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The Great Wealth Transfer: What Happens When $124 Trillion Changes Hands?
New projections earlier this year have the Great Wealth Transfer at a potential $124 trillion through 2048.
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Past performance is not indicative of future performance. Investing involves risk. See important disclosures at masterworks.com/cd
6 Tricks That Make People Say Yes
Cialdini wrote the book on persuasion. Here's what it means for your sales game — right now.
A psychologist named Robert Cialdini spent years studying why people say yes. He found 6 simple things that push us to act. He called them the principles of persuasion. And if you sell anything — a product, a service, even an idea — these 6 things are the most useful thing you'll read this week.
Each one comes with three questions: What do you do right now? What do you plan for later? And what should you never, ever forget?
Short words. Simple ideas. Big results. That's what Cialdini proved — and that's what this article is about. |
01 Reciprocity — Give First, Win Later
▶ DO IT NOW
Before your next sales call, send the prospect something useful. A short tip. A free resource. A connection to someone they should meet. Don't ask for anything in return. Just give. Cialdini found that when someone does something nice for you, your brain makes you want to return the favour. That pull is automatic. Use it.
▶ PLAN FOR IT
Build a "give first" routine before every deal. Touch 1: share something helpful. Touch 2: connect them to someone useful. Touch 3: offer a short free chat with no strings. By the time you ask for the sale, you've already given three times. Most salespeople do it backwards. Don't be most salespeople.
▶ NEVER FORGET
A gift only works if it feels real. A fake gift — like a discount code slapped on a cold email — is just a promo, not a gift. People can smell the difference. If you give to get, it will backfire. Give because you mean it. The return will come.
02 Commitment — Small Yes Leads to Big Yes
▶ DO IT NOW
At the start of your next call, ask the prospect to tell you what their perfect outcome looks like. Let them say it out loud. Once they do, they've made a small commitment. Now your job is easy — show them how your product delivers exactly what they just described. They told you what to sell them. Listen.
▶ PLAN FOR IT
Build a staircase of small yeses: a free trial, a pilot program, a simple letter of intent. Each step makes the next one easier. Cialdini found that written commitments are the strongest. So after every call, send a quick email recap and ask if you got it right. Their reply seals the deal in their own mind.
▶ NEVER FORGET
People don't just want to keep their word — they want to act like the person they believe they are. Use that. Say things like: "Since you care a lot about saving time..." or "Because you told me growth is your top goal..." They'll say yes to stay consistent with who they think they are.
03 Social Proof — Show Them Who Else Said Yes
▶ DO IT NOW
Look at your case studies right now. Are they specific? Or do they say things like "great product!" and nothing else? Replace vague praise with real numbers and real stories. The more your prospect looks like the customer in the story, the harder it is for them to say no. Same industry. Same size. Same problem. Same result.
▶ PLAN FOR IT
Build a library of customer stories, sorted by who your prospect is. CFO at a mid-size company? Have a CFO story ready. First-time buyer? Have a first-time buyer story ready. One phone call between your happy customer and your nervous prospect is worth ten slide decks. Set that up every quarter.
▶ NEVER FORGET
Social proof hits hardest when someone is unsure. Don't use your best story at the start of the pitch. Save it for the moment they hesitate. That's when doubt is highest — and that's when a peer story does the most work.
04 Authority — Be the Expert in the Room
▶ DO IT NOW
Share something smart before you share your pitch. Write one short post. Send one data point they haven't seen. Say one thing in the first five minutes that makes them think: "This person knows their stuff." Cialdini found that people trust and follow experts. Give them a reason to see you as one — before you try to sell them anything.
▶ PLAN FOR IT
Let others build your credibility for you. A warm introduction from someone they trust is worth more than anything you can say about yourself. Work with your team to make sure prospects see proof of your expertise before you show up — press mentions, awards, endorsements. Let your reputation arrive before you do.
▶ NEVER FORGET
Real experts admit what they don't know. Saying "That's not our best use case, but here's where we really shine" builds more trust than pretending to be perfect. Honesty is a power move. It makes everything else you say more believable.
05 Liking — People Buy From People They Like
▶ DO IT NOW
Spend the first five minutes of every call finding something you genuinely have in common with the person. Not faking it — actually finding it. Same city. Same school. Same hobby. Same frustration. Cialdini's research shows that similarity is a strong trust trigger. Check their LinkedIn the night before. Come ready to connect like a human, not a bot.
▶ PLAN FOR IT
Make referrals part of your process. People like who their friends like. After every happy customer, ask them: "Is there anyone else you know who might benefit?" Do it in a low-key way, right after they've praised you. That moment is when they're most likely to say yes — and their yes gets you in the door with someone new.
▶ NEVER FORGET
You are the first version of what it feels like to work with your company. Show up with energy. Be someone they want to talk to again. Liking is not fluff — it is one of the strongest forces in every buying decision ever made.
06 Scarcity — What We Can't Have, We Want More
▶ DO IT NOW
Stop making up fake urgency. "This deal expires Friday" when it doesn't is a trust killer. If they find out — and they often do — the relationship is over. Instead, use real limits: actual spots in your onboarding queue, real capacity, genuine quarter-end windows. Real scarcity doesn't need hype. It speaks for itself.
▶ PLAN FOR IT
Build true scarcity into your offer ahead of time. Limited onboarding slots. Priority tiers. Real deadline-based incentives tied to your company's actual schedule. Work with your team each quarter to find what's genuinely limited. Then tell prospects early — not as a pressure tactic, but as honest information.
▶ NEVER FORGET
Scarcity is the most dangerous principle to fake. It creates pressure — and pressure is a double-edged sword. Used honestly, it creates momentum and helps people decide. Used falsely, it destroys trust and kills the referral you would have gotten. One fake deadline can cost you ten future customers.
The Bottom Line
These six principles are not tricks. They are how human beings are wired. Cialdini didn't invent them — he discovered them. They were already running in the background of every sale ever made. Now you know their names.
The salespeople who win long-term are not the ones who use these as shortcuts. They're the ones who use them honestly — as a way to serve people better, communicate more clearly, and build trust that lasts.
Give before you ask. Get small yeses. Show proof. Be the expert. Be likeable. Be real about limits. Do those six things and selling gets a whole lot easier.