Booking.com’s influence hack

Have you ever booked a hotel on an online site that shouted stuff like…

THERE ARE 28 OTHER PEOPLE LOOKING AT THIS ROOM!!!

THIS HOTEL HAS BEEN BOOKED 78 TIMES IN THE LAST 24 HOURS!

THERE ARE LITERALLY ONLY 5 ROOMS LEFT IN THE WHOLE OF PARIS ON THE NIGHT YOU’RE VISITING!

HURRY UP YOU SLOWCOACH BEFORE YOU AND YOUR CHILDREN HAVE TO SLEEP ON THE FLOOR OF THE GARE DU NORD!

It’s a lot. But it’s very effective.

Booking.com skyrocketed their booking rates when they implemented these kinds of prompts (their teams thought it was a website glitch because sales climbed so quickly).

They brilliantly harnessed the principle of scarcity.

Research shows that we desire things more if they are scarce – we see them as more attractive and we’re willing to pay more for them.

So how can you use the scarcity principle in your communication?

Well, first off, whatever you say has to be genuine. People can sniff out fake scarcity a mile off (‘Only 2 seats left for our extremely dull webinar!’ Yeah, right.)

But if there’s an honest and true scarcity angle to what you’re saying or offering, be sure to point it out.

So if you’re…

• sharing new data points with senior management, tell them they’re first to hear them

• presenting new services to clients, describe how fresh and exclusive that information is

• persuading a colleague to work with you on a new project, tell them how they’ll get access to exclusive information

SO GIVE IT A GO! RIGHT NOW! BEFORE YOU MISS OUT! THOUSANDS OF OTHERS ARE USING THIS STRATEGY RIGHT NOW AND IT WON’T HANG AROUND FOREVER!

Just kidding. But do give it a try.