Welcome to our latest newsletter.

In this email, we look at the psychological principle of PRE-crastination and ways you can use it.

At trust, anger and AI. And at how venting can make people like you more, not less.

And a trip to the archives with a 1977 study on surprise, that's just as helpful today.

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❤️ Make your communications more persuasive.

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PRE-crastination: The Surprising Strategy in Consumer Behavior

Precrastination, the impulse to complete tasks sooner than necessary, may seem counterproductive—but it’s a powerful cognitive strategy. This study reveals that individuals precrastinate to offload mental tasks, enhancing focus on what's next. Intriguingly, precrastinators outperformed others in subsequent tasks, suggesting they’re not just impulsive but strategically clearing cognitive space. A few starter suggestions for applying this insight:

Capitalize on Cognitive Relief: Design marketing strategies that offer consumers a quick win—small tasks they can complete immediately to relieve mental load, encouraging deeper engagement later.

Early Engagement Opportunities: Introduce incentives for early customer actions, leveraging the precrastination tendency to secure commitment before distractions set in.

Simplify Decisions: Streamline choices in your messaging to reduce cognitive burden, making it easier for customers to act quickly and confidently.

Promote Mental Clarity: Position your product or service as a solution that frees up cognitive space, appealing to the customer’s desire for efficiency and focus.

Precrastination as a Selling Point: Highlight how your offerings allow customers to “get it done now,” turning their impulse for early completion into a persuasive marketing angle.

Photo by Liza Summer 

Trust, Anger and AI

A recent study shows that while empathetic language in conversational AI can boost perceived helpfulness, it doesn’t necessarily build trust if users are already angry. Researchers compared two chatbots—one empathetic, one not—and found that empathy enhances perceived support but fails to mend trust when frustration is present. 

So a few concrete ideas from this.

Emotional Awareness: Design your AI to detect and respond to users’ emotional cues, particularly anger, to ensure empathetic responses translate into trust-building.

Anger Management: Create features that preemptively address and defuse negative emotions before users engage with AI, preserving trust and satisfaction.

Enhance Empathy with Comfort: Use AI to not only provide information but also to offer comfort during interactions, aligning responses with users' emotional needs.

Customize AI Responses: Adapt AI communication based on user profiles to deliver more effective and personalized support, boosting trust and engagement.

Go Beyond Linguistic Empathy: Combine empathetic language with emotional responsiveness to elevate the customer experience and ensure AI interactions are genuinely supportive

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio

The Counterintuitive Charm of Complaining: Why Venting Can Boost Your Appeal

You might think that venting your frustrations at someone would drive them away, but recent research flips this assumption on its head. The study reveals a surprising twist: expressing grievances can actually make people like you more, provided you do it with the right approach. The psychology behind this paradox lies in the way complaints are delivered. When frustrations are shared with empathy and self-awareness, rather than blame and hostility, they create a sense of authenticity and vulnerability. This can enhance interpersonal connections, as others appreciate the honesty and relatability.

How might you apply this?

“Gripes and Glory”: By airing your industry’s pet peeves with a wry smile, you might find yourself aligning with common frustrations. This approach could position your brand as relatable and in tune with the everyday woes of your audience.

“Oops, We Did It Again”: Embracing your missteps with sardonic charm might humanize your brand. By candidly acknowledging and humorously addressing your blunders, you could transform potential failures into moments of endearing authenticity.

“Industry Rant & Rave”: Critiquing systemic inefficiencies with sharp wit could strategically elevate your brand’s profile. Positioning yourself as both a perceptive critic and a reformist might enhance your brand’s appeal and resonate with a dissatisfied audience.

“Behind the Scenes Drama”: Exposing internal struggles with levity might deepen customer empathy. By sharing your behind-the-scenes challenges, you could foster a more personal connection with your audience through relatable, shared experiences.

“Pet Peeve Playbook”: Highlighting daily industry frustrations with humor might enhance your brand’s relatability. Addressing common annoyances in a playful manner could strengthen your connection with customers and endear your brand to them.
 

Photo by fauxels

Surprise Me: How Businesses Can Leverage the Psychology of Unexpected Events

And for a bit of a change from the latest studies - here’s one from the archives. In their 1977 study, Slovic and Fischhoff delved into the psychology of surprise, focusing on the hindsight bias – the tendency to believe that one could have predicted an event after it has occurred. They found that this bias could be reduced by forcing participants to consider alternative outcomes.

By encouraging their audience to imagine different scenarios, businesses can mitigate the hindsight bias and foster a more nuanced understanding of complex issues. For example, communications about a problem might benefit from sharing alternative scenarios and discussing how the situation could have unfolded differently. 

A few other starters.

Embrace Uncertainty: Acknowledge that the future is unpredictable and that surprises are inevitable. This honesty may build trust with your audience.

Foster Counterfactual Thinking: Encourage your audience to consider alternative scenarios. This can help to mitigate the hindsight bias and foster a more nuanced understanding of complex issues.

Leverage the "What If" Factor: Use hypothetical questions and scenarios to engage your audience and spark thought-provoking discussions.

By incorporating the psychology of surprise into your communications you may build stronger relationships with your audience in an uncertain world.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio

As ever, if there's anything we can help with, do get in touch.

James, Patrick and Dan

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