The Ethics of Persuasion: When to Convince Others and When to Compromise?

7 يونيو 2023

What strategies can one use to convince others to undertake a particular action? Does one rely on their authority or employ marketing techniques such as extolling the benefits?

Alternatively, does one rely on logical arguments or unwavering persistence until others agree with their stance?

Although these strategies might be appealing, they might not always be the best ways to persuade.

Organizational behavior specialist Professor Jay Conger provided a unique viewpoint on persuasion in a significant piece titled "The Necessary Art of Persuasion," published in the Harvard Business Review in 1998. He posited that persuasion hinges on four key components: credibility, common ground, vivid evidence, and emotional connection. Additionally, the article outlines several dos and don'ts of persuasive communication.

In the workplace, persuasion entails achieving shared understanding and agreement rather than simply selling an idea or convincing someone to agree.

Effective managers must possess persuasive skills to achieve organizational goals through people.

While managers could resort to coercion or dictatorship to get work done, such an approach may not yield long-term success. By using persuasion effectively, managers can lead employees towards a shared solution.

Likewise, in any scenario where persuasion is required, pushing excessively or using forceful tactics can create resentment and hinder the establishment of a mutually beneficial agreement.

Therefore, establishing mutual understanding through negotiation is key to successful persuasion.

According to Jay Conger, persuasion should be seen as a process of learning and negotiating rather than just convincing or selling. To become an effective persuader, it is necessary to follow four key steps while avoiding four common mistakes.

4 key steps to become an effective persuader:

1. Establish Credibility:

Credibility must first be established, which depends on the situation. For instance, a professor from a prestigious medical school could be more effective at persuading people to take part in a clinical trial than at presenting bridge design ideas.

This kind of credibility is mostly based on competence, and people are more convincing when they are seen as competent and experienced in a certain sector.

Relationship building is one approach to creating credibility, and these ties may be developed by demonstrating genuine concern for the welfare of coworkers and team members.

People are more inclined to trust your suggestions and ideas if they believe you have their best interests at heart.

2. Find a Middle Ground:

Finding points of agreement with your audience will prove paramount too. Research on the long-term consequences of radiation may be difficult to recruit people for, even for the most charming doctor.

Therefore, it is crucial to make sure that your audience will find your position compelling. It's crucial to pinpoint your idea's advantages and what has previously connected with your audience in order to do this. The only way you can come close to "selling" your concept is by finding common ground.

If you want to persuade your audience, knowing their interests is essential. Discuss the matter with them and give great attention to their concerns and opinions.

Before putting forward your thoughts in front of the public, seek feedback from people you trust. Your idea must clearly benefit the reader, and if it doesn't, you should make the necessary changes.

You may guarantee that your stance is suitably tailored by connecting with your audience in advance, which will save you time and eliminate the danger of making an unsuitable presentation.

To be persuasive, it is important to provide vivid evidence to support your position. Although evidence is critical to back up your argument, relying solely on factual data and spreadsheets is not always persuasive.

Instead, people tend to respond better to "vivid" evidence that brings your concept or argument to life.

This can be achieved by using metaphors to relate the concept to a shared reality, supplementing data with examples and direct experiences, and thinking of analogies to make your ideas tangible.

Such experiential proof is what causes shifts in people's perspectives and enables them to empathize with those who support your cause.

For instance, even a well-qualified physicist proposing to build a suit that makes people weightless would have a hard time finding takers if their prototype was based on the flawed assumption of reversing gravity.

Therefore, it is critical to present vivid evidence to support your position effectively.

4. Build an Emotional Connection:

Lastly, a persuasive argument cannot be considered complete without appealing to the emotions of the audience.

Although some individuals believe that an emotional pitch lacks credibility, when executed correctly, it conveys that you understand the needs and desires of your audience.

To appeal to the emotions of the audience, you must utilize your own emotions, which may entail displaying passion and enthusiasm or suppressing anger and frustration.

You should also be aware of the audience's feelings and modify your tone and intensity accordingly.

Even though objectivity is ideal, it is rarely possible because emotions are a significant factor in motivation and decision-making.

Instead of being a manipulative strategy, appealing to emotions is a crucial component of persuasive communication that encourages a common understanding of the problem and its implications.

In addition to the four “Do”s above, it is crucial to recognize and avoid the four classic “Don't”s, which are common misconceptions about persuasion.

4 common mistakes to avoid:

1. Don’t Rely on Logical Arguments:

An argument alone is insufficient for persuasion. While one or two strong arguments can provide evidence for the validity of your idea, you must also appeal to emotions and create compelling images of how things would be if people adopted your viewpoint.

For instance, a strong argument may be based on statistics, such as polls showing that 82 percent of a specific demographic purchase therapeutic massages regularly.

By offering in-house massages as an add-on to hair styling services, we could tap into this market and create a niche. This idea merits financial and strategic analysis.

On the other hand, a vivid and emotional argument could be based on customers' feedback and experiences.

Customers who, for example, frequently express their love of pampering can be given strong incentives to explore this further if you outline the tremendous effects that one particular service can have on their lives.

Upon further investigation, it was discovered that the majority of people, regardless of industry, respond better to emotionally charged messages.

These types of ads, arguments, or speeches are much more powerful and memorable than simply presenting data, as they appeal to the emotions of the audience and create a vivid image of the potential experience.

2. Don't Ease on the Hard-Sell Pitch:

The strategy of hard-selling is a familiar concept to most people, as it is frequently encountered when making significant purchases such as cars or household items.

In such situations, customers often take a defensive stance and immediately resist or reject the salesperson's pitch, resulting in an adversarial relationship.

However, by taking a different approach and understanding the values, needs, and opinions of your audience, you can create a presentation that is not easily targeted for attack but is rather a well-substantiated position with real merit.

3. Don't Use Ultimatums:

Persuasion rarely works when you try to force your opinions or beliefs on others. It comes off as demanding, controlling, and sometimes downright insulting.

Rather, it involves finding points of common ground and cooperation between your position and a mutually agreeable outcome.

Without the willingness to negotiate, how can trust be established? If you refuse to compromise, the other party may question your intentions and be hesitant to accept your arguments.

4. Don’t Give Up After The First Try:

Effective persuasion is not always an instantaneous process. Often, when making an initial argument, people may not be persuaded.

People need some time to consider and integrate new knowledge in the context of their beliefs and circumstances at the moment.

Skilled persuaders use this to their advantage by gradually incorporating more and more persuasive techniques into their presentations over time.

Final Words:

There are specific guidelines and skills involved in persuasion. Our goal in providing you with this information was to help you understand how to persuade people while avoiding typical blunders.

What you should understand is that persuasion is a skill. It takes a lot of practice to pull it off right, so don’t get discouraged if you come off wrong the first few times you try it.