Framework · Influence · Influence
Click, whirr: automatic responding
Cialdini's core model: in a recurring situation, one trigger feature starts a stored response that runs without evaluation. It usually works because the feature normally comes with the real thing, and it misfires when the feature appears without it. People lean on it most when rushed, uncertain, distracted or new to a domain.
Plain label: single-cue decisionsAlso known as: click, whirr, fixed-action pattern, trigger feature, cue validity, mindless compliance
The model (Ch.1, pp.2-5) INF-M-01 (Influence Ch.1, p.2)
- A familiar situation comes up.
- One feature of it is noticed: a word such as "because", a price, a badge.
- A stored response is selected (click).
- It runs without weighing the rest (whirr).
- The result is usually right, because the feature usually travels with the real situation.
When reliance rises. Complexity, speed, little time or energy, low knowledge, and being rushed, stressed, uncertain, distracted or tired (Ch.1, pp.4-6).
How it misfires. By accident (a misread price note), by experiment, or by imitation, when someone presents the feature without the substance (Ch.1, pp.1-11).
In a product [S]. Most users decide at single-cue moments: landing pages, plan pickers, checkout, permission prompts. Find the deciding cue (in-t-fn-02), make it true, and put it first for overloaded users (in-t-ep-03). A cue that appears without its substance converts once and then teaches users to distrust it.
Evidence. The reason-giving study behind the model (Ch.1, pp.3-4) holds for small requests; for large ones, only real reasons work.
Sources
Influence · Robert Cialdini
Ch.1, p.2 · Ch.1, p.4
Source IDs: INF-M-01
Book content is paraphrased, never quoted at length. Last verified October 24, 2026.
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