Certain members of the community wield great influence over the buying public. With that, their opinions are treated like gold. For instance, when a doctor recommends a health solution, people listen.

The same goes for your accountant. Your accountant is seen as the “trusted advisor” to business. So when an accountant recommends a solution to their business clients, those clients listen. Think about it. When your accountant gives you advice, how often do you sit up and take notice as compared with any other advisor who gives you advice.

There’s also the dentist. When a dentist recommends a certain toothpaste we believe that toothpaste is the best.

Also, University lecturers wield authority and power over their students and so their opinions and recommendations are highly respected.

The Power Persuasion Principle is the reason why we see Doctors endorsing health supplements. And that’s why we see Olympians endorsing breakfast cereal too. It’s also why we see dentists advertising toothpaste. And – it’s why we see high profile veterinarians promote dog food.

Clever advertisers align themselves with authority figures in the industries they’re in.

A famous ad written by advertising great, John Caples featured the headline … “When Doctors feel rotten this is what they do”.  This was a massively successful ad because most people (especially at the time the ad was written) trust their doctor’s opinion so when doctors get sick popular thought is that any healthy remedy they choose must work.

This concept has been tweaked many times over the years and been used to sell toothpaste, toothbrushes, herbal remedies and more.

Spend some time thinking about your target market and ask yourself these questions:

1. Whose voice carries a lot of weight with your target market – what profession are they in?
2. Who would be the ultimate spokesperson for your product/service … someone who has a high profile and could appear in your advertising material. Brainstorm ways to approach them.
3. Examine your client list. Do you have any “power” or authority figures as clients?
4. Who else has “power” with your target audience and who of these people have their own clients or contacts that would be ideal prospects for your products or services? Approach these people with the view of having them endorse you to their customers.
5. Can you strategically align yourself with industry bodies and have them endorse you to their members?

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