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Incredible marketing can be incredibly simple | Nudge Newsletter

Published about 2 months ago • 1 min read

Social Proof

​Read online​

Incredible marketing can be incredibly simple.
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In 2007, two Chinese researchers ran an experiment at 13 Beijing restaurants¹. ​
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Some diners were sat on tables with a plaque listing the most popular dishes.
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Others were sat at tables with no plaque.
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Did the plaque change what people choose?
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Diners who saw the most popular dish plaques were 18% more likely to order one of those dishes, even at a higher price.

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That's not all. Customers who ate a "most popular dish" rated it 8.3% tastier than those who ate the same dish but weren't told it was popular.

How it's applied

Ballantine's Ale didn't promote itself as "Fresh. Delicious. Beer".
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Instead, they simply said "America's Largest Selling Ale" and probably saw a jump in sales (and satisfaction).

I like the Ballantine ad, but I don't love it.

It's uncreative and in your face. We don't like to be sold to, and we're more persuaded by less invasive attempts to showcase popularity.

Tunnocks, for example, don't call themselves the most popular Scottish-made bar.

Instead, they simply write the number of bars sold each week on the back of the packet.

An even better example comes from this 1964 full-page Kellogg ad.

The ad doesn't say that Pop-Tarts are best-selling.

It apologises for running out of supply.

"We had no idea our Pop-Tarts would become so popular—so soon."
"We haven't been able to keep up."
"If your store is temporarily out of Pop-Tarts, please forgive us. They'll have some more shortly."

It's achieving exactly what Ballantine and Pop-Tarts achieve, without making the reader feel sold to.

I think that's the best way to apply social proof.

What do you think?

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Cheers,

​Phill​

¹Cai, H., Chen, Y., & Fang, H. (2007). Observational learning: Evidence from a randomized natural field experiment. National Bureau of Economic Research.

As a behavioural science practitioner, I believe in the peak-end rule.

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Nudge Newsletter

Phill Agnew

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

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