©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
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 Understanding Persuasion
in the Digital Age
Persuasive skills are ever more
important:
• Leaner corporate hierarchies
• Blurring lines of authority
• Reliance on teams
• Savvy, well-informed consumers

Many managers try to influence

others instead of issuing commands.
©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 2
 Effective Persuasion Techniques

• Establishing credibility
• Making a reasonable, specific request
• Tying facts to benefits
• Recognizing the power of loss
• Expecting and overcoming resistance
• Sharing solutions and compromising

©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 3
 Writing Plan for
Persuasive Requests
Opening – Capture attention.
• Describe a problem.
• Make an unexpected statement.
• Suggest reader benefits.
• Offer praise or compliments.
• Ask a stimulating question.

©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 4
 Writing Plan for
Persuasive Requests
Body – Build interest.
• Explain purpose of the request.
• Prove its merit.
• Use facts, statistics, expert opinion,
examples, details.
• Focus on direct and indirect
benefits.
• Anticipate objections, offer
counterarguments.
©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 5
 Writing Plan for
Persuasive Requests

Closing – Motivate action.

• Ask for a particular action.
• Make the action easy to take.
• Show courtesy, respect,
gratitude.

©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 6
 Writing Effective Persuasive
Claims and Complaints
Develop a claim message logically.
• Perhaps open with praise or a point of
agreement.
• Review what you have done to resolve
the problem.
• Explain precisely what happened or
why your claim is valid.
• Enclose copies of relevant
documents.
• Close with a clear action statement.
©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 7
 Persuading Employees:
Messages Flowing Downward

Persuasive requests may include

the following:
• Participating in volunteer projects
• Joining programs to stop smoking,
lose weight, or start exercising

©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 8
 Persuading Employees:
Messages Flowing Downward

• Instructions or directives moving

downward from supervisors usually
require little persuasion.
BUT: Paying attention to tone is
necessary.

©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 9
 Persuading the Boss:
Messages Flowing Upward
• Focus on evidence such as facts and
figures.
• If possible, quantify the benefits of your
idea in dollar terms.
• Be confident and even-handed when
pitching your idea.
BUT: Be sensitive to tone; use words
such as suggest and recommend, not
you must or we should.

©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 10
 Writing Plan for Sales Messages

Opening – Gain attention.

• Offer something valuable or
promise a benefit.
• Ask a question.
• Provide a quotation, fact, or
product feature.
• Start with a testimonial or startling
statement.
©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 11
 Writing Plan for Sales Messages

Body – Build interest.

• Describe central selling points.
• Make rational and emotional
appeals.
• Elicit desire; reduce
resistance.
• Consider money-back guarantees,
free samples, performance tests.
©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 12
 Writing Plan for Sales Messages

Closing – Motivate action.

• Offer a gift.
• Promise an incentive.
• Limit the offer; set a
deadline.
• Guarantee
satisfaction.

©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 13
 The AIDA Strategy for Sales
Messages
STRATEGY CONTENT SECTION
Capture attention, create awareness, make
Attention a sales proposition, prompt audience to Opening
read on.
Describe central selling points; focus not
Interest on features of product/service but on Body
benefits relevant to the reader’s needs.
Reduce resistance, reassure the reader,
Desire elicit the desire for ownership, motivate Body
action.
Offer an incentive or a gift, limit the
Action offer, set a deadline, make it easy for Closing
the reader to respond, close the sale.

©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 14
 Writing Successful
E-Mail Sales Messages

• Craft a catchy subject line.

• Keep the main information
“above the fold.”
• Make the message short,
conversational, and focused.

©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 15
 Writing Successful
E-Mail Sales Messages

• Convey urgency.
• Sprinkle testimonials throughout
the copy.
• Provide a means for opting out.

©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 16
 Writing Short
Persuasive Messages Online
• Business communicators use social media
to promote their businesses, further their
causes, and build their online personas—
not primarily for overt selling.
• Many of the principles of persuasion also
apply to micromessages (online posts or
tweets) although only parts of the AIDA
strategy may be used.

©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 17
 Types of Persuasive Posts
and Tweets
• Updates of events, experiences,
thoughts, and exploits
• Promotional offers such as an
invitation to participate in games
• Announcements of interesting
events, publications, and media
links

©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 18
©2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 8 / Slide 19
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