PERSUASIVE

COMMUNICATION

DR. MONICA KHANNA
 PERSUASION

 Persuasion is communication that guides other
people towards the adoption of an idea or action.
 Speaking persuasively and influencing others does
not mean deceiving them into doing something they
don’t want to do.
 Instead, you often persuade others to convince them
about the importance of their tasks, motivate them to
perform, and request assistance and action.
 PROCESS OF
PERSUASION

 Prof. William J. McGuire at Yale University proposed a
model of attitude change:
 Attention – one must first get the attention of the intended
audience to listen to what one has to say.
 Comprehension – The intended audience must understand
the argument or message presented.
 Reducing Resistance – The audience must reduce resistance
and accept the message (acceptance is based on rewards
offered).
 Retention – The message must be remembered and must
have staying power.
 Acting – The intended audience must act in accordance with
the message.
 PROCESS OF
PERSUASION


Gaining Reducing
Comprehension Retaining Acting
Attention Resistance
 VARIABLES FOR
PERSUASION

 Source – What characteristics of the speaker affect
the persuasive impact?
 Communication – What aspects of the message will
have the most impact?
 Audience – How persuadable are the members of the
audience?
 Audience Reactions – What aspects of the source and
communication elicit counter arguing reactions in
the audience?
ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS

 Choose your timing – Persuasion is an emotional form
of communication that others must be ready to receive.
People who are tied up, upset, overwhelmed, or
frustrated will not be open to persuasion.

 Start with an offer – Offering something is a powerful

way to start communication as it sets the tone for the
discussion and encourages the other person to
reciprocate by offering you something in return.
ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS

 Emphasize the benefits – Demonstrate how your idea,
product or service will directly benefit the other person,
without exaggeration.

 Plan for questions and contradictions – Expect

questions, objections and resistance. Understand that
they may view the situation differently, anticipate their
concerns so that you can respond to them confidently.
ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS

 Mirror the other person – Subtly mimic their body
language, posture, head movement and gestures, thus
demonstrating empathy and sensitivity.

 Do not lie or exaggerate – People will ultimately

discover dishonesty, and in order to establish credibility
and build a long term relationship, it is imperative to be
honest.
 EXAMPLES

 Establishing Credibility – Other agencies have used these
team-building techniques to improve company morale.
 Overcome Objections – I know you are busy this week,
but the meeting could help you work more productively.
 Make specific, humble request – Can you meet for one
hour and bring one suggestion for improving company
communication?
 Cite Benefits – The meeting is designed to share ideas
about making Quest a more satisfying place to work.
 THE MINTO PYRAMID
PRINCIPLE

 The Minto Pyramid Principle, propounded by Barbara
Minto, also referred to as the McKinsey’s Pyramid
Principle, is a tool used to process and structure large
amounts of information to convey a story, message or
presentation without omitting important details.

 It is applied by structuring points and arguments after

the thesis statement has been introduced. The
information that is presented subsequently branches off
to the specific details in a clear and insightful manner.
 THE MINTO PYRAMID
PRINCIPLE

 Start with the answer, thesis or key point – inversion of
the traditional method in order to maximise and
effectively use the limited time of the audience. This
direct communication style is a display of assertiveness
and self-confidence.
 Group arguments and summarise the main points -
Each point represents a summary of specific support for
the recommendation or the answer from the first step.
 THE MINTO PYRAMID
PRINCIPLE

 Present supporting details and ideas in a logical manner
- Supporting details and ideas are given that must show
the validity of the presented arguments. If the
arguments and ideas that are given contain a certain
flow, frequency or cause-effect structure, these must be
placed in chronological order. The most important
arguments and ideas must be presented first.
 THE MINTO PYRAMID
PRINCIPLE
 • Situation
Put the main
idea first • Problem
• Question
Introduction
• Answer

• Logic
Supporting • Evidence
• Ideally, three
Arguments

• Summarize
Conclusion • Restate the Answer
 SAMPLE OUTLINE
1. Introduction

1.1 There is a lot of pollution in India’s cities
1.2 Cars are a large source of pollution
1.3 Cars should be banned from India’s cities
2. Supporting Points
2.1 We are facing a crisis
2.1.1 The air in Delhi is detrimental to health
2.2 Cars are the main cause of the crisis
2.2.1 Cars add 2 million metric tonnes of particulate to Delhi air each year
2.3 Half measures will not be enough
3.1.1 People in Delhi did not comply with the odd-even rule
3. Conclusion
3.1 We are facing a crisis
3.2 Cars are the main cause of the crisis
3.3 Half measures will not be enough
3.4 Cars should be banned from India’s cities
 RATIONAL MODEL

 The rational model of persuasion is based on the idea
that people behave in predictable ways based on their
beliefs and values.
 Beliefs and values are based on what the person knows
about the world.
 So for example, if someone knows that wearing a
seatbelt saves lives and if he or she values their own life,
they probably believe that they should wear a seatbelt.
Based on their beliefs and values, they will probably
behave in a rational way and wear their seatbelt in the
car.
 RATIONAL MODEL

 However, the rational model can get pretty
complicated.
 For example, most of us believe that a salad is healthier
than pizza, but lots and lots of people every day go into
restaurants and order pizza instead of salads.
 One possible answer is that those people have
conflicting values and beliefs. They might believe that
salad is healthier, but they might also believe that pizza
is more delicious. They might value health, but they
might also value pleasure.
 CONCLUSION

Persuasion is often more
effectual than force.