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The art of the nudge: encouraging giving through behavioural science
In this final episode in our series on the Rideau Hall Foundation’s Giving Behaviour Project, we explore Behavioral Science and how it can encourage giving. The premise behind Behavioural Science is simple – using insights into human behaviour to “nudge” people to make the choices and decisions we want them to. In this episode, we’ll hear how nudging works, its power to influence outcomes and practical solutions for building nudges into your fundraising strategy from Elspeth Kirkman, Head, BIT North America (The Behavioural Insights Team), Lori Radke, National VP, Marketing and Development at the MS Society, Liz Hardy, Head of the Behavioural Insights Team for the Government of Canada’s Impact and Innovation Unit and finally, Scott Haldane, CEO of the Rideau Hall Foundation.
Examples of Nudges
Language and Visual Prompts to Nudge Vehicle Tax Payments
In one trial conducted in Britain, a letter sent to non-payers of vehicle taxes was re-written to use more simple and straightforward language – along the lines of “pay your tax or lose your car”. Some of the letters received included a photo of the recipient’s vehicle on it. The simplified letter alone doubled the number of people paying the tax, and the rewrite with the photo tripled it.
https://www.economist.com/node/21551032
Language as a Nudge to Address Gender Specific Challenges in the Education System
The facilitation of a technical drawing class in French schools was examined. They found that if the subject was called “geometry”, male students did better, but if it was called “drawing”, female students did equally well or better. Teachers are now being trained to call the subject drawing and use appropriate terminology, so as to equalize the gender gap in technical drawing skills.
https://www.economist.com/node/21551032
Nudging for Green Energy
As part of a green energy initiative, Britain was offering financial incentives to home owners if they improved their energy efficiency by insulating their attics. The participant rate for this aspect of the program was unfortunately quite low. When researchers looked into why, they found that homeowners did not want to insulate their attic because it required work on their part to clear out their junk beforehand. A nudge was then integrated to their marketing strategy whereby insulation firms would offer to clear the attics, dispose of unwanted items, and return the rest after insulating it. Removing the extra work required by the participants led to a threefold increase in participation of this program.
https://www.economist.com/node/21551032
Nudges Pertaining to Existing Social Norms Yield Higher Results Compared to Nudges That Don’t
The Danish Nudging Network, a non-profit organization, tested two potential nudges and compared results. In one test, green arrows pointing to stairs were put next to railway-station escalators, as an effort to encourage people to take the healthier option. This nudge had almost no effect. Another test, similar to the previous one, had a series of green footprints leading to garbage bins. During a controlled experiment where people were handing out individually wrapped candies nearby the green footprints, litter was reduced by 46%. Pelle Guldborg Hansen, Founder of the Danish Nudging Network, said the second nudge had more of an impact because there are social norms and expectations about littering, but none about taking the stairs. This suggests that people are easily influenced to do what they believe is socially expected of them.
https://www.economist.com/node/21551032
Default Action Nudges
Inertia plays a role in decision making in that people tend to choose the default option when making certain decisions, such as enrolling in Corporate Pension Plans for example. In 2012 British legislation changed the default option for Corporate Pension Plans, so that employees are automatically enrolled unless they actively choose to opt out.
https://www.economist.com/node/21551032
Reflecting on Healthier Food Nudge
A supermarket in El Paso, Texas, tried their own nudge experiment to see if they could increase healthy eating among its customers. They placed mirrors on the inside of the grocery carts facing up at the consumer, allowing people to see themselves as they shopped. When people reached for junk food and turned back towards their cart, they saw the reflection of their double chins in the mirror resulting from the unflattering angle the mirror was placed at. This ended up increasing sales of fruits and vegetables, and decreasing junk food sales, suggesting that this nudge achieved the results that it was planned to.
https://www.cbc.ca/radio/undertheinfluence/nudge-the-persuasive-power-of-whispers-1.2801764
College Nudge
A school in Texas that wanted to increase the number of students that went on to college – as two-thirds of high schoolers there never experience a higher education. But the school didn’t have any outside funding to help with the problem. So they decided to nudge from within. First, the teachers talked to the students in terms they would understand. They didn’t try to sell the high-mindedness of college education – instead – they hooked them with the universal symbol of teenage freedom: The automobile. They talked about how much money college grads earned compared to high school grads – explaining it as the difference between a Mercedes and a Kia. But – the brilliant nudge they employed was yet to come and was so simple, yet so powerful. In order to graduate from the high school, students were told they had to complete an application to a nearby college. The percentage of high school students who went on to college rose from 11% to 45%.
https://www.cbc.ca/radio/undertheinfluence/nudge-the-persuasive-power-of-whispers-1.2801764
Nudge to Drink More Water
https://jewelpie.com/sure-way-to-get-8-glasses-of-water-diy-water-bottle-marked-with-time/
Option Restriction Nudge
People don’t like complexity. When someone is offered too many options, they’re less likely to engage at all. Taloon.com wanted to increase sales on their online shopping portal (i.e. they wanted more people to click their “Add to Cart” buttons). After they limited the options of buttons to click on one of their online shopping web pages (removing unnecessary Social Media buttons, etc.), that product saw an 11.9% increase in number of sales.
Competition Nudge
You can use competition as a nudge to get people to convert, participate, and or share. Smart phone app games do this well. Many of them will post your score onto your social media, challenging your followers to beat you score, which motivates those who are more competitive to click the link and download the game.
https://enginess.io/insights/5-examples-of-nudge
Social Proof Nudge
People are social creatures, and are more likely to do something if other people have done or are doing it. If it is proven that an action has been taken or preferred among other options by enough people before you, you will likely go with what seems to be most popular. Many companies do this when selling different versions of a similar product, such as Streak CRM. They add a “Most Popular” banner to one of their product options on their website, likely the one they want to sell the most of.
