Does credibility really matter in the persuasion process?
How does one build credibility?
How can you borrow someone else’s credibility?
Current scientific research reveals that credibility is one of the golden keys to getting anyone to say “yes” to you.
Very few people have credibility in their profession because they don’t understand what it is, why they need it and they certainly have no idea about how to acquire it.
Write this formula down and keep it by you at all times. Whether you are a therapist, small business owner or a sales manager at a major corporation, this is the formula that will determine whether anyone will ever listen to you!
Expertise + Trustworthiness = Credibility
Imagine these two lists of topics a company might want to hire Kevin Hogan for training, consulting or a keynote:
A
Sales, Influence, Marketing, Body Language, Unconscious Communication, Persuasion, Motivation, Goal Achievement, Personal Authenticity, Communication Skills
B
How to Be Politically Correct, Union Power, How to Change the Oil in Your Car, Government Support for the Arts
You get the idea. Group “A” topics, you can see Kevin Hogan making major progress in the company because of massive credibility in those areas. Credibility = Expertise + Trustworthiness.
In Group “B” I have no expertise and certainly would have no “trustworthiness,” if I claimed to support those issues. (Although oil changes are very important and I love the arts…just not the government support of….) It would be inauthentic to promote myself as a sensitivity trainer or someone who wants people to communicate anything but the gentle truth to their company.
Nothing persuades like credibility in people’s decision making processes. You need it, I need it, and indeed everyone needs credibility or we will all ultimately fail at whatever we do.
Your Mom
Remember when she said, “Get with a BIG company that gives you lots of benefits and retirement.” Then boom! 2001/2002 and millions lose their retirement, their jobs and many their self respect because of the corruption of a few in their company and a bad economy. Lesson: Don’t trust EVERYTHING to anyone. How many people look back at the lousy advice someone they loved gave them only to have been hung out to dry…innocent and well intended as the advice giver was?
So what are the 7 research proven ways to build your credibility? Daniel O’ Keefe discussed these seven in his book, Persuasion. My take is a bit different from his but you get the idea!
- Education, Position and Experience. The evidence is overwhelming. People respect someone who has a higher position (M.D. vs. orderly), more extensive education (Ph.D. vs. high school) and more experience (20 years of X vs. just out of school). You cannot immediately change your education but you can reframe your position and frame your experience so that it accents you in the best possible light. You should never lie or exaggerate but definitely put yourself on stage at the better angle.
- Be a Fluid Communicator. Again, the evidence is overwhelming: Communicate your message without the use of “uh” or slips of the tongue. Don’t mispronounce words. Each flaw counts against the communicator. This is so important that the lesson is clear. A fluid communicator will not read a script or use notes to any significant degree. You need to know everything about your topic, product or service. You need to be able to influentially communicate that information and don’t even try until you are ready.
- Speaking Pace. The research is mixed here but usually a slightly faster than normal pace is superior to other options. The reason is simple. You can’t communicate quickly if you don’t know the answer/information.
- Citing Evidence. I always tell people to never buy a book without a bibliography unless you enjoy fiction. No sources means no credibility. It’s better to say, “Daniel O’Keefe says,” than to say, “research shows.” One shows you are well read, the other shows you read the National Enquirer.
- Argue against Your Point of View. Every great speaker knows that when you bring up the point of view that disagrees with your own you are more likely to win the audience over. Why? That is what they are thinking and when you defuse or inoculate your audience to the opposite point of view you. The more you say that surprises your audience/client in this respect, the more likely you are to gain critical persuasion points.
- Be Likeable. This won’t affect your listener’s perception of your expertise but it will effect their perception of your trustworthiness and that is the second key aspect of credibility. Being likable doesn’t happen overnight. Read a book like Irresistible Attraction or Talk Your Way to the Top to enhance your charismatic influence with others.
- Use Humor…Carefully. Humor can increase the trustworthiness of a communicator IF the humor is appropriate to the context and it is not excessive. A little humor can really help your persuasiveness. A little…not a lot!
Secrets of Sales Success
with Kevin Hogan
Order Secrets of Sales Success
FOUR-DVD program
I’ve never believed you should just get out there and knock on doors or make phone calls. My belief is that you should let everyone buy from you. But almost no one sells like that. Sales is art and science and for people who want to sell more than the “average” you need better than average new information to compete. It’s that simple.
Asked to put together an inexpensive program that incorporates what you want most to sell more, I’ve taken these DVD’s and put them together into one program that is heavily discounted for your acquisition.
Here’s what you get:
DVD ONE: Selling Yourself to Others: 21 Key Ideas in Selling (That No One Ever Taught You!)
People buy YOU not just your products and services. This brand DVD contains new selling strategies never released before based upon scientific advances in behavioral genetics and tested in real life selling situations! This one hour presentation will help you increase your sales in a scientific fashion. Best? It’s amazingly easy to learn and apply this material!
DVD TWO: The 10 Laws of Persuasion
Taped “live” in a beautiful television studio at a Fortune 500 company, Kevin Hogan gives you the foundation for persuasive communication. Whether you are a leader in business, own your own business, or are a salesperson, you cannot successfully gain compliance without knowledge of the laws of persuasion.
In order to fully comprehend the process of persuasion, you must understand some basic concepts, or principles, of persuasion. These concepts provide the foundation for the paradigm of persuasion.
Included are the nine principles that come into play in daily life as well as in persuasion settings, whether you’re a salesperson, public speaker, consumer, husband, wife, father or friend. These are the Laws of Persuasion.
DVD THREE: The Attraction Principle: How to Manifest Your Every Desire in Life
Learn the difference between success and failure in bringing about what you desire in your life. What is the EXACT formula that will enable you to manifest the dreams and desires you have been nurturing? Learn it all here. Kevin Hogan presents his Attraction Principle.
DVD FOUR: 21st Century Selling: Selling the Way People BUY!
Learn all the key triggers that cause people to buy in the new millennium. Based upon cutting edge research into sales psychology and years of experience, you will learn how to be the obvious answer to many of your clients’ problems.
You will discover how to program the neurology of your brain so you literally FIND success in selling yourself. You’ll also learn how to create the outcomes of sales interviews BEFORE they happen. Most importantly, you will uncover the secrets of developing personal mastery…the focal point of how most of your customers will judge you and deem you worthy or not of buying from.
Everything in this presentation has been TESTED in real life by real salespeople whose lives depend on their making the sale. Every concept, strategy, tactic and game-plan in this program has been PROVEN successful at raising your closing ratio and igniting your personal self motivation levels to new highs.
Altogether you get over four hours of truly astonishing information. Easily worth thousands of dollars, this is the equivalent of Kevin’s $25,000 one day sales training.