Sometimes the plan doesn’t go to plan. Sometimes we make mistakes. Sometimes things beyond our control get in the way of perfection. That’s business. That’s life.
But when it happens, how can you use that? Or do you try to keep it quiet?
The Pratfall Effect
In the 1960s, psychologist Elliot Aronson ran an experiment where he looked at people’s responses to someone making a small mistake.
First, he staged a quiz where some participants answered more than 90% correctly while others only got about 30% right. This meant that the audience now saw some participants as ‘competent’ and others as ‘average’.
Then, he got some of the participants to spill coffee on themselves.
The response – the audience favoured the ‘competent’ participants who’d spilt the coffee!
That’s right, competent people are more likeable when they make small mistakes. This is called the Pratfall Effect.
If you want to find out more about the Pratfall Effect, the Wikipedia page is fascinating!
Showing your mistakes on social media
The Pratfall Effect has now become a very powerful marketing tool – especially with more and more consumers wanting to feel the human side of brands.
It’s often said that marketing is about building that ‘know, like and trust’, and showing up as ‘not-perfect’ really does go a long way towards building that ‘like’ factor.
So what mistakes are we showing? The small things, the things out of your control, the big things you’ve fixed, the negative feedback that you’ve listened to – anything that you’re comfortable with. I’m not saying you have to make yourself feel vulnerable, and you should definitely stay within your boundaries.
How are we showing them? That’s up to you. You could go a bit over the top and make a big deal about it. You could post a quick Story that disappears in 24 hours.
And don’t forget Step 1: position yourself as competent!
Not sure how to reframe it?
If you’re not sure how to reframe it, how to make it a marketing opportunity – or if you need someone to reassure you that you are still competent – let’s have a 1-2-1 Ask Me Anything Session and turn your mistake into your next powerful piece of content!
I help passionate small business owners with their social media so that they can create a powerful and supportive space to promote their business.
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