Writing for Business Success/Business writing in action/Video signpost Cialdini

Media

View video – influenceatwork.com: Science of Persuasion. 11:50 min. This animated video, narrated by Dr. Robert Cialdini and Steve Martin, describes six evidence-based principles of persuasion: reciprocity, scarcity, authority, consistency, liking, and consensus. The speakers discuss business examples that show how applying these principles can significantly influence people to say yes to your requests.

You can find more open video resources on these principles at:

https://www.influenceatwork.com/robert-cialdini-phd/biography

Science of Persuasion

Writing Practice: Sales Message

This activity invites you to practice your persuasive writing skills by revising a letter to improve the sales pitch. The marketing story is a chance to win a 5 day cruise in the Caribbean. Fill in the blanks in the [linked] sales letter with vivid, descriptive language that will attract the reader’s attention and retain interest. Your choices are modifiers, verbs, nouns, phrases, and postscript.

Tips: Refer to Table 9.6: The Five Main Parts of a Persuasive Message. Try applying the principles of persuasion discussed in the influenceatwork.com video.

Note: There are many ways to present information in a sales letter, so the letter you produce need not match the sample answer.

• Sample letter

• Sample Answer