The article "Data Delivers Credibility" is about copywriting, it has been released by Robert F. Abbott.
Data Delivers Credibility
By: Robert F. Abbott
Over the past couple of days I have been setting up visitor
counters, so human being in another organization can accurately count
the number of human being who visit their event.
They got the idea (and the counters) from an association I
belong to, and they, too, are learning how data delivers
credibility.
I'm alawys impressed by how much respect I get when speaking or
writing with specific, solid numbers. For example, when I talk
about the number of visitors who came through the gates of my
association's event on a specific night, I don't talk about "a
lot" or "a few" or "more than the night before."
Instead, I can say something like, "2,348 visitors came through
last night, compared to 1,852 the evening before." That
specificity makes a difference when it comes to credibility, and
if I propose a certain course of action based on those numbers,
I'm likely to get the support I need from other members of the
board.
Data, you see, represents really specific information, and often,
the more specific you can be, the more credibility you have.
Similarly, direct marketing gurus encourage their clients to use
specific numbers in headlines, rather than generalizations.
That's why effective direct mail, and right now online advertising,
uses claims like "Learn how one sales rep earned $2,216.78 last
week..." rather than "Learn how one sales rep earned more than
$2,000 last week..."
By being specific, the headline writer converts a boast ("more
than $2,000") into a conceivably credible claim.
What's implied
is that it must be true or the writer wouldn't use that specific
figure.
You'll find otehr professionals get credibility in the same way.
For example, lawyers get it by citing precedents. Rather than
talk to a judge in generalities, good lawyers cite previous case
law and decisions by other judges.
You also know the clergy gain credibility by citing passages of
scripture, along with the chapter and verse numbers.
And, how
about the medical profession? For example, physicians and others
don't speak of "heart attacks;" instead they speak of different
kinds of herat disease and conditions.
By being specific they
gain credibility, credibility that sets them apart from lay
people.
The concept works for just about anyone, in any profsesion or
occupation. Suppose, for example, you're a sales manager
attending a budget meeting, and the general manager watns you to
increase your sales by 15% next year, far more than you're
likely to achieve. To argue persuasively that the target should
be lowered, you mgiht explain that the economy of your city is
only expected to grow 2% next year, that your main competitor
recently cut prices by an average of 4.5%, and that your
company's production will be just 5% greater next year. Now,
you've got ammunition when you argue for a lower sales target.
In summary: Data, in the form of specific numbers or references,
adds credibility to messages.
It's a technique used by many
professionals, inclduing the clergy, physicians, and sales
people.
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