Continuing with the Science of Persuasion video, at the 6:20 mark in the video the author talks about the importance of consistency. From the video:
Look for, and ask for, commitments that can be made
This is a valuable technique in the software world, especially during free trials or onboarding new users. Instead of saying “hey, we’re a great software product with 100 features, good luck” the idea is to direct the user to accomplish something small and simple, as quickly as possible (e.g. connect your Twitter account and we’ll show you three immediate insights). Then, once the small commitment is made (e.g. using a simple feature) the user is much more likely to take the next step and use the more complicated feature (e.g. now that we’ve given you these three insights, answer these 10 questions and we’ll suggest 100 new people to follow on Twitter).
Start small. Get the user to do something. Show value. Build on the experience and get the user more involved. Much like micro apps for lead generation, give value as quickly as possible and ask for small commitments.
What else? What are some more thoughts on the idea of getting small commitments early to help with persuasion in the user experience?
David Cummings on Startups 