The influence of committement

Keeping a promise is a lot more enjoyable than going to the dentist.

If you’re like most people, you don’t like going to the dentist. When the New York Post asked people what they would prefer to do over going to the dentist, 22% said they would rather read the dictionary and 20% would prefer to think about their retirement plan.

But I had an experience at the dentist last month that has perplexed me: I went to a new dentist and had a dreadful experience. When I came home, I recommended that same dentist to my wife.

I’d better explain this one.

From the second I walked in the dental office doors, the whole experience felt like a sales pitch. Before she even started cleaning my teeth, the hygienist said, “Have you ever thought about Invisalign braces before?” I sat in the chair confused: this was the first time braces had ever been pitched to me. I responded, “No. Do I need braces?” She responded, “Nope. But if you wanted cosmetic changes, we could do them.”

Ahh, OK.

It was like going to a car mechanic and being told I didn’t need a new alternator, but they could install a new one, just because.

When the dentist came in, he told me about the benefits of a mouthpiece to help with sleep apnea. Great recommendation. Except I don’t have sleep apnea.

That did not stop him from recommending I do an at-home sleep study to determine whether I might have sleep apnea.

My routine cleaning lasted two hours.

As I’m sitting in the chair, wishing I were reading the dictionary instead, I assured myself I wouldn’t be coming back.

When I got home, something strange happened. I started telling my wife that she should book an appointment, and one for Fiona, too. I suddenly shifted to focusing on all the good points of my visit: they were a good Catholic family; the office was within walking distance from our house; they were able to schedule my appointment quickly.

How did this happen? How did I suddenly turn into an evangelist?

Maybe they did a superior job cleaning my teeth? I went upstairs and looked at my teeth. No substantial difference from any other dentist visit.

Then I started thinking that maybe I just liked them a lot? But it wasn’t that, either. The whole upselling thing was completely off-putting. And all my previous dental visits last under an hour. This was twice as long.

So what was it?

I didn’t have an answer for four days, until I went back to get some cavities filled. I should note these were not new cavities. They were cavities they told me needed to be drilled out and re-filled. I suspected another upsell.

As I went to check out, the office manager said something that caught me off guard. She said, “Oh, Matt. When you were in here earlier this week, you recorded that wonderful testimonial for us. But when I went to post it online, I realized I accidentally only took a picture instead.”

I had completely forgotten about the testimonial they had me film after my first visit.

As I was leaving the office four days earlier, she asked me to film a testimonial. I said, “yes.” As soon as she hit record, I remember saying how much I loved the dental experience there. How I had been going to my father-in-law for years, but I was so happy that I found my new dental practice.

She then asked me this question, “Will you come back?”

I responded, “Of course I will.”

They had me, I made a commitment.

Psychologist Robert Cialdini calls this one of the six main influencing factors: commitment and consistency.

Cialdini says in his bestselling book, “Influence,” “If I can get you to go make a commitment (that is, to take a stand, to go on record), I will have set the stage for your automatic and ill-considered consistency with that earlier commitment. Once that stand is taken, there is a natural tendency to behave in ways that are stubbornly consistent with the stand.”

And what did I do? I committed, and went home and I told my wife that she needed to make an appointment and make one for our daughter.

The principle of consistency hijacked my brain. It set me down a path that I would not have taken otherwise.

Here is the amazing part: when I learned that the testimonial didn’t exist. The spell was broken. And I again, re-committed myself to finding a new dentist.

So how do we apply the principle of commitment and consistency in our work?

Well, to start, politicians often make decisions that make voters angry immediately after an election. That’s because politicians know that by the next election, in two or more years, voters will have forgotten.

This has worked in politics forever.

Until now.

We are asking potential voters to sign petitions on issues they care about: increasing property taxes, rising gas prices and overuse of emergency powers.

There is a difference this time. As part of the pledge, we also are asking them if they would vote during the next election on this issue. Their answer: Yes.

For the first time ever, we will be able to go back to tens of thousands of voters and remind them: You signed this petition on this issue, you said you were going to vote because of it and we will be sending you a ballot.

Our goal is to increase voter turnout to a level that has never been seen before in Illinois. We will do it by commitment and consistency.

We will help them keep a promise on something they intended to do, but history tells us they will forget.

And keeping a promise is a lot more enjoyable than going to the dentist.