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The Illusion of Choice
- Author
- Richard Shotton
- Narrator
- Simon Cole
- Publisher
- Pan Macmillan
- Publish Date
- 28 March 2023
- Run Time
- 4 hours 38 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
What to expect
'This book will make you better at your job' – Jonah Berger, bestselling author of Contagious
Discover the psychological biases that shape every buying decision – and how to use them in business.
Every day we make hundreds of choices, many of them commercial.
What shampoo to pick? How much to spend on a bottle of wine? Whether to renew a subscription?
These choices might appear to be freely made, but psychologists have shown that subtle changes in the way products are positioned, promoted and marketed can radically alter how customers behave.
In The Illusion of Choice, Richard Shotton, author of the acclaimed The Choice Factory, identifies the 16 and a half most important psychological biases that everyone in business needs to be aware of. Drawing on academic research, advertising campaigns and his own original field studies, he shows how any business can utilise these biases to win and retain customers, sell more products and make money.
In this fascinating and highly practical guide, you'll learn to take advantage of the peak end rule, the power of precision, the wisdom of wit – and much, much more.
Full of marketing insights, The Illusion of Choice is essential for anyone seeking to understand consumer behaviour.
Critics Review
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No one should be allowed near a layout pad or a keyboard until they have read this book. It is an antidote to the tediously direct and transactional nature of much of modern marketing.
Rory Sutherland, author of Alchemy and vice-chairman of Ogilvy
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This book will make you better at your job. If you’re trying to get your head around behavioural science, or how to apply it, look no further – Shotton has done all the hard work for you. Keep a copy within arm’s reach – you’ll be coming back to it time and again.
Jonah Berger, marketing professor at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and internationally bestselling author of Contagious
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People behave in surprising ways, often driven by cognitive biases. The Illusion of Choice is a straightforward and practical guide to these biases and how to apply them. An essential read for every marketing professional.
Matthew Syed, Olympian and author of Black Box Thinking
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Some books are designed to be impressive, written in complicated jargon. This book is designed to be useful, surprising, and practical, which is why it’s written in plain English. Those other books look good on the bookshelf or behind your head on Zoom calls. This book you’ll actually use.
Dave Trott, creative director, columnist at Campaign and multiple agency founder
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Richard’s approach to the world and to consumers is both radically different and incredibly scientific. Marketing is usually more about magic than science, but Richard shows us where to find the science and how to apply it to improve every element of our business. His first book, The Choice Factory, is one of my all-time favourites, and The Illusion of Choice is just as good. If you really want to understand your customers then this book is a must.
James Watt, founder of Britain’s largest craft brewery, BrewDog
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The Illusion of Choice explains lesser-known research in an easy-to-read manner to give consumers and businesses insights into how products persuade.
Nir Eyal, author of Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products
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The Illusion of Choice is provocative and practical. Shotton utilises the best of behavioural science to demonstrate surprising ways you can improve your business.
Seth Stephens-Davidowitz, New York Times bestselling author of Everybody Lies
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A short guide to applying behavioural economics to marketing, this book is both fun and useful. A great little bag of tricks!
Les Binet, group head of effectiveness, Adam&eveDDB
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I learnt a ton through reading this book and enjoyed myself enormously in the process. Compelling, robust and eminently practical, The Illusion of Choice is a powerful guide to the psychological dynamics shaping behaviours in a complex world.
Nathalie Nahai, author of Webs of Influence
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People talk about the ‘difficult second album syndrome’. Not here. Richard’s done it again.
Phil Barden, author of Decoded: The Science Behind Why We Buy
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Smart, enjoyable and extremely practical. This is a book that would be equally useful for a global CEO or CMO or a bootstrapping start-up or scale-up leadership team.
Amelia Torode, former CSO of TBWA and founder of the Fawnbrake Collective
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I love a good behavioural science book, and this is a really good one. It is accessible, practical and properly sourced so that you can have confidence in what you are reading.
Daniel Finkelstein, member of House of Lords and former executive editor at The Times
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Details
- Author
- Richard Shotton
- Narrator
- Simon Cole
- Duration
- 4 hours 38 minutes
- Release Date
- 28 March 2023
- ISBN
- 9781804092798
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Pan Macmillan
- Genre
- Business communication, etiquette and presentation, Advertising, Behavioural economics, Online marketing / Social media marketing, Advice on careers and achieving success
Synopsis
'This book will make you better at your job' – Jonah Berger, bestselling author of ContagiousDiscover the psychological biases that shape every buying decision – and how to use them in business.Every day we make hundreds of choices, many of them commercial.What shampoo to pick? How much to spend on a bottle of wine? Whether to renew a subscription?These choices might appear to be freely made, but psychologists have shown that subtle changes in the way products are positioned, promoted and marketed can radically alter how customers behave.In The Illusion of Choice, Richard Shotton, author of the acclaimed The Choice Factory, identifies the 16 and a half most important psychological biases that everyone in business needs to be aware of. Drawing on academic research, advertising campaigns and his own original field studies, he shows how any business can utilise these biases to win and retain customers, sell more products and make money.In this fascinating and highly practical guide, you'll learn to take advantage of the peak end rule, the power of precision, the wisdom of wit – and much, much more.Full of marketing insights, The Illusion of Choice is essential for anyone seeking to understand consumer behaviour.
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