This book will change the way you see the world.

Would you listen to Influence again? Why?

Yes! The psychological features explored and exposed by Cialdini run far deeper than I first realized. While most of the material can trigger the "thats common sense I already knew that response", it becomes surreal when you start recognizing these features in yourself and your environment (part of the book even covers the "I already knew that" reaction)

What was one of the most memorable moments of Influence?

When social psychologist Leon Festinger infiltrated the "seekers" doomsday cult in the 1950's to observe their reactions when the world didn't end as predicted.

Which scene was your favorite?

The author describing how he himself succumbed to a very persuasive saleswoman.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I was shocked to realize the same psychology that underpins why sitcom laugh tracks work is the same as what reinforces religious belief through proselytizing.

Any additional comments?

This book will seem benign and trivial to the faint of heart and mind..... to those with the courage to see the psychology in themselves first and then in others will.... "see the matrix". It runs a lot deeper than first glance affords.

65 people found this helpful

Classical

I always wanted to read Robert Cialdini's Influence but my credits were short. Then, at an Audible's sale I saw the book and bought it. And I was glad I did. Despite the book being "old"- published in 1984, and many other books were based on its instructions, Influence is still fresh. Reciprocity, Commitment &Consistency, Social proof, Authority, Liking and Scarcity still work! And very well indeed. The narrator, Lloyd James, fits perfectly with the book.
Read or listen to this book, and thank Cialdini for this masterpiece.

30 people found this helpful

Great content silly audio book errors

Great book. Odd avoidable errors with the editing, repeated content (wait they just read that) and "insert next CD (what???). Cheap publishing moves, corners cut.

93 people found this helpful

Cheesy, dated and badly narrated - but fun

‘Influence’ has the feel of one of those awful self-help books teaching you how to win the rat race and get the better of all your colleagues at work. It reveals all the tricks that door-to-door salespeople and used car lot predators will use on you to persuade you to part with your money.

A good salesperson will use all the weapons in this armoury: Reciprocity, Commitment & Consistency, Social proof, Authority, Liking and Scarcity. When you hear the excellent (but dated) anecdotes about how these tricks are used in scam situations such as Tupperware Parties, you’ll recognise that you’ve probably succumbed to some of these yourself in the past. Although, I have to say, that some of them I would definitely have been wise to before this listen.

He discusses canned laughter: I’m sure anyone with half a brain finds canned laughter sickeningly intrusive and crass, and that this device does NOT make the programme funnier, and you’d probably feel it has the opposite effect. But apparently research shows that when people listen to episodes of the same show, randomised to be with or without the canned laughter track, they report that it was funnier with the canned laughter. Apparently, even though it is annoying, you just can’t help finding it funny because of the ‘social proof’ suggested by the laughter track.

This concept is also apparently responsible for the following disturbing phenomenon: After a high profile suicide appears in a major news story, there is commonly an increase in car and air crashes - and statistically these involve a higher rate of fatalities than usual. The answer? Apparently people who were on the verge of suicide hear about the high profile suicide and this ‘social proof’ persuades them that suicide is the right thing to do – and they go out and crash their vehicles in the most deadly way they can.

The book is full of tid-bits and pop psychology such as this. Its datedness makes it seem a bit comical at times. The narrator has a good ‘dramatic’ voice but his word emphasis is distractingly terrible and the phrase ‘please insert the next CD’ crops up every 30 minutes or so. But if you don’t get too hung up on these flaws then the book is a good entertaining listen.

25 people found this helpful

Minor edit would be nice

The only thing that was annoying was the "continued on the next cd". A short edit would be nice when the recording was moved from a cd to the audible format.

41 people found this helpful

Very insightful

I think for anyone that wants to learn sales and marketing, you should buy this immediately and promise yourself to read it.

7 people found this helpful

Critical info for life

Filled with critical information if you are in sales, marketing, or any kind of business, or just want to know why you buy things you don't think you want. Excellent narration too.

7 people found this helpful

What was this about?

In the beginning I have some very good points, and I think find a book just in those points is good enough. However after while the store is began to repeat, and then it digressed into story is that I could not see as relevant. It is almost as if the author ran out of things to say. Perhaps I needed it to stay with the book a little bit longer to see if they came together into a conclusion point but I was unable to finish it because I felt the stories were irrelevant at the end.

6 people found this helpful

Read book to learn how people can scam you

This book would stand out more if it was titled "How People Can Scam You." It is filled with useful information about tactics that manipulate you into agreeing to or buying something you normally wouldn't have if it weren't for the tactics. The author cites studies that demonstrated these tactics work. The author also provides dramatized stories so you can see how the tactics are applied in different situations. People are familiar with many of the advertisers' tactics, such as posing an attractive model next to a car or using celebrity spokespersons to promote their product. Despite knowing it's a tactic, people are still persuaded by it. Advertisers still continue to do that because they can see it increases sales. This book provides many examples of these manipulation tactics and explains why they work. By reading this book, you'll become more conscious of how others (salespersons, politicians, and businesspersons) may be trying to manipulate you.

35 people found this helpful

The narrator failure

I haven't finished reading yet but couldn't wait for the end to rate because of narrator's poor reading skills. He just stops in the middle of sentences for no reason and waits like 2 seconds to continue again. It completely ruins my focus on the sentence. I hear two meaningless unfinished sentences instead of one complete sentence almost all the time. I'd recommend buying a hard copy of the book instead.

44 people found this helpful