Attention – the most valuable currency
Posted on: Saturday, November 14, 2015 Category: Uncategorized (58)2 min read
“Attention is the most important currency that anybody can give you. It’s worth more than money, possessions or things.” Steve Rubel, Chief Content Strategist at Edelman.
Ben Parr, author of Captivology; the Science of Capturing People’s Attention has defined seven ‘triggers’ to get people to sit up and listen.
Automaticity. If you hear a loud noise, you turn your head. If a woman wears red, she is more likely to be noticed. Automaticity refers to the automatic reaction we have to sensory things that ‘stand out’. Be visual. Be audible. Smell great.
Framing. The world that we see is one constructed from our experiences and the biases that we have formed based on these. One way to get the attention of others is to understand their frames of reference – how their experience will have created biases and ways of seeing the world. You can adapt to their frame or change it. The way to change it? Repetition. What are the three C’s of branding? Clarity. Constancy. Consistency. If you repeat something enough times, people believe it.
Disruption. Anything that is unexpected captures our attention. The more disruptive something is, the more exciting it is.
Reward. We all are motivated by ‘what we can get from something’. Make people really want the reward. Visualise it.
Reputation. Our decision making areas of our brain slow down when we are hearing from an expert – we trust and believe them. So think about how you share your reputation with people. Who introduces you? What are your references like on Linked In? Who are your ‘friends’ online? How do they affect your reputation?
Mystery. Our memory is built to remember incomplete stories or tasks better than complete ones. Don’t tell them everything. Keep them guessing. Don’t always be available. Rarity is highly valued by others.
Acknowledgement. Flattery will get you everywhere. Notice and acknowledge others and they will return the recognition.
