The Power of Social Proof and Putting Your Readers First
Last week, I posted a question asking all of you whether you prefer a full post or a partial post in your RSS feed.
The argument was that a full post is what most subscribers favor, but showing a full post keeps people off of your site. On the other hand, you could get more traffic coming to your site by showing a partial post or “teaser”, but then it would defeat the purpose of having an RSS feed in the first place.
The response was amazing. In fact, more than 60 individual people commented with their opinion – and almost all of them favored ‘full post’.
Although we can easily conclude that a full post is the way to go, I wanted to illustrate two principles that came about as a result of asking this simple question: social proof and putting your readers first.
Social Proof
Social proof is a psychological phenomenon that occurs when people’s decisions are influenced by making the assumption that surrounding people know more about certain situations than you do.
In layman’s terms: groups of people have influence, and the larger the group, the more influence they have.
For example, if you’re at the mall and you see a huge crowd of people huddled around a store, you’re more than likely going to check it out, or at least acknowledge the crowd of people and wonder what the big deal is.
I decided to write last week’s post about the RSS feed as an “Ask the Reader” because I knew that what you all said as a whole would be more powerful than anything I could suggest or recommend. There is proof in the 60+ comments about what works and what doesn’t.
“The only recommendation better than the one given by somebody else is the one given by a group of somebody elses.”
We all know the power of “somebody else’s recommendation”. That’s exactly why products (both online and off) have testimonials! It’s one thing for a company to say their product is good, but it’s becomes more believable when it’s somebody else providing you that recommendation – especially when it’s a friend, and doubly especially when it’s a group of friends.
The comment section of your blog is a PERFECT place to showcase social proof. If you have something you’d like to prove, why not let your readers do it for you and make it a much more powerful statement.
If you read through the comments section of the post, you’ll actually notice a few people say they will change from a partial to a full post RSS feed. It’s not because of anything I said – I just asked a question.
That’s the power of the masses.
Putting Your Readers First
The second principle that came about from last week’s post deals with the idea of what happens when you put your readers’ best interests first.
As one commenter, Dexter from CashDoodle put it:
“[In a full post RSS feed...] If you are writing engaging content, posing contentious arguments, asking relevant questions and providing a call to action, people will head over to your blog to complete the transaction…”
He then followed up by saying:
“…we keep saying that writing a blog is about giving. Giving value to your readers. Forcing a reader back to your blog makes it about you, and what YOU want.”
It’s true – putting in a partial feed just to get clicks and traffic to your blog is a selfish thing to do, in my opinion. But the fact is that you can still get as much traffic from your RSS subscribers by providing your full post. Actually, you could get more traffic if, like Dexter said, you’re engaging your audience, asking relevant questions and including proper calls to action.
Putting my readers’ best interests first is something I always try to do here on SPI, and it has always come back around to reward me in one way or another.
Help others first, and they’ll be happy to help you out later. Karma…it’s out there.
Posted on : July 12th, 2010
Related posts:
- Think of Social Media Like This, and You Will Make Money
- Ask the Readers: How to Motivate the Unmotivated
- Ask The Readers: Is Outsourcing Irresponsible?
- Ask the Reader: Partial or Full Post in RSS Feed?
- 5 Little Known Ways to Grow Your Blog
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43 Comments (Click Here to Leave a Comment Below)
Great to see all the comments and most people supporting full posts in RSS readers.
That comment by Dexter sums it up beautifully. And those words are nothing but the truth. I really like how Dexter said “people will head over to your blog to complete the transaction…” So it all comes down to providing great value. People will not be able to resist and not follow up to the blog, to complete the ‘transaction’.
Kindest,
Nabeel
Yep! I think “transaction” is the perfect word, because you give and you get, and it’s all business related, no matter how little or big the action may be.
You’re right there Pat. Glad to see lots of people are favoring the full post.
Keep it up!
Gary
Really great post Pat!
You are absolutely right about the social proof aspect, it is really very important because what you say about yourself is not what matters but what others say.
Thanks a lot for the great post,
-Onibalusi
Thanks, as always, Onibalusi!
Wow Pat! Thanks for picking up on my comments. Seeing that really gave me a mental boost today!
Haha, awesome Dexter! It was all because you left an awesome comment, so I should be thanking you instead!
Great analogy about the store. I pictured myself at a mall and seeing a crowd gathering. ABSOLUTELY first thing I would do is check out what all the fuss is about. It happens on complete autopilot…totally subconscious.
What I especially like about the content in your post is that using social proof pretty much forces you to create good content. You can’t half-ass it an expect a bunch of people to start raving about your stuff. If you want a crowd gathering around your online shop, you better be pumping out the goods.
You’re totally right, Justin. It’s TOTALLY autopilot, which is why it’s so awesome to take advantage of, and like you said, if you bring the goods, the social proof will almost make itself. Thanks man!
That is one of the reason’s I like this blog so much, there is a great community about it. Sometimes the comments are as valuable as the posts, and this is because Pat asks the right questions and keeps the discussion flowing. This leads to more comments, which leads to more social proof, and so on, in a happy, virtuous circle.
And this is why I love you guys so much, the comments are always so great and add to the content, many times picking up on little things that I missed or should have said in the post. Thanks Tyler!
Pat,
While social proof takes some effort and leg work to build, I can tell you first hand, the social proof we’ve developed for our product has been invaluable. Social media is amazing in that it presents functionality inherent to certain platforms that allows you to gather this social proof….
I did something VERY interesting, with my product over on a website called Fiverr.com (this will be one of my posts on my blog, when it’s FINALLY released…lol)….
But, essentially, Fiverr.com REQUIRES people to leave feedback upon completion of a product or delivery of a service. With our course, I essentially took all 6 books, and made a bit of a sales funnel that requires $5 per book, but then, people would be granted the opportunity to purchase the next for $5…then the next, and so on. (I know, this sounds like ALOT of effort for little, PLUS, we took a bit of a shot on the sales price….)
However, in return, for person that has gone through this funnel, we’ve received upwards of 6 testimonials. The system inherently makes people leave a testimonial, like I said, upon delivery of each….before the next delivery occurs. So, just using fiverr alone, I was able to pull in very detailed and specialized feedback for each individual book in our course.
I love social media.
HAHA! Beauty. Great timing for me as I’m planning to launch a couple products on fiverr this week for the exact same purpose. Thanks for sharing it
The funny thing is, in all the exploring I’ve been doing on Fiverr, Justin, I can’t find a single person who has utilized it how I have. For a single product this may be difficult, however, if you write a course, you could essentially earn the same as the regular price of your product (had you sold it all for one payment), than had you allowed people to purchase in increments of $5, over time….
For example, I could sell a Course for $10 flat out on a sales page…
…or…
I could specifically plan my course to be a combination of 10 items (a few guides and books, along with a few bonuses, and sell them each for $5….
Here are the PROS to doing this on Fiverr:
-You do multiple transactions, of bombarding a customer with valuable product after valuable product. (You HAVE to make sure you have a valuable product, though, with ALOT of information, yes, even for $5). In order to receive the next installment, they will HAVE to leave feedback.
-Much like eBay, you build and develop feedback over time. Mine is at 100%, which is proof to new potential customers that you 1) Deliver and 2) Deliver quality.
-Slide them in one or two of the products with subtle affiliations linked in, and monetize those.
Here are the CONS:
-If your first product stinks, I guarantee people won’t buy subsequent products. You’ll earn $5, but, you have to have ALOT of confidence in what you are selling and KNOW that it will be valuable to the user….
Execution of this can be VERY complex and tricky. But, once it’s set up, it can be a great source of money….
Oops…when I said THIS….
“For example, I could sell a Course for $10 flat out on a sales page…”
I meant…THIS…
“For example, I could sell a Course for $50 flat out on a sales page…”
….TYPO….
Great advice. And very relevant. A course is exactly what I will be selling and I’m VERY glad I found you here because I was prepared to sell it all for $5. Now I can break it up into pieces and sell each piece instead.
Thanks again!
Justin
Hey Howie – that’s pretty slick! I can’t wait to read more about it on your blog. And yay! You included the link to your site! Woot!
I still have a few kinks to work out of the strategy, that, had I actually planned the course just a little differently, I could sell each individual product (book + bonuses), all the way up to what I would hope for the promotional price of my product to be (It’s $67.95 right now)….
By that, I mean, if I had planned it a little better, I could capture people with my first product and a $5 sales tag, and gradually, over time, make up that $67.95, in periodic $5 sales. It’s been seriously invaluable for those who are price sensitive or skeptical….it gets my name/brand/book “out there” with minimal barrier to entry because the price is so low….it’s a complete steal….
(lol….I hope that made sense….)….in return, after each $5 transaction, I’m getting a TON of positive comments (social proof), which makes a compelling sale for future customers. So, even if I do take a bit of a “loss” on the sales, the social proof more than makes up for it.
What about raising the prices for the later installments? If the first one shows the value you have to offer there shouldn’t be many objections.
Definitely a good idea, Richard….unfortunately, for the inherent functionality of Fiverr, you can only really charge $5/ per transaction….
I think fiverr affords people, if done this way, the ability to form relationships, of delivering HIGH quality, over time….which helps to reinforce your brand, and get sales later, as well, from those who know and trust you….
lol…one more post here….
I actually used the functionality of Fiverr to serve as a bit of an “alternative” to purchase my course for, say, $67.95. For my market, based on sales, I really caught on to the fact that alot of customers may be a bit price sensitive. So, Fiverr actually allowed a bit of an alternative payment option to be set up.
What I did was….Upon purchase of my first book, for $5, I would send customers 2 things:
1) The first book
2) ANOTHER .PDF displaying how my Fiverr would progress. I made it clear that, if they were interested in purchasing the second book, they could do so through the same process, and so on. I didn’t allow room for negotiation….books would be purchased, and delivered, in accordance to the picture I had made for my Fiverr.
This gets a little complex to explain. But, if you have any questions about that, let me know! (lol…didn’t mean to step on your feet here, Pat…thanks for allowing me the platform to talk about this and help your readers out just a bit….)
….oh, and speaking of providing customers with alternative payment methods, check out TrialPay.com, as well….I’ve been contemplating integrating this, as well…
Pat,
Nice post that echoes some very powerful truths of not just marketing but life.
I think that social proof is synonymous with the whole concept of building your brand online, and as you do one you get the other, so social proof in essence is not something tangible, but the result of efforts we make elsewhere.
Thanks for stopping by my blog today and reminding me I had to come over and check out what you had to say on matters of Social Media.
Alex
A lot of what applies in marketing also applies to life, I’ve found. I think that’s why I love marketing so much because it helps me live a better life too.
Thanks for the comment, and I hope to hear from you again soon. Cheers!
Hey pat,
Nice Post.
Awesome. Everyone is supporting Full RSS.
I’ve to agree with you, social proof is really important. You’re doing awesome Job Pat.
Thanks for sharing. Retweeted
~Dev
Thanks for the RT Dev – you rock!
Great post, Pat. It is always obvious through your posts that you put your readers first. You inspired me to post on my blog about the subject as well: http://yieldtohappiness.com/provide-what-your-readers-want-on-your-blog/
Awesome post Stacey – a followup to this one that everyone should read. Cheers!
It all depends on your strategy – and we need to keep in mind that stats don’t mean everything (as people say, if you have 100,000 twitter followers who love cats and you’re writing about dogs you won’t go too far). I recently restarted a blog and all I want is for people to enjoy and trust the content I provide. If they can do that by reading the full posts including photos and videos in their RSS reader, great – that just makes it easier for the reader to see how much effort I put into good content!
As long as I include a bit of branding so they know it comes from me, it will have the desired effect. If I want them to sign up for an email newsletter I can write a post about it, and that will come through in their reader. Unless you’re heavily dependent on advertising or your strategy is to get people on your site and you don’t care if they get anything once they’re there, you need to look at what you really want to encourage other than pageviews.
Now if you want to encourage comments (social proof) there could be a downside to this, since the comments on a post can contribute to the way people feel about it. I wonder if a good solution would be to show a bit of the recent discussion in the RSS feed – this might be an interesting plugin! Actually if it’s interesting enough I might even create it…
Hey Richard, great comments – all valid points. If you make that plugin, please let me know, because it would be great for RSS readers to see the discussions happening on the blog. Definitely!
I’m leaning towards putting something together this weekend – I’ll be sure to let you know!
I believe that the best way to put our readers first is by finding out what they want to know and basically placing ourselves in their shoes. This way we can provide content which they are interested in and would appreciate
Yep – that’s a quick exercise that EVERYONE must do, Julius. Whether we’re writing blog posts or trying to sell somebody something, what’s in it for THEM is what matters most.
I prefer to offer full feed because as long as someone’s reading what I have to say I don’t care if they are actually coming to my blog. I just want to make sure that I am providing as many ways possible for people to connect in a way that meets their needs whether it’s full RSS or daily email etc.
Then again, I don’t sell any banner advertising via CPM so it doesn’t really matter how much extra traffic I might get.
I’m the same way as you, Chris. If people are reading my posts in their entirety, then I can’t ask for more. That exchange of their time for my content could be a transaction that could later lead to more profitable transactions in the future.
Pat,
What a great example of the principle you’re talking about. You pose such good questions you get readers to click through to your blog to leave comments. That may not be your ultimate goal, but it does demonstrate the power of great content.
Another tremendous post Pat…I missed the one regarding RSS so I’m really glad I caught this, as it’s a debate I’m, as well as many others, are apparently having. Your blog initiates thought and conversation, and there is much to be said about the things you’re doing here Pat. As always, thx for the value.
Hey Pat,
It’s always interesting to me, how the comments and posts themselves, oftentimes spawn other ideas for posts. It sometimes turns into a perpetuating kind of thing. I enjoyed the communications about the full/partial, and was actually surprised to see it was so lopsided. I’m glad I was already on the “winning team”.
Thanks for your contributions to this world!
Brandon
Thanks for sharing this Pat. Good to see lots of people are favoring full RSS. But you’re also right about the “teaser”, I agree that it can also lead to a stronger call-to-action, so for me both of them really works, the only difference is how people treat it.
Keep it up Pat!
Kind regards,
Gary
Hey Pat! I really like the way you tied in social proof. In Robert Cialdini’s book “Influence” he discuses social proof and five other “weapons.” But more importantly, I really respect how you are putting your readers first. Thank you!
Flynn!
The whole partial RSS thing is something that I really dislike as a reader myself. I really like how I can just click on your posts in Google Reader and just enjoy your content.
Having to click more to get to the content is contrary to what we usually try to do. We naturally aim to decrease the amount of clicks necessary to induce a certain action. So by displaying only a partial post, we are “tiring” the reader and taking him away from his comfort zone, the special place he created, like I have with Google Reader.
I understand how this works well with the excerpts one has on the blog’s main page, but having the same short excerpt as a feed just beats the whole point.
Thanks for bringing this up and keep up the awesome work!
Greetings to The Family
Cheers
Patrick
I’d like to offer an alternative view. I think asking the question, “Would you rather have a full feed or partial feed?” is a bit like asking, “Would you like to pay for this content or have it for free?” The vast majority of your answers are of course going to say they want it for free (or the full feed).
But which truly results in a more profitable blog? I too use full feeds, but I’d love to see a more definitive test on which method results in greater income for the blog owner.
I Really liked the idea of using social proof for this topic. Although, I am curious just like Tim above. Just because I prefer a full feed ( I personally will not follow to the blog if otherwise) does this actually make it the most effective method? A very interesting study could be done.
Anyways, keep up the good work!
Hi Pat,
I felt compelled to “complete the transaction” on this post after reading the full content in my rss reader (google reader). I agree, I think full post is most definitely what I prefer, although I can understand the reasons why you would want to just tease the reader and force them back to the site, to increase pageviews and potential advertising exposure. BUT, I have a perfect example why doing partial is a bad model for the enthusiastic reader.
Recently, Lifehacker, a site I used to love to frequent (mainly on my RSS feed, but also on the site), changed their content to only show a teaser. Since then, I have not visited the site nearly as frequently (maybe 10% of what I formerly did), and I have found myself not even reading their content unless it is a truly enticing headline. So, I used to read content, click through quite a bit (thus generating pageviews for them) but now I tend to shy away from their RSS feed, moving on to other things that give me what I am looking for.
For a site like Lifehacker, I am surely it is truly a numbers game since they are looking for advertising pageviews, etc. But, it’s sad that they didn’t listen to (or even ask them for that matter) their consumer what would be better for them. Just goes to show you how powerful customer surveys can really be.
My 1.25 cents.
-bryan