The Power of Commitment

In high school I joined an Environmental Club, The Tree Huggers. Through beach clean-ups and saving energy, I found myself becoming eco-friendly. However, a nagging sense of apprehension creeped up on me. I was developing a growing anxiety about the possibility of my parents or friends catching me in a moment of environmental disregard. This eagerness to act on every instance of waste production was driven by a desire to be consistent. And consistency becomes even more pronounced when public image comes in. Why so? Perhaps because nobody likes being known as wishy-washy, we all want to hold a reputation of honesty and steadfastness. I felt no different.

Consistency extends beyond our individual lives and finds its place in the dynamic realms of Marketing, Advertising, and Persuasion. But what provides the “click” that activates the need for being consistent? Social psychologists think “commitment” is the answer. Toy companies like Hasbro, during festive seasons like Christmas, experience a boom in sales. But problems arise when sales go into a slump for the next few months after. How is this issue tackled? Step 1: Kids make a Christmas wish-list that parents promise to fulfill (I’ve totally asked mine to buy me Barbie’s Dream DollHouse!). Step 2: Toy companies undersupply the store with these popular toys during Christmas. Step 3: Parents buy substitute toys. Step 4: After Christmas, companies run ads for the not-bought-yet popular toys kids initially wanted. Step 5: Kids go whining to their parents, “you promised, you promised!”. Step 6: Parents go trudging off to the store to live dutifully to their words. Voila! The toys start selling like hotcakes (After all, shouldn’t we teach our kids that promises are made to be lived up to? :p)

Charitable organizations and NGOs similarly survive on donations. How do leaders convince people to open up their wallets and donate? They use the foot-in-door technique that Yeung, a British psychologist and author, also speaks about: getting people to say “yes” to a small request before using the power of consistency and making a bigger one. For instance, if we sign a petition in helping prevent birth defects, after making this small commitment, we are more likely to donate for the cause later.

This power of consistency is especially evident when it comes to public commitment. Imagine you’re at a New Year’s Eve party, sipping on champagne, surrounded by friends and family. As the clock strikes 12, you make a resolution to hit the gym more often. By sharing your resolution with others, you’re motivated to stay on track. In fact, 24 Hour Fitness encouraged their members to publicly commit and become part of their followers (Who doesn’t want to be that inspiring fitness fanatic ?!). This led to a massive 300 thousand new members.

Marketing minds recognize the power of consistency all too well. They generate sales by tapping into this special psychological trait that lies within us by starting with small, incremental steps and later moving forward to bigger steps, and by incentivising us to stick to our public commitments. Let’s face it, for reputation’s sake, we do what we gotta do!

– SaaniaSparkle 🧚‍♀️