Those of us with the gift of gab can tip our hats to the researchers Stec and Bernstein (1999) for their contribution to the world of consumer persuasion: the length-implies-strength heuristic. The principle says in effect that the more you have to say, the more likely it is you’ll be believed.
Everyone knows that students dislike tests. In a 1987 study conducted by the social psychologist Shelly Chaiken, a group of students were asked to memorize eight phrases relating to the idea that more is somehow better, or the more the merrier. They were then exposed to two speakers who argued that more testing is good for them. One speaker offered only 2 reasons, and the other offered 10. The speaker with 10 reasons changed the students’ attitudes dramatically more effectively than did the other. Of course, those students were primed with the belief that longer is stronger as a heuristic subtest, but that belief already exists in most consumers.
We all know that a presentation that’s richer in data, facts, stats, testimonials, and other supporting material is more likely to close the sale. However, the persuasion referred to by the length-implies-strength heuristic comes from more than the persuasive value of the data. The principle works because the sheer length of your argument—processed by someone using a peripheral thinking style (not deep, concentrated thought)—is interpreted as substance, credibility, veracity, and “well-thought-outedness.” The mind thinks, “There’s got to be something to it—there’s so much of it.”
For example, if I sold pens and told you, “This pen writes on paper,” you’d probably reply, “Whoopee, it’s a pen.” But if I also said, “Not only paper, but this special pen also writes on plastic, glass, wood, aluminum, steel, skin, cork, ice, iron, copper, Styrofoam, foam rubber, tin, brick, stone, porcelain, marble, bone, sideways, upside down, underwater, and in space,” you’d think very differently about that pen. No surprise here, right? I’ve given you significantly more new facts about it, more benefits, more uses. No surprise here, right?
However, if I repeated the exact same information in several different ways without adding any new data and stretched the presentation out to 30 minutes, you’d be likely to interpret the length of the pitch as meaning that my pens have great value, more so than if I spoke for just 2 minutes. Thus, the old maxim “the more you tell, the more you sell” can be tweaked to “the more you tell—and the longer you take to interestingly tell it—the more you sell.”
So how do you use this? No script is needed for this one. The most practical method is to take the brakes off your presentation and unload every fact, every detail, every feature, and every benefit possible. Throw as many testimonials at them as possible. Show as many user photos and handwritten and e-mailed letters and reviews as you can. What can you do to double or triple the number of online reviews you currently have? Are you currently showing them one news article about your service? What can you do via creative press releases to get the local newspapers to write more articles so that you can show your prospects 5 or 10 or 20 great stories about you? Would any local (or nonlocal) radio stations be interested in your story? The audio of the interview would make a great addition to your sales presentation, especially on your website or via mini/pocket CDs or downloadable MP3s: “Click to listen to us on KRMX Radio.”
Using the principle of message organization discussed earlier in this chapter, don’t be afraid of overwhelming them. You want their mindset to be, “Wow, this product or service has a lot of acceptance, lots of consumer agreement. It has already been vetted for me by other buyers. It’s very well thought out, too. Enough so that I can feel comfortable getting involved without taking hours to critically analyze it.”
Remember that not every consumer uses the length-implies-strength heuristic but most do, especially for purchases of products and services of lower cost. (You’re not as likely to “length-strength someone” into buying your house.) However, since an abundance of facts and stats and great testimonials typically leads to greater sales, it’s a principle that you can’t go wrong employing no matter what you sell.
Listen: consumers don’t refuse to buy because you share too many relevant facts and figures and quotes from happy customers. They may be ready to buy before your presentation is done, and that’s why frequent test closes are important. Unlike newspaper or online advertising, in which you can’t read the prospect’s body language and ask questions, you’re right there, face to face, and can tailor your pitch as needed. You can twist and turn and slow down and speed up as you see fit.
“Yeah, okay, Drew, but it is possible to put too much information in an ad, right? I mean, people don’t read long ads, right?”
Wrong. This is one of biggest misconceptions in advertising, and typically only direct-response ad professionals know it. When you write an ad, how many times do you think a reader will see it, read it, and then come back to it later? Maybe once, if you’re lucky.
Fact is, most consumers don’t mistake ads for entertaining reading material. You have one shot. And if you’re lucky enough to have crafted an ad that resonates with your audience, you damn well better throw everything at them in that one ad to get them to call, stop in, visit your website, or whip out a credit card.
Some people need a lot to be persuaded, and some don’t need as much. Write a short ad and you’ll never see those who need more. Write a long ad and those who need a lot will be exposed to your full-power sell and, if you did your job well, ultimately put cash in your pocket.
“But Drew, how about those who needed only a little info? Won’t they get bored or annoyed and simply turn the page or click away?”
What they’ll do is be sold at some point along the way, wherever that point is. If they’re ready to buy, they’re not going to say, “Oh, shoot! I was ready to buy this thing, but look, there’s more to read. Oh, well. In that case I don’t want it anymore; forget it!”
That’s ridiculous! Because they can stop at any time and get in their cars and drive to your store, or pick up their phones, or visit you online, or click your “Buy Now” button, or consummate the deal in whatever way you’ve instructed them to. Long ads satisfy Mr. Short and Mrs. Long. Short ads will always alienate one part of the audience. Always.
If you haven’t already made the logical leap, the same principle applies to in-person sales presentations. A well-crafted long presentation will almost always sell more than a well-crafted short presentation. If you know how to persuade, you’ll have more time to do it. It’s as simple as that.