The Science of Selling summary

A shopper is browsing a grocery store when he spots a new cereal on the shelf. He walks closer and looks at the box. After a moment, he puts it in his cart with the rest of his purchases. But why?

When asked this question, salespeople give all sorts of answers. Maybe it was the box art, or the price, or just the fact that he was hungry at the time. And while none of these answers is wrong, none of them is completely right.

Imagine you’re on trial and the jury has found you guilty. Now it’s up to the court to determine your sentence. At this point, you may be tempted to give the judge a persuasive argument for leniency. But according to research, you may have better luck by offering her a sandwich and a nap.

It seems silly, but it’s true. Studies show that judges give out harsher sentences when they’re tired or hungry. In contrast, a well-rested and well-fed judge grants parole 65 percent of the time.

For medical professionals, questions are tools of the trade and are just as important as thermometers or stethoscopes. That’s why a trip to the doctor is often filled with all kinds of queries about what’s bothering you, how long it’s been a problem, which treatments you’ve tried, and so on.

Even though it can feel like a bit of an interrogation, it’s exactly what you want. Just think of how strange it would be if your physician began prescribing pills before asking you a single question to figure out what was wrong. You’d probably feel like the doc didn’t understand you at all.

There’s a classic story about two sisters fighting over an orange. Both assume the other wants the whole thing, so they compromise and split the fruit in half. That’s a win-win, right?

Unfortunately, no. As it turns out, one sister was just thirsty for the juice while the other only needed the peel for a cake recipe. If only they had known each other’s true desires, they would have both gotten more of what they wanted.

Imagine two scientists show you a photo of a man. Just by looking at him, could you tell if he was a hero or a villain? Well, it depends on what those scientists tell you.

In a famous experiment, behavioral scientists Myron Rothbart and Pamela Birrell showed people images of an unassuming individual. They told half the participants that he was a decorated war hero and the other half that he was a notorious war criminal. Amazingly, the first group thought the man looked kind and selfless, while the second group claimed he looked evil and heartless.

You’ve probably heard that variety is the spice of life. When it comes to sales, however, working with too many spices can ruin your dish. To find out why, let’s take another trip to the grocery store.

In an instructive experiment, social scientists Sheena Iyengar and Mark Lepper arranged a tasting booth of jams at an upscale market. When they presented 24 jams, only 3 percent of customers made purchases. But when the array was reduced to six jams, sales shot up 900 percent.