Did you know you would probably kill someone if the right person asked you to do it?
Have you ever disobeyed a traffic signal because a police officer directed you to do so? Have you ever made an investment because a well known financial adviser recommended it? Do you buy Crest toothpaste because 4 out of 5 dentists recommend it?
Authority figures exert a powerful influence over people. We look to experts to help us make important decisions on subjects where we may have limited knowledge. We make the assumption that an expert has carefully analyzed all of the relevant information in the area of their expertise and used their knowledge and experience to determine the best recommendations. We are able to tap into their knowledge and experience in order to make better choices of our own.
But, the power of authority runs even deeper than that. In 1973 the infamous ‘Milgram Study’ was conducted to determine how easily a common person could be persuaded to administer a lethal electric shock (or so they thought) to another person, strictly on the instructions of a perceived authority figure (in this case, a scientist in a lab coat.) The results were astonishing…
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The Marketing “Gurus” don’t want you to find this site…
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…65% of the participants in the Milgram Study were willing to administer a lethal electric shock to another person, just because the authority figure in the room instructed them to do so. These were ordinary people like you and me. Some of them apologized and cried as they sent the lethal shock – but they flipped the switch anyway.
That is how powerful an influence authority has over our actions and decisions. And it makes sense. Obedience to authority is very beneficial to an organized society and we have trained our children from birth to be obedient.
Authority can be invoked in many ways. Our world is filled with symbols of authority like the White House or the Kremlin. We have official seals and other marks that ‘carry the weight’ of the office or people they represent.
We can tout the honors and degrees that have been conferred on us by respected institutions. I myself have won several Communicator Awards for my corporate communications work, a best film award from the Long Island Film Festival for an independent feature film I co-produced and served on as Director of Photography, I am a graduate of Columbia College in Chicago, and have studied marketing under a master marketer – Frank Kern.
If you could see me right now, you would surely notice that I am dressed in the official uniform of the e-course educational writer (jeans, a t-shirt, and flip-flops.) Uniforms are another method we use to convey authority.
Finally, there is your reputation. When other important and respected people praise you, you are elevated to their status. The same happens when large numbers of ‘regular folks’ start praising you.
When you are first starting out as a marketer, you may not have much ‘authority’ in your marketplace to influence people with. But, you don’t have to worry. Frank Kern put it best when he said that you can borrow other people’s authority by quoting them. It’s not as good as having your own authority, but it can help get the process rolling.
Now it’s time for me to change out of my uniform into a 3-piece suit and go administer some electrical shocks!
You made a wise decision when you signed up for this course. When you open tomorrow’s email, you’ll be glad you signed up.
Andrew Seltz
The Go-To Guy!
www.GoToGuyEnterprises.com