What are some benefits and challenges of using consistency and congruence as a persuasion technique?

Builds Trust: Consistently presenting a congruent message builds trust with your audience. When your words align with your actions and values, people are more likely to believe and follow your recommendations. Enhances Credibility: Consistency and congruence demonstrate reliability and authenticity, enhancing your credibility as a persuader. When your messaging is consistent across different platforms or interactions, it reinforces your authority and expertise on the topic. Increases Persuasion: People are more likely to be persuaded by messages that are consistent with their existing beliefs or values. By aligning your persuasive message with the audience's mindset.

A persuasive message delivers impact. But only when the messenger and the message are aligned. Let’s talk about alignment: - Consistency is the internal alignment of your words, actions, values, and beliefs over time. - Congruence is harmony between your verbal and non-verbal cues. For true influence, think of both consistency and congruence. Ask yourself three questions: - Do I mean what I say? - Does this match what I believe? - Does this make my audience trust me? Like a hand in a well-fitted glove, an influential message combines both internal consistency and external congruence for maximum impact.

Consistency is one of the powerful principles of influence as people act based on their prior commitments or words. In another way, it's defined by committing to what they've said or done. Just like committing to your goals once you've declared to your team members or committing to a buying decision after you've mentioned that you liked it very much. Congruence is when our verbal and non-verbal cues are aligned- your choice of words matches your tonality and body language when articulating your messages. Just like when you are complimenting someone, you give them a smile, nod your head, speak with excitement and giving them a pat on their shoulder.

People have a strong desire to be and look consistent with their prior words and deeds, especially when made publicly. Therefore, to get someone's "YES" to a proposal, an effective strategy can be to reference that person's previous statements or actions that align with the behavior you desire from them. So, if you want a colleague or your boss to support your project proposal, point to their earlier positive responses to its ideas, especially the statements they made publicly, for instance, during a meeting. Research shows that people typically wish to be consistent with these earlier 'commitments,' thereby increasing the chances of you getting that "YES" (Cialdini, 1984).

Here are three quotes about how consistency and congruence persuade...with some commentary: 🤝 “Trust is the glue of life.” - Stephen Covey 🤝 When your words and actions align over time, people believe you are dependable. More trustworthy. 📏“Credibility is built, bit by bit, through everyday interactions." - Maya Angelou 📏 Broad gestures are unnecessary. Instead, small signals we send through consistent, congruent messaging over time build up. Eventually, you get a perception of credibility. 🦉“Esse Quam Videri” (To be, rather than to seem.) - Cicero 🦉 So pay attention to the little things. Make sure your words match your tone and body language. Back up your talk with action. Then your audience will believe your message - and you.

Quando uma pessoa percebe que as ações e palavras de alguém são sempre coerentes, isso aumenta a confiança e a credibilidade, facilitando a aceitação de argumentos. Além disso, a congruência, que é a harmonia entre o que se diz e o que se faz, reforça a integridade do negociador, tornando-o mais persuasivo e confiável.

Getting someone to commit to smaller decisions before moving to the bigger ones. Just like completing a survey, agreeing for a meet up, going through the discovery fact sheet or going through the diagnosis process. Climb the hills before the mountains!

“Waste no more time arguing what a good man should be. Be one.” – Marcus Aurelius You tell your colleagues you value teamwork but rarely collaborate. Do they trust your words? Probably not. This is why consistency and congruence matter. They build trust and credibility. And they make your message powerful. How? - Walk the walk. Match your actions and words. This builds trust and increases your influence. - Live by your values. People are persuaded by someone who practices what they preach. - Listen and understand. Listen and understand their perspective to build rapport. People are drawn to those they trust. Be consistent, and you'll build strong relationships. And ultimately, be more influential.

I am a firm believer in this- persuasion involves helping them get what they want. When they are clear with their needs and wants (because of your discovery and probing techniques), they are more likely to commit towards a buying decision. This goes against techniques of being pushy and hard selling by forcing the product features and benefits into the mind of the customers.

"Moderation is the key to everything. Too much of anything, even sentiment, is a bad thing." - Blaise Pascal Consistency and congruence are fantastic persuasion techniques. But like anything good, there can be challenges. Particularly when navigating nuanced situations that demand flexibility, adaptation, and sometimes compromise. Reality check: Balancing consistency and congruence with other persuasion principles, such as reciprocity, scarcity, or social proof, is necessary. And no two situations are the same. Final word: While consistency and congruence are powerful persuasion tools, successfully navigating their application requires a nuanced approach that acknowledges and addresses a host of challenges and considerations.

Especially for consistency, some may reject smaller decision such as survey or initial discussion. Or some may not even know how to respond to your discovery questions. Consistency is not the only principle for persuasion, hence it's wise to consider alternating with other principles such as reciprocity, liking, social proof, authority and scarcity.

Look for public statements or create opportunities for small initial commitments. Consistency is a powerful motivator to keep people on a path that is consistent with their own values. Therefor you do two things: 1. Look for proof of public statements they have made about topics that align with what you are offering/proposing and tell them how your proposal is consistent with that value they have. An excellent place to look is their social media accounts. Also a survey you asked them to complete can assist in later larger commitments. 2. When you're seeking commitment to a larger request, it helps to first seek commitment to much smaller, logically in line requests. A free download before asking to join a 1hr webinar. Helpful?

Turn your statements into closed ended questions such as: Will you Would you Or turn into tagging question such as: This is nice, isn't it? Be sure to provide autonomy to the customer to answer- and it's even okay if the answer is no.

Influence isn't magic. I know it seems like it sometimes. But it’s an exercise in trust. To maximize your power of influence, you have to: Be self-aware: What are your values? And how do they align with your audience? Get rid of fluff and contradictions. Be you: Let your emotions and body language amplify your words. Create an authentic connection. Be flexible: We are flooded with new information. Adapt to this information without compromising your core values. Influence is about alignment, not manipulation. That is important, so I'll say it again, influence is about alignment, not manipulation. Remember, true persuasion stems from a shared journey, not a scripted performance.

🔴Gaps: ◾Lack of Practical Examples: Needs illustrative examples. ◾Absence of Actionable Steps: No specific steps for achieving consistency and congruence. ◾Limited Audience Analysis: Doesn't deeply analyze the audience. ◾Ignoring Cultural Contexts: Overlooks cultural differences in valuing consistency. ⚫Cons: ◾Abstract Concepts: Ideas unclear without examples. ◾Surface-Level Advice: Lacks deep strategies. ◾Overemphasis on Consistency: Neglects flexibility. ✅Proposed Solution: ◾Add illustrative examples for clarity. ◾Provide actionable steps for consistency and congruence. ◾Conduct audience analysis to understand needs. ◾Consider cultural contexts for relevance. ◾Balance consistency with flexibility to adapt strategies.

There's a commitment strategy that can help you influence others to perform the behavior you want from them. I'll give you an example from the restaurant business, where it helped reduce no-shows. It comes from Gordon Sinclair, a restaurant owner in Chicago. The usual request when taking a reservation from a customer goes like this: "Please call if you have to change or cancel your reservation." Sinclair added two words: "WILL YOU please call if you have to change or cancel your reservation?" - Then he would pause, allowing the caller to respond with something like, "Sure." This answer served as a commitment that increased the chances of the caller indeed showing up. It reduced no-shows from 30% to 10%.

La consistencia refuerza confianza y credibilidad. Cuando un mensaje es constante en diferentes contextos, la audiencia lo percibe como auténtico y confiable. Además, la congruencia entre palabras y acciones hace que la persuasión sea efectiva, ya que la gente sigue más a quienes demuestran coherencia en sus valores y decisiones. El desafío es evitar la rigidez. Si la consistencia se vuelve inflexible, puede limitar la capacidad de adaptación y generar resistencia. La clave es mantener un equilibrio: ser firme en el mensaje sin ignorar cambios en la audiencia o el entorno. La persuasión efectiva se basa en credibilidad, pero también en conexión!