Does Persuasion by Scarcity Work?
Business communication students may learn about Robert Cialdini’s Six Principles of Persuasion, including scarcity. For example, a online retailer indicates “Only two left!” or “Only one left at this price!”
In a Wall Street Journal article, a researcher questions whether the “quantity scarcity” strategy works under all conditions. Dr. Christopher Tang explains new research:
“…scarcity messages work best with time-sensitive and perishable products such as hotel rooms or plane tickets, as well as unique items like collectibles or limited editions.
“They are less effective with durable goods such as home-improvement products or kitchenware, in part because they can give shoppers the impression that the product is being pushed because it is undesirable, lower quality, obsolete or discontinued. And in the case of items typically bought in larger quantities, such as partyware, lightbulbs and batteries, we found that scarcity messages can actually hurt sales by making shoppers believe they won’t be able to buy as much of a product as they want.”
To use the scarcity principle effectively, Dr. Tang suggests that retailers highlight quality, promote urgency, and offer product bundles
Discussion:
When have you seen the quantity scarcity at work? Did it persuade you to purchase something?
Think of a specific product that you might buy. How would you recommend that retailers use this strategy effectively to move remaining products?
WHO Official Bungles Interview
World Health Organization (WHO) senior adviser Bruce Alyward wanted to avoid a reporter’s question about Taiwan becoming a member of the organization. A video of the interview shows an awkward exchange, with Alyward remaining silent (but we still see him moving and hear sounds), saying “Sorry, I couldn’t hear your question,” asking the reporter to move onto another question, and then, finally, ending the call. During a follow-up call, Alyward refers to China and then abruptly ends the call.
Taiwan has had good success in controlling COVID-19, and the government claims to have warned the WHO back in December 2019 about the contagion.
As of today, Alyward’s name is removed from WHO’s website listing advisers to the organization.
Discussion:
What is a better way for Alyward to have handled the reporter’s question?
Why do you think the WHO ignored warnings from the Taiwanese government?
Marriott CEO Demonstrates Authenticity
A Forbes article calls him an “authentic leader” and applauds his video about the business. Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson begins by talking about his appearance: he is undergoing treatment for pancreatic cancer.
Sorenson gives the bad news directly: the company hit from COVID-19 is worse than the impact from 9/11 and the 2009 financial recession combined. He compares the worst quarter in the company’s history—about a 25% revenue decline—to the almost immediate 90% decline today.
Towards the end of the video, Sorenson is visibly emotional as he talks about employees losing their jobs.
Discussion:
What principles of delivering bad news does Sorensen use in the video?
How well does Sorenson balance emotional appeal, logic, and credibility in this message?
In addition to authenticity, what other leadership character dimensions does Sorenson demonstrate?
Too Many COVID-19 Emails?
A Fast Company article criticizes brands for sending emails without real connections to customers. Consumers are getting annoyed at seemingly random emails from companies that happen to have their email. The author offers this advice:
The best way that brands should be responding is if they actually have something to say or contribute. Our patience for marketing fluff is low at the best of times, but now it’s positively toxic.
Discussion:
Think about the emails you have received recently. Which were more useful or meaningful to you than others? Why is that the case?
What advice do you have for companies debating whether and what types of emails to send?
FreshDirect Message
Dear FreshDirect Team Members, Suppliers, and Customers,
In the past few weeks, our community has come together in an extraordinary way as we navigate this ‘new normal’ of everyday life for the foreseeable future. Our team members, our suppliers, and our customers are all part of this evolving conversation so I thought it appropriate to address everyone together.
Thank you, first and foremost, to our remarkable FreshDirect employees who are receiving, preparing, packing and delivering food during this extremely challenging time, and working around the clock to serve even more customers. Your dedication and perseverance is inspiring, and I’m privileged and proud to be on your team. You are true heroes.
Thank you to all of our suppliers, particularly our food suppliers on farms, boats and ranches, who, even with their own challenges, tell us that they will stop at nothing to not let us down. Grocers are now being called heroes, but know that we consider all of you heroes as well – boots on the ground, ensuring that the quality food that you grow continues to roll.
Thank you to our loyal customers, for trusting us to serve you and your family during this unimaginable time, and for continually asking about our team members, sharing encouragement and appreciation for all they are doing to provide food. The shift of virtually all food consumption into the home has strained the entire food industry, and we are all working tirelessly to address the resulting shortage in time slots.
Together, as a community, we are going to be doing even more to help others.
In just the last 10 days, the FreshDirect customer community has donated over $75,000 to the NY Common Pantry, an organization that for years has been helping others and now needs a helping hand. The FreshDirect employee community continues to support them as well, by packing and delivering thousands of boxes every week.
And this week, we are launching a new public/private partnership with the five NYC Borough Presidents, which we’ve dubbed Operation 5 Borough Food Drive. Starting Tuesday, the FreshDirect team will be donating and packing 2,000 boxes of food staples each weekday. These boxes will be delivered at the direction of each Borough President to those in need, free of charge, thanks to the generosity of our suppliers.
Thank you, and stay healthy and strong.
David
Discussion:
Analyze the message: the audiences, communication objectives, and so on.
What works well, and what could be improved?
How do you assess the message, given criticism of the Fast Company article?
Starbucks Communication
The Starbucks website has been updated regularly with news about the company’s response to COVID-19. Near the top of the page is a link to “At-a-glance: What customers need to know about Starbucks response to COVID-19.”
The big news is that stores will offer only drive-thru service for the next two weeks. In a letter to Starbucks partners (employees), the company promised 30 days of pay whether they work or not.
Discussion:
Analyze both the public website and the letter to partners. Describe the audiences and communication objectives of each.
What organizational structure is used for these bad-news messages?
What does Starbucks do well in its communications? How can communications be improved?
How well does the company balance emotional appeal and logical arguments?
In this post, you see “Starbucks response” on the company’s website and “Starbucks partners” in my text. Neither has an apostrophe. Is that correct?
Tourism CEOs Meet with President Trump
President Trump invited CEOs of major tourism companies to discuss the COVID-19 response.
Hilton CEO Christopher Nassetta began by highlighting issues in the industry:
“Hilton’s been around 100 years -- we’ve never closed a hotel that wasn’t going to be demolished or rebuilding, The bulk of our hotels in the major cities are closing as we speak.”
Nassetta was also complimentary to President Trump and Vice President Pence and said that he wanted to protect employees. The president reassured him that they’ll be up and running soon, although both said the situation is currently a “disaster” “all over the world.”
Discussion:
How would you describe the purpose of this gathering? What are President Trump’s objectives?
Assess each of the CEOs during the meeting. How well did they represent their brand?
Singapore PM Lee Hsien Loong
Two students sent me Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s news conference as a positive example. I can see why: he gives a model speech, balancing emotional appeal and straight talk. He is proud of Singapore’s response, and yet he is honest about the challenges ahead. The PM also gives examples from other countries and the lessons learned.
Discussion:
What are the strengths of the Prime Minister’s speech?
Assess his delivery skills.
How have leaders in other countries followed this example—or how have they fell short?
Which leadership character dimensions does the PM demonstrate in his speech?
Common Writing Mistakes Infographic
An editor at Macmillan Publishing created an infographic to show the most common mistakes writers make. Misplaced commas, wordy sentences, and run-on sentences get top billing.
The list is interesting and helpful to alert writers to what they should focus on when they revise their work. I wouldn’t try to attack all of these issues on a rough draft.
Of course, some of these mistakes are more serious than others. Although they’re prioritized by frequency, other organizational strategies might be useful.
Advice at the bottom of the infographic is useful for anyone.
Discussion:
Which of these common mistakes are problems in your own writing? How have you been able to tackle them?
How else could this list be organized?
How useful do you find the advice at the bottom? What other advice would you offer writers?
Governor Cuomo's Press Conference
In his second news conference about Coronavirus, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced new cases, provided resources, and answered questions.
Discussion:
Assess the news conference. What does Governor Cuomo do well, and what suggestions would you have for him to improve his communication?
What strategies for answering questions does the Governor demonstrate?
Comparing Airlines Messages About COVID-19
Transportation companies would like to see more people travel, yet people are wary of COVID-19. Compare these emails to travelers:
Discussion:
Analyze the messages: audience, communication objectives, organization, writing style, etc.
In what ways are the messages similar and different? How might the travel mode—airline or bus—affect the communication choices?
Which messages are most and least effective and why?
What’s your view of the American Airlines video? How does the media choice affect the message?
CDC Guidelines to Airlines About COVID-19
The Centers for Disease Control issued recommendations to airlines and their crews to try to address COVID-19. The web page begins with the purpose:
“This document provides interim recommendations for the commercial airline industry about the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) first identified in Wuhan, China. CDC reminds air carriers of the requirement under Title 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) section 71.21 to report to CDC ill travelers who have certain signs and symptoms during flight, and all deaths onboard, before arrival in the United States. This document also contains recommendations for managing ill travelers onboard if COVID-19 infection is suspected.”
Next is a “Situation summary,” followed by guidelines for handling ill passengers aboard a flight and for cleaning a plane after a flight.
Other sections on the CDC website address “Reporting Death or Illness” and “Managing Ill Passengers/Crew.”
Discussion:
Who are the primary and secondary audiences for CDC’s website? What are the organization’s communication objectives during the COVID-19 outbreak?
Review the CDC website from the home page. How easy is it to find information? How clear is the information you do find? In summary, how well does the organization meet its communication objectives? What could be improved?
Confusing Pie Chart
A former student sent me this chart, and he didn’t have a source, but it’s a good example of what not to do when creating pie charts. What problems can you identify?
Discussion:
What principles of creating pie charts are followed, and how does the chart fall short?
Is the pie chart the best choice for this data? What would be a better choice and why?
What does the text imply?
More Toyota Recalls
About a month after the last recall, Toyota announced another recall for a total of 1.8 million vehicles. The issue is a fuel pump that fails, causing the car to stall and possibly not restart.
In both statements, Toyota calls the recall “voluntary,” but the number of models is significant, dating back to 2013. Like most recall messages, Toyota’s is straightforward and focuses on affected vehicles and the remedy—in this case a new fuel pump for free.
Discussion:
Analyze the recall message. Who are the primary and secondary audiences, and what are the communication objectives?
Analyze Toyota’s website. How easy is it to find information about the recalls? What, if anything, could be improved?
Email Scammers
Remember those quaint email scams that were riddled with grammatical errors? A Wall Street Journal article describes new, sophisticated training for email scammers in Africa. A Nigerian is quoted: “You know how you guys play baseball when you are growing up? Here many of us learn fraud.”
Former scams involved people sending email asking for money for people in trouble or promising big returns on small funds. Today’s scams involve hacking into accounts and people learning about connections, for example, what vendors a company uses. A fake invoice to a known vendor is more likely to get paid. Using a grandson’s real name could lead a grandmother to Wal-Mart to send money to him, which happened to my friend’s mother.
About $1.7 billion was lost to email scams in 2019, and complaints are rising steadily. The article describes a “grooming” process “like organized crime.”
Discussion:
We hear a lot about victims’ vulnerability, but what creates a culture of scammers? What makes people vulnerable to commit this fraud? For more about this, watch The Weekly documentary about love scams on Facebook.
What’s your view of the bar chart in the WSJ article? How could it be improved? Would you prefer a more creative graphic, or does this work as is?
Comparing Headlines About the Market
How does the media describe the recent stock market decline? Let’s compare a few headlines:
Dow falls 1,191 points -- the most in history (CNN)
Coronavirus Drives Stocks Down for 6th Day and Into Correction (New York Times)
U.S. Stocks Slide Into a Correction as Virus Fears Show No Sign of Easing (Wall Street Journal)
Dow's point drop worst on record as stocks fall into correction (Fox News)
Dow drops 1190 points amid coronavirus fears, S&P 500 sees fastest correction in history (Yahoo Finance)
Of the five, Fox is the only one that didn’t place a headline about the market at the top of its web page.
Discussion:
What do you make of these headline choices, including placement? What might the wording indicate about the media group’s beliefs or audience?
In class after a previous decline, I took issue with headlines like CNN’s. Do you see an issue? (Hint: What does a raw number tell us?)
Disney Names New CEO
After 14 years as CEO, Bob Iger will be replaced by Bob Chapek, who has led the company’s parks and resorts division. The Wall Street Journal reports that insiders didn’t see the change coming.
A press release states that Iger will stay on as executive chairman through 2021. The release includes the typical quotes from the exiting and incoming leaders, and both men are complimentary toward each other and the company. But this release also includes a rather lengthy quote from Susan Arnold, the lead director of the Disney Board. She begins by describing the board’s process:
“The Board has been actively engaged in succession planning for the past several years, and after consideration of internal and external candidates, we unanimously elected Bob Chapek as the next CEO of The Walt Disney Company. “
Discussion:
Analyze the press release: audiences, communication objectives, organization, content, and writing style.
What are the main points you take away from reading the release?
Assess the quotes, particularly the ones from Arnold. Why do you think the company is emphasizing certain points?
MLB Players Dispute Response to Cheating Scandal
Several players have criticized how Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred handled the recent cheating scandal. Calling the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing “the biggest scandal in the sport since the steroid era,” an ESPN writer concludes that “fallout continues.”
In an interview, Manfred explained the decision to recall the Astros’ 2017 World Series title and how the first apology didn’t go over very well. Manfred referred to the World Series trophy as a “piece of metal.” Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels spoke against Manfred’s reference:
“For him to devalue it the way he did [Sunday] just tells me how out of touch he is with the players in this game. At this point, the only thing devaluing that trophy is that it says ‘commissioner’ on it.”
Manfred has since apologized:
“In an effort to make a rhetorical point, I referred to the World Series trophy in a disrespectful way, and I want to apologize for that. There’s no excuse for it. I made a mistake. I was trying to make a point, but I should have made it in a more effective way.”
NBA star LeBron James weighed in on Twitter, encouraging the MLB to “listen to your players speaking today about how disgusted, mad, hurt, broken, etc etc about this.” As expected, some appreciated his perspective, while others didn’t.
Discussion:
What’s your view of the controversy? Are you also critical of Manfred’s handling of the situation?
How well did Manfred handle the criticism of his “piece of metal” comment?
Should LeBron James have entered the debate, or should he have avoided it, as some suggest? Why or why not?
Dupont Announces New Leadership
Dupont has a new CEO, and he looks a lot like a former CEO. Ed Breen was previously appointed CEO in 2015 and was replaced about a year ago. He has been serving as chief executive and will now serve in both roles.
Breen describes the company’s position:
“While we made some progress in 2019, we did not meet our own expectations and we now need to move aggressively to secure our foundation for growth. We have solid businesses, but, as we discussed on our recent earnings call, we need to accelerate operational improvement and make sure we are taking appropriate action to deliver on our commitments for the year.”
In a press release, the company also names a new CFO, Lori Koch, who was previously the head of investor relations.
Discussion:
Analyze the press release: audiences, organization, content, and so on. What business communication principles are followed, and how could the statement be improved?
Compare this release to other leadership change announcements. How does it differ? Consider the tone and quotations.
Quantifying a Tweet
When someone in an organization goes rogue and sends a tweet, what’s the potential damage? The NBA found out the hard way that the financial impact could be significant.
In October 2019, Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey supported Hong Kong protests in a tweet. As a result, Chinese advertisers pulled their ads and broadcasters wouldn’t air games. Now, NBA commissioner Adam Silver admits the loss will total “hundreds of millions” of dollars and “probably less than $400 million.” Silver expanded on the damage:
“It’s substantial. I don’t want to run from that. We were taken off the air in China for a period of time, and it caused our many business partners in China to feel it was therefore inappropriate to have ongoing relationships with us. But I don’t have any sense that there’s any permanent damage to our business there.”
Discussion:
Review the situation from October. What lessons can managers learn?
What’s your view of Silver admitting the loss? What are the arguments for and against his honesty?