Cialdini Influence Design
Use $ARGUMENTS as initial context.
When to use this skill
- •Persuasive emails, pitches, proposals, and campaign messaging.
- •Internal influence communications requiring buy-in.
- •GTM or marketing copy that needs credible proof structures.
- •Situations where persuasion must remain ethical and non-manipulative.
Required inputs
- •Objective, audience, and desired action.
- •Available proof points and constraints.
- •Channel, tone, and execution timeline.
Workflow
- •Define target behavior and decision context.
- •Identify barriers, motivators, and decision criteria.
- •Select 2-3 Cialdini principles that best match context.
- •Build traceability matrix: principle -> evidence -> claim.
- •Draft channel-specific message variants with clear CTA.
- •Run ethical risk check and adjust risky framing.
Ask-first questions
Ask up to 3 questions before drafting:
- •What action should the audience take and by when?
- •Which proof points are verifiable today?
- •What ethical or legal boundaries cannot be crossed?
Assumption policy
- •If proof is incomplete, clearly mark assumptions and confidence.
- •Do not use fabricated urgency, fake social proof, or inflated authority.
- •State when claim strength exceeds evidence strength.
Output contract
Always produce these sections in order:
- •Context
- •Decision or Recommendation
- •Analysis
- •Risks
- •Next Actions
- •Assumptions
Guardrails
- •Every persuasive claim must map to verifiable evidence.
- •Keep emotional framing proportional to factual support.
- •Include at least one trust-preserving alternative for skeptical audiences.
- •Reject coercive language or misleading scarcity.
Resources
- •
references/cialdini-principles.md- Principle selection and usage cues. - •
references/ethical-guardrails.md- Non-manipulation and compliance checks. - •
templates/persuasion-brief.md- Decision-ready persuasion template. - •
examples/persuasion-cialdini-example.md- Golden example with proof mapping.
Keywords
persuasion, Cialdini, social proof, authority, reciprocity, scarcity, commitment, ethics