Framing
The same fact lands differently depending on how it is worded.
What it is
People respond to how a choice is described, not only to its content. A treatment with a 90% survival rate is chosen more often than one with a 10% mortality rate, though they are the same. Gains, losses, percentages, absolutes and time frames are all levers.
The research
When a public-health programme was framed as saving 200 of 600 lives, most people chose it. Framed as 400 of 600 dying, most rejected it. The outcomes were identical.
Tversky and Kahneman, 1981
How to use it
Frame the cost as loss avoided
"Stop losing $2,000 a month to missed calls" outperforms "Gain $2,000 a month" for most audiences.
Pick the unit that flatters
$1.30 a day reads smaller than $39 a month, which reads smaller than $468 a year. Choose the frame that fits the decision.
Frame the default as the norm
"Most teams keep this on" makes the default feel like the sensible choice rather than an imposition.
Related
Sources that shaped this entry: growth.design, Kolenda.io.