstances by
showing that there are certain circumstances where it is recommended.

 Attempt to alter the value of life, that the audience attaches to their belief

The audience has grown up with certain beliefs and values and these are extremely difficult
to change over a period of time. However experts recommend that this can be done in two
ways

 Providing evidence to support the claim

 Introducing a new value, such as the argument that euthanasia may be beneficial as it
values the life of the innocents who take care of the invalid. (The value introduced her
is "life of the healthy caregiver")

Step 2: Segment the Audience

The second step is to classify the audience into categories and then adopt a methodological
approach to each segment of the audience This is based on a rough estimate of how ego-
involved the audience is with respect to a particular belief. A person can be highly ego-
involved (non negotiable stance ) or moderately ego-involved (not so strongly opposed). The
persuasive purpose will then be determined on the basis of this
Step 3: Determine Specific Persuasive Techniques for Specific Audiences

Different techniques work for different kinds of audiences. The following methods might
prove to be useful in different situations
For a strongly opposed audience: The speaker can create a little uncertainty in the minds of
the audience. This can be done through a provocative statement or a statistic that supports the
speakers claim. The aim is to make the audience a little less sure of their stance

For a moderately opposed audience: The speaker may try to reduce resistance to his or her
idea and shift the audience towards neutrality. This can be done by urging the audience to
look at others’ point of view.

For a neutral audience: The speaker can make an attempt to change the attitudes of a
neutral audience as they are not particularly committed to any course of action

For a moderately motivated audience: The speaker can bring a moderately motivated
audience to his or her side by reinforcing existing attitudes and making the audience commit
to a course of action

For a highly motivated audience: The logical approach is to ask the audience to act on the
persuader’s claim. The persuader should not spend much time communicating with them

Information bytes 
The term "propaganda" first appeared in 1622 when Pope Gregory XV established the Sacred
Congregation for Propagating the Faith. Propaganda generally means convincing a large
number of people about the veracity of a given set of ideas. It is different from persuasion.
While persuasion is confined to individuals and small groups, propaganda is addressed to a
large mass of people. Also, persuasion is more logical in its impact while propaganda often
stirs emotional responses in an audience. Persuasion is also more rational and professional,
while propaganda has political or social overtones. Propagandists often selectively provide
information to sway the audience to act in a desired way; persuaders have to provide all
information available to commit the audience to a desired course of action.

Step 4: Commit the Audience to Action

The audience is committed to an action through a verbal or non-verbal signal that the target
gives to the persuader. A commitment is the right opportunity to close as a committed
audience rarely backtracks on their word. In case a commitment is not forthcoming, the
persuader can introduce a series of questions aimed at getting "yes response. Allowing minor
concession to the target as a last resort for final commitment of the deal may also get the
target to commit to the deal, Idea, or proposal

Step 5: Follow Up
Follow up has to be immediate so that the audience acts on the persuasive message. The
persuader must ensure that dissonance does not set in by assuring and reassuring the audience
of the merits of their decision
BARRIERS TO PERSUASION

Several barriers exist that can hinder a persuasion encounter. These are described in this
section

Low credibility: The persuasion process is enabled by the high credibility of the persuader.
while low credibility can hinder persuasion. Credibility has to be reinforced or proved.
Sources of credibility include the reputation of the speaker's place of work, personal
qualifications, and the listener's experience of the persuaders qualities (for example,
punctuality), knowledge, and personal reputation

Poor relationships: A healthy relationship between the persuader and the audience facilitates
persuasion, while a poor relationship may hinder the process. In business, persuasion is an
ongoing process. Even after a persuasion encounter has taken place, the relationship with the
audience has to be maintained for future encounters to be profitable. If the relationship is not
nurtured, it may wither, and the audience may turn to competitors. Thus, relationship
management is important for persuasion to be effective,

A mismatch in beliefs and values: Where beliefs and values are contradictory, persuasion may
not take place. A rigid mindset is not amenable to change. An audience with fired ideas may
prefer not to be dictated to unless they desire a particular thing.

PERSUASION STRATEGIES AT WORK

Broadly speaking, there are two forms of persuasive appeals. One is an appeal to reason. In
these cases, the persuader appeals to the left brain, or the logical aspect of a person. The
persuader prepares arguments to support inductive or deductive logic. The approach is
essentially analytical and combines examples, graphs, visuals, statistics, and other forms of
evidence to influence the audience.

The other method of persuasion is to appeal to emotion. In these cases the persuader appeals
to the right brain, or the conceptual aspect of a person, through the use of emotions such as
love, hate, fear, anger, joy, and happiness, Advertisements are good examples of appeals.
There, the audience has to be influenced in a short span of time (30 seconds) the an
impersonal medium

An unethical form of persuasion is "coercive persuasion." Coercive persuasion is not

persuasion at all as it does not involve free will on the part of the recipient. It includes s
twisting tactics, torture forceful compliance, and brainwashing.
Consider the following example. Hari is a manager working as the head of HR at a major
corporation. He would like to introduce the concept of flexi time for women in his rather
conservative organization. He wants to persuade the management on this issue. However, if
he is to do that the first thing he needs to do is find out what the management's attitude is
towards this issue. He will have to figure out how to segment the management and how
egotistic the involved individuals are. He will have to pinpoint the messages they will
respond to. Theories often talk about determining the latitude of acceptance and the latitude
of rejection of a persuasion event. True communication can only occur if the message Hari
sends is in the individual latitude of rejection or latitude of non-commitment. Based on his
analysis, he can influence the management using logical appeal.

Shabnam is a professional in the wealth management department of a successful private bank.

Accordingly, she has to influence rich investors to invest in a financial plan charted by the
organization. However, before creating a persuasive message, she must understand the
members of the audience. She can adopt two routes of persuasion: "centrally routed mo
sages" or "peripherally routed messages." Each route targets a widely different audience.

Developed by Petty and Cacioppo, the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) depicts
persuasion as a process in which the success of influence depends largely on the manner in
which the recipients make sense of the message. The centrally routed message technique is
the more elaborate, as well as the more complex method of the two and includes arguments
debates, a mass of information, and much evidence. It is designed to bring about a long-term
change in the perspective of the recipient and hence, its impact is permanent in nature.

Proponents of the ELM theory assert that the strategy is a success only when the recipient is
motivated enough to listen to the arguments of the speaker, has the cognitive capability
process the message in a desired manner, or is impressed with the strength of the argument
While preparing strong arguments to influence the target, Shabnam should ensure that
persuasion is enough to convince the receiver to commit. In case of weak and neutral
arguments, particularly when the recipient's motivation level is quite low Shabnam may
resort shortcuts such as giving peripheral cues in order to get the client to commit.

When audience involvement is low, the persuader can use the peripheral route to pursuasion.
The peripheral route resorts to more superficial means to persuade the target audience .The
sender relies on emotional cues to send messages that strike a chord with the audience
Tactical in nature, this is a short-term method to achieve change. Returning to the first
example of Hari, if he finds that his company's management is averse or plain disinterested in
his flexi time proposition, he can turn to the peripheral route for persuasion.
For instance, he can show that other companies are doing it, or promise reciprocal exchange,
agreeing to support other initiatives of the management if this decision goes in his favour. He
can also quote a management expert or an authority figure, or point to the scarcity of
important resources if the proposal is rejected and women are forced to leave their jobs. He
can also enlist the support of women in the workforce for this initiative.

Robert Cialdini, a well-known social psychologist, identified several cues that signal that a
peripheral route has been taken by the sender. These are.

Authority: Authority is when force or threat is used to influence the other person

Commitment: Commitment is when one agrees to do something and then stands by it

even if the original offer is slightly modified

Reciprocity: Reciprocity is persuading someone by promising to do something in return in

the near future. Mutual benefits are emphasized to persuade the target.

Liking : People are easily persuaded by people they like. A common example is that of brand
endorsements. A brand endorsed by a popular film personality or a sports icon car is a
decisive appeal for its target market. Viral marketing is another example of persuasion by
liking . People are influenced more when a well-known authority endorses a plan of action.
Many organizations (eg. Unilever in India) adopted the bottom of the pyramid approach
(valuing the low-income and middle-income price sensitive markets) because the late CK
Prahlad, a noted philosopher, espoused its virtues in a market like India
People are known to perform even objectionable acts if an authority figure tells them to do
so. Hitler's tirade against Jewish people, and the resulting genocide, is one such example

Scarcity: This is a veiled persuasive attempt that warns of a possible decline in demand if the
offer is not taken up. It may cause the person who is being persuaded to accept the proposal
Sales promotions often use this technique to bolster demand.

Social proof: People do things that other people are doing. This is the essence of persuasion
by social proof. Social proof is an endorsement by peers or similar groups and organizations.
Letters of appreciation also serve as social proof

The effectiveness of a persuasive message is judged by behaviour Even if the audience or

target is positively influenced, persuasion is not deemed to occur if the audience fails to act in
the direction given by the sender

For example in the 2008 US presidential elections, "Joe the Plumber" was shown as
representing presidential hopeful John McCain's agenda. The average person is strongly
susceptible, susceptible to emotional appeals such as these. However, there can be mixed
reactions this form of persuasion.
In the first case, there could be positive evaluation from the target audience The masses
would identity with the common man’s values/beliefs and vote for McCain in the election
(behaviour/action). The second scenario could be that the masses identity with the common
man( positively evaluate the message), but do not vote for McCain in the election. Thus, if
the message creates a positive affective state, it may yield weak positive changes in attitude
which in turn,result in inaction.

In the second case scenario, the target audience could perceive the message neutrally. It may
be either indifferent to the message or the messenger or be unaware of the cues given to them.
If the target audience does not care about the portrayal of the common man or is disinterested
in the political affairs of the nation, it can either so along with what everyone else is
doing(there is no real attitude change) or prefer not to vote altogether.

In the third case scenario the target audience could strongly disapprove of the message. This
can be due to the following reasons a) it thinks that it is a publicity gimmick to get votes, b) it
disagrees with the choice of the symbol (Joe the Plumber was not registered with the Ohio
Construction Company), and c) the visuals irritate the audience. In this scenario, the audience
rejects the candidate and votes against McCain (behaviour), another alternative could be that
though the message has created a negative affective state, it yields weak change in attitude
and the target audience does not vote. Consider the following situation

David is the CEO of a world-class concern. There are many changes to be brought about in
the company to cope with the changed work scenario. The first of these changes is a change
in mindset in recent times, hierarchical models have been replaced by matrix like work
structures where individual of different ages, gender, departments, cultures, and
specializations have to work as a team. In order to bring about such changes, mature handling
of people, processes, and other issues is needed. However, David is not sure his team is
capable of such behaviour. At the first meeting with his staff. David starts by narrating a short
story called

"The Eagles Quest for Survival- The story talks about an aged eagle that can either choose to
die or to revive itself through a painful process lasting for 60 days. The eagle chooses the
latter and emerges victorious after the struggle. David concludes that change is inevitable
every where. It might be painful, but it is immensely rewarding as well.

Persuasion through storytelling, as shown in this example, influences people the narration.
The storytelling approach assumes that people in general are influenced by emotional rather
than rational arguments and are fundamentally influenced by the good lessons that a story
conveys. This mindset can be found behind visuals that try to tell a story through Pictorial
and other graphical representations. Successful advertisements focus on a "Story"
(associating the product with human attributes), rather than the product, to persuade the
buyer

Some preconditions must exist to make this approach successful:

 First and foremost, the target audience must be motivated to listen: It has been found
that listening to this form of narrative is strongly correlated to age, seniority, and the
position held by the speaker

 The sender must attune the story to the sensibilities of the audience, paying attention
to their culture, context, experiences, and values.

 The narrative must be consistent

 The target audience must be able to reconstruct "reality" from the narrative and
rationally apply it in the real world

Some of the other popular persuasion techniques that border on the slightly unethical are:

The bait and switch: The bait and switch involves putting forward an inviting offer that
never materializes. The target is simply manipulated into believing the persuaders message

The door in-the-face approach: The door-in-the-face approach wants the target to
reject the claims of the persuader the first time. After the first rejection, the persuader makes
the real offer which usually gets accepted as it sounds reasonable in comparison
The foot-in-the-door approach: The persuader begins with a small offer (to get a foot
in the door), which is usually successful, and then increases the offering

These techniques are used in pressure selling. Since the market is flooded with competing
products, and current as well as prospective clients are largely well-informed, salesmen
sometimes use these high-pressure selling tactics to sell their products and meet their weekly
monthly, and half-yearly targets.

RHETORIC

According to Aristotle, rhetoric is the ability, in each particular case, to see the available
means of persuasion. He described three main forms of rhetoric: ethos, logos, and pathos.
Aristotle also said that a persuader is essentially a "good man" with the right intentions.

 Ethos
Ethos is appeal that is based on the character of the speaker. An ethos-driven document relies
on the reputation of the author. It uses trust as the basis of interaction. It includes aspects such
as the reputation and credibility of the speaker. Ethos is the level of credibility as perceived
by the audience. Persuasive speaker leverage their past successes and their experience and
expertise to get others to listen to them.

Having an excellent reputation and high credibility is more than just good, it's also
persuasive.Lying, subterfuge, and hiding facts are not only wrong, but also unpersuasive. The
target audience is more likely to believe an honest person than someone who comes across as
deceptively smooth. What if the audience does not know the person beforehand? These cues
are easy to imitate, but not for long as the verbal, visual and vocal cues given by the sender
can costly convey the truth to a discerning audience.

The foundations of ethos are wisdom, virtue, and goodwill. To prove dependability,
persuaders follow through on their commitments. To show integrity, they will speak the truth.
Ethos is charisma as well as character. To portray credibility, position yourself as an expert.
Investigate everything about the subject of the persuasion event. Talk as if you cannot be
challenged. Show how others look up to you. Use powerful gestures, eye contact and so on to
position yourself.

People buy idea and products that add value to themselves in terms of self-esteem, social
approval, happiness, wealth, and power. In turn they rationalize the internal motivation with
logic and facts. Persuaders use many appeals to influence the audience- fear and love being
the most prominent. Fear of using the competitor’s products, the fear of pain, the need for self
preservation and ego (love of oneself) are some of the popular emotional appeals used to
influence others. In fact, building a relationship with the audience is the essence of a
successful persuader. When the audience starts visualizing the persuader as a problem solver
rather than a peddler of products, they will be more influenced to buy into the speaker’s ideas
  Pathos
Pathos is Appeal that is based on emotion. Persuasive speakers excite and arouse the
emotions of the audience to get them to act. They appeal to the values of the audience and
challenge existing beliefs and attitudes. Language plays an important role in conveying
emotions as words are the vehicles used to trigger the senses of the audience

Pathos is argument by emotion. Skilled persuaders play on the heartstrings of targets who
they feel are susceptible to emotions. This technique is successful when the persuader takes
into account the feelings of the audience and employs them to his or her advantage. Pathos
inpires sympathy and ‘one-ness’ with the cause, but the cause and the feeling have to be
genuine for both the sides. For Example, the statement "You have worked hard for this
organization" where the emotional appeals used is love for, and commitment towards, the
organization, might be received differently by different people. If one addresses this
statement towards an undiscerning supervisor the answer might be the following: "Thanks. I
really appreciate that. Is nice think that at least some of my employees appreciate my efforts.”
However, a more discerning boss might smile and give the following reply: "Thanks, but I
still won't sanction your leave

 Logos
Logos focuses on arguments, rational appeals, reason, and demonstrable evidence. This
technique uses empirical, validated facts to persuade the audience. Pictures, statistics, and
data serve as evidence to influence the target. Reason includes accepting truths and providing
cause and effect rationale to explain things

According to Aristotle, appeals to logos most often use a syllogism" and "enthymeme." The
following argument is an example of syllogism: No reptiles have fur. All snakes are reptiles
Therefore, no snakes have fur. An incomplete syllogism is known as an enthymeme. These
are also known as "rhetorical syllogisms”. The following is an example of an enthymeme:
Some teachers are strict. Therefore, Prakash could be strict.

Thus, a syllogism leads to a necessary conclusion from a universal true premise, but an
enthymeme leads to a tentative conclusion from a probable premise. Syllogisms and
enthymemes are examples of deductive arguments where specific conclusions are drawn
from accepted truths. On the other hand, the induction form of argument "builds up" from
evidence, reason, and logic as in most forms of scientific writing.

According to Aristotle, one rarely finds syllogisms in their purest form and most arguments
use enthymemes. The following argument might provide an example: We do not have enough
money to pay our workforce. Without a decent salary they wouldn't have any motivation to
work, leading to lower productivity levels. Therefore, we should automate most procedures to
save important resources so that we can pay our staff well.

As can be seen, this argument is weak and incomplete. Automation involves a cost that has
not been taken into account. Also, it is not clear what important resources would be saved
Does the statement suggest having a reduced workforce, implying a layoff or downsizing? In
that case, it would actually demotivate the workforce!
AGREE TO DISAGREE REASONABLY

Argument by the stick is no argument. It never persuades, it only inspires revenge. To

disagree reasonably, the tools of persuasion are logos, ethos, and pathos, To be logical,
speakers must connect what they want with the reasons they gave. For instance if Jerry
desires a raise in salary, it must connect with the reasons she gives for the increment.
The following example illustrates this.

Jerry: The boss won't give me a raise.

Preeta: Why should he give you a raise?

Jerry: Because I have been working for the past ten years in this organization.

Preeta: So the boss should give you a raise because you have been working here for ten
years?

Repeating the premise of the argument with the conclusion will force Jerry to think logic and
generate more logical arguments to get what she wants,

The following strategies might work if one wants to persuade logically

 Confirm the facts provided

 Quote authorities on the subject, whether it is the customer, the media, or the business
analyst.

 Use factual statements instead of suppositions. One should always use the words "it
will" instead of "it could!

 Arrange arguments in a sequence. The weakest should come first and one should
gradually lead up to the strongest argument.

 Be prepared with responses to reports contradicting statement

 Bring up the negative consequences of not being persuaded by the idea/offer, Use
repetition, alliteration, and other techniques for persuasion:

 Use euphemisms Use graphs. charts, and other pictorial representations,

 Narrate the data and connect with the audience. Don't just rattle off fact.

 Assert ideas plainly. Use the active voice

Thought Aristotle believed that logos should be the most important of the three persuasive
appeals, logos alone is not sufficient. A combination of all three elements is essential to be an
effective persuader