How loss aversion boosts motivation | Nudge Newsletter 🧠


Losses motivate more than gains.

Imagine I gave you $4,000 to motivate your sales rep.

You'd probably set them a target like this:

  • Hit 120% of quota and I'll give you $4,000

But...

There's a better way to motivate.

Loss aversion reveals that losses are more salient than equivalent gains.

And when it comes to bonuses, the thought of losing a bonus is more motivating than gaining one.

Here's the study behind this insight πŸ‘‡

The right way to motivate the sales rep is to say:

  • We've added an extra $4,000 bonus in your pay check this month. If you hit 120% of quota, you keep it. If not, we'll subtract it from future months.

Big thank you to today's sponsor Lately. Don't miss this tech πŸ‘‡

​Transform Your Social Marketing with Neuroscience-Driven AIℒ​
​
Lately’s neuroscience-driven AIβ„’ learns and adapts to your unique brand voice to create social media content that your audience will love.
​

  • +12,000% ENGAGEMENT – No, that’s not a typo.
  • +245% MORE CLICKS – More clicks = mo’ better.
  • +200% MORE LEADS – Higher quality leads for marketing and sales.

Our AI schedules and populates your social media calendar faster than you can grab a cup of coffee. β˜•οΈ

Want to sponsor Nudge? Here's all you need to know.​

Cheers,

Phill

P.S. I don't listen to many podcasts, but one I tune into religiously is Dan Murray-Serter's Secret Leaders. It's fantastic. If you've got a spare hour this week, I'd reccomend his episode with Mo Gawdat. It's dynamite. Listen here.

This isn't sponsored. I just like the show.

Nudge Newsletter

I spend 18 hours each week turning marketing psychology into readable newsletters.

Read more from Nudge Newsletter
Ibrahimovic's kids join AC Milan and Swede, 40, could stay as a coach when  he FINALLY retires

Prove Your Dedication Read online Imagine your hometown football club booked Swedish legend Ibrahimovic to host a 2-hour training session with local children. That’s what 113 participants at the Stockholm School of Economics were asked to imagine in 2017ΒΉ. But there was a catch. Half were told the club spent almost no time persuading Ibrahimovic, with the manager saying: "It's fantastic that it was so easy to persuade you to come." The others were told booking Ibrahimovic took extreme...

Framing Your Food Read online Which of these would you rather eat: One Shepherd's Pie is described as: Beef shepherd's pie, tomato and pesto sauce The other is described as: Beef subtly seasoned with Espelette pepper under a rich velvety potato puree, topped with crisp parmesan cheese crumbs Two researchers ran a small study at a French cafeteria to test if these descriptions changed the perception of the food.ΒΉ Diners were invited to eat a prix fixe lunch. A real photo of the cafeteria from...

Concrete Phrases Read online Could writing "𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐔𝐀𝐋 π’πˆπ™π„" on a Whopper ad make it sell for π’Žπ’π’“π’†? In 2022, 465 participants saw ads for a fictional Lay's multipack.ΒΉ Both groups knew the multipack was 392g in size, but each saw a different headline. One saw: π˜“π˜’π˜Ί'𝘴 𝘊𝘩π˜ͺ𝘱𝘴, 14 𝘴𝘯𝘒𝘀𝘬 𝘣𝘒𝘨𝘴The other saw:π˜“π˜’π˜Ί'𝘴 𝘊𝘩π˜ͺ𝘱𝘴, 392𝘨. Those who saw "14 snack bags" were willing to pay 10% 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 than the other group.This is due to the concrete phrases effect. We can picture 14 snack bags in our mind. 392g doesn't...