Social proof is powerful stuff.
So powerful, in fact, that is was largely responsible for the biggest cult suicide in history.
As scary as that sounds, social proof can also be used for good, convincing people to take positive actions for themselves by dissuading their doubts.
Both will be addressed today in the very first Sparring Mind podcast, so stop reading and start listening! 
The Power of Social Proof
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So, what are we talking about today? Well… a whole lot of stuff.
- How a hotel got more people to recycle towels (saving a ton of money) with social proof
- How your church is tricking you into giving bigger donations
- Why a suicide cult is the ultimate example of the power of social proof
After those crazy stories, we’re going to get into how to apply social proof to your blog or website.
Specifically, we’ll talk about using social proof in the form of:
- Numbers, and the power of large groups
- Features, or the effect that guest posting has outside of traffic & links
- Quotes, or how kind words can sway people at the last second
I really hope you all enjoy this one, please excuse my sickly voice, I had to record while sick (had the flu last week, yuuuuuuuuuuck 
)
References
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{ 26 comments… read them below or add one }
I like the kind of social proof where I feature on the front of your website!
Nice work bro.
I’ll have a listen at lunch time.
Tyrant
Haha, I actually mentioned that in the podcast!
Hope you enjoy this one, I’m still a podcast newb, but I thought it wasn’t half bad.
Hi Gregory,
I love podcasts and I have to say, your first one is very good. Don’t worry about your voice. It sounds great. I like a lot that you speak very quietly.
Congrats!
Heh, thanks Cristina, that sore throat and stuffed up noise were bothersome but I’m glad I got this first one done regardless, glad you’ve enjoyed it so far.
Hi Gregory,
Great to see you are venturing into another medium.
Downloaded the podcast. Will listen to it in my morning commute.
“Be everywhere” Pat once said.. Me on the other hand.. a bit conscious about how I might sound too. Should just record something one of these and just jump in…
regards
Shamelle
Hey, if I can record with a sore throat & the flu, you’ve not no excuse
.
I’m just teasing, it can be tough to jump into, but you definitely give it a whirl, shoot me an email anytime if you need help.
It’s not as scary as it seems, I promise!
The hardest part is structuring content, I would suggest making a content outline and then just “going with it” as you record.
Some bullet points to stay on topic are all you need.
I know one change I’ll be making is length, 30 minutes was too long, I should focus on 15-20 minute sessions max next time.
So Glad you’re venturing into Podcast. Downloading the podcast and can’t wait to listen it.
Keep up the rocking work, dude.
-Dev
Thanks Devesh, I’ll keep on it!
Hey Greg, I’m downloading the podcast now and listen to it tomorrow probably. But could you provide us non native English speakers with a short written summary?
Just to be sure we get the main points clear.
Most definitely yes, sorry for any inconvenience, I’ll be re-writing the content on this post soon!
This is the answer a great blogger would have given, which in turn means you’re a great blogger. Not only for your quality posts but for your attitude. Much appreciated.
Thanks Andrea, I’m still working on that re-write, hopefully this week!
Thanks Gregory.
Gregory, you have been very busy my friend..
See you pop up all over the place !
Lots and lots of good content on your site!
Hope you feel better now, its is Friday after all!
Cheers,
Ralph
Thanks Ralph, I’ll keep chugging along heh.
You’re absolutely right. And what is more interesting is that social proof works for blogging as well. For example, if you come across a blog and you see that lots of people commented it, you are more inclined to comment as well. Did I apply it to blogging correctly?
True indeed, I would advocate using whatever number is the biggest on the homepage though, you’ll notice that I highlight tweets over comments because I currently get more of those.
Hey Gregory,
I’ve been following your stuff for a while now and I’m excited to see you start a podcast; I’ve gotten a mic (the stand is on the way) and I’m still afraid of starting mine. I doubt I’ll be starting anything for the next few months.
I’ll be downloading this and listening to it right away; you have written a lot of good stuff on social proof so this one should definitely be checked out!
BTW, you might want to consider adding the length and the size of the mp3 to future podcast posts; that way people will have an idea when downloading.
Thanks for the suggestion and comment Oni, means a lot coming from you.
I think there were definitely a few hiccups with this first one (length being one, I’m aiming for 15-20 minutes max from now on) but I’m glad I got it started.
I really wouldn’t worry about jumping in too much, there are a few common fears with podcasting I’ve heard about before, but they really mean nothing in face of the benefits, and more importantly, just conquering something that you want to do.
If you ever need any sort of help with podcasting, you know I’m just an email away.
LOL. your pronunciation of Guyana is more authentic than the way most Americans pronounce it, Greg. Jonestown was such a horrific event that it still sears my memory quite well, not only because it happened in my younger days, but also because it happened in a neighboring country very similar to mine at the time. Cult members were psychologically conditioned to conform to whatever Jim Jones advocated. Members feared for their lives if they didn’t, or rose up on the hierarchy with benefits when they did. When the cyanide cocktail was administered, not everyone knew that it was poison, but the tension by that point was so high, no one really trusted Jones and his inner circle. The few survivors DO mention however, that the knee-jerk reaction when given anything to eat or drink was to look around to seek social proof from what others were doing. The fact that they say others sick and falling didn’t persuade too many from refusing to drink though. It actually helped trigger the deaths. There were guys with automatic weapons hovering around, the whole atmosphere had deteriorated to Armageddon-like proportions, and remember they were already conditioned to comply. So I think it is fair to say it was a combination of pressures that resulted in so many deaths. I personally never called it mass-suicide. I called it genocide, because the power of choice was largely taken away.
Wow Rodney, that is a heck of a story.
Thanks for sharing that with me, it was really a tremendous read.
It certainly was quite a shocking event, and I almost didn’t include it, but it can at least serve to teach us a lot of lessons, lessons that go far beyond what I’ve talked about here.
Hey Gregory,
Very cool topic, and what a freaking awesome title lol!
Going to give it a listen tonight. Social proof is super powerful. I had one product that I didn’t have any testimonials for and it wasn’t selling much. I decided to use testimonials from offline web projects that I had that just mentioned how much my clients liked working with me. Bam! started getting much higher conversion rates.
Can’t wait to hear your thoughts, especially with the cast mentioned in the podcast
. Keep it up, my friend. I am a long-time lurker, but will comment more, promise 
.
Dean
Thanks for coming out of lurker mode Dean
Was glad to get this podcasting project underway, expect more coming soon!
So if you are hungry in China the rule the locals follow is “find the busiest restaurant you can and eat there” – sometimes that means waiting 1 hour plus for a table. Beijing winters go deep into the negatives, and still I’d see people waiting outside a busy restaurant instead of trying out one of the many empty ones nearby.
Really fascinating.
–
Michael
P.S: cool podcast :- )
Thanks Michael! Would love to chat to you about WriterViews by the way.