Technique · Influence

Accurate popularity cues

Show popularity only as it really is: "Most popular" on the plan most chosen, a defined count of active teams, "copied 3,400 times" on a template. People treat what many others do as a sign of what is right, so a true count helps the uncertain; an inflated one invites distrust once noticed.

DiscoverPay

Plain label: true "most popular" labels and usage countsAlso known as: most popular badge, usage count, popularity claim, social proof count, descriptive norm

How it works

When people are unsure, they look at what others do and assume the common choice is the sensible one; the more people, the stronger the cue. Popularity claims work as a shortcut in place of quality proof, which is why they must be accurate and defined. A "most popular" badge on the highest-margin item, or cumulative sign-ups shown as active users, turns a useful shortcut into a source of regret.

In the book. We judge what is correct partly by what others do, and advertisers lean on claims of being the largest-selling or fastest-growing (Ch.4, pp.88, 90). INF-T-SP-04 (Influence Ch.4, p.90)

In a product [S]. Use popularity cues only with live data and a stated definition.

Evidence Evidence grade B. Moderate evidence: solid studies with some limits.. Descriptive norms shift behavior in many field studies, with failed replications in some settings.

Evidence warning

Descriptive-norm effects vary by setting, and some replications failed; test popularity cues locally.

Fake or inflated counts are covered by the US FTC's 2024 rule against fake reviews and fake social-proof indicators.

What the research says

Hotel guests told that most guests reuse their towels reused them more than guests shown an environmental appeal (44% vs 35% in the first experiment).
Goldstein, Cialdini & Griskevicius, Journal of Consumer Research, 2008
A German replication of the hotel towel study did not find the descriptive-norm advantage.
Bohner & Schlüter, PLoS ONE, 2014
UK tax reminder letters saying that most people pay on time increased on-time payment in a large field experiment.
Hallsworth, List, Metcalfe & Vlaev, Journal of Public Economics, 2017

Before you start

Live data behind every count and badge, with a written definition (for example "active in the last 30 days")

How to build it

Web: Put "Most popular" on the plan most new customers actually chose last quarter, recomputed automatically, with a tooltip that explains how.
E-commerce: Show "Bought 1,200 times this month" from order data, with the time window stated.
B2B: On the landing page, state a defined count ("4,100 teams active this month") instead of an undated cumulative total.

What can go wrong

A "most popular" badge placed for margin, not for choice.
Cumulative sign-ups presented as active users.
Counts so low they signal the opposite ("3 people bought this").

Pairs well with

Pairs with in-t-sp-17: popularity among people like the visitor is stronger.
Pairs with in-t-sp-12: place the count at the point of doubt.

In practice

Where it shows up

Booking.com · 2019
Round
Booking.com: urgency claims meet regulators
Feb 6, 2019: Booking.com, Expedia, Hotels.com, Agoda, ebookers and trivago committed to the UK CMA to stop false availability or popularity claims and pressure selling by Sept 1, 2019. EU-wide commitments followed (2019-2020). In Sept 2019, Which? found 5 of 10 checked claims misleading.
M4 ×DiscoverPay
Case grade for the number: A. Evidence grade for the mechanism link: C.
Instagram (Meta) · 2021
Round
Instagram: hiding likes, then letting people choose
May 26, 2021: hiding like counts became optional on Instagram and Facebook. Meta said hiding counts helped some people and frustrated others, partly because people use likes to spot what is trending. No quantitative results were published.
M4 ×Return
Case grade for the number: B. Evidence grade for the mechanism link: C.Company-reported
Robinhood · 2024
Round
Robinhood: confetti on trades
Confetti removed March 31, 2021. Jan 18, 2024: a $7.5M settlement with Massachusetts securities regulators over gamified features (confetti, digital scratch tickets, free stock, push notifications, popularity lists), barring celebratory imagery tied to trading for Massachusetts accounts. Robinhood neither admitted nor denied those allegations.
M3-M4 ×StartReturn
Case grade for the number: A. Evidence grade for the mechanism link: D.Analyst inference
Hotel field experiment (Goldstein, Cialdini & Griskevicius) · 2008
Round
The hotel towel study: “guests in this room”
Experiment 1: 44.1% towel reuse with the descriptive norm vs 35.1% with the environmental appeal. Experiment 2: the same-room norm reached 49.3% vs 42.8% for the other norm messages combined, and the standard message 37.2%. Peer-reviewed field experiments.
Start
Case grade for the number: A. Evidence grade for the mechanism link: A.

Limits

What we don’t claim

Left Brain and Right Brain are a metaphor for extrinsic and intrinsic motivation, not a claim about neuroscience.Actionable Gamification Ch.13, pp.342-343

Keep reading

TechniqueEvidence grade B. Moderate evidence: solid studies with some limits.
Verifiable, relevant credentials
checkable expertise that fits the claim
Show the real credentials behind each claim and match the expert to the claim: a security audit for security claims, a dietitian for nutrition, a finance-leader customer for ROI. Make each credential checkable in one click (a license registry, an audit report, a trust center).
TechniqueEvidence grade C. Limited evidence: few or small studies.
Accurate logos, press and awards
checkable prestige signals
Use prestige signals only when they are accurate and checkable: customer logos used with permission, press mentions linked to the article, awards with the issuer and year. Trappings earn deference quickly, which is exactly why buyers discount them once one turns out to be borrowed.
TechniqueEvidence grade B. Moderate evidence: solid studies with some limits.
Admit a minor, real limitation
say what the product is not good for
State a real, minor drawback next to your strengths ("We cost more than basic tools, and here is why", "Import runs slower because we keep every version", a "Who this is not for" section). Admitting a small weakness makes the main claims more believable.
TechniqueEvidence grade C. Limited evidence: few or small studies.
Stories from buyers like this one
segment-matched customer stories
Use short, concrete stories from other buyers, chosen to match the prospect's segment: one line beside the relevant feature, a short case study in the deck, a searchable library for sales. Accounts of what similar buyers did reduce uncertainty more than claims about the product.
TechniqueEvidence grade B. Moderate evidence: solid studies with some limits.
Proof at the moment of uncertainty
proof placed where people hesitate
Map where users are most unsure (the first visit, plan selection, payment, permission prompts, empty screens, new features) and put honest evidence right there: "Most teams of your size pick this plan", "7 in 10 new users begin with this template". Proof works best under uncertainty, so place it at the hesitation and use less in expert flows.
TechniqueEvidence grade B. Moderate evidence: solid studies with some limits.
Proof from similar others
people like you
Choose testimonials, case studies and usage data by the visitor's industry, role, size, country, language or experience level, and let users filter reviews by "people like me". People follow those who resemble them far more than generic crowds.

Sources

Influence · Robert Cialdini
Ch.4, p.90 · Ch.4, p.88
A room with a viewpoint: using social norms to motivate environmental conservation in hotels · Journal of Consumer Research, 2008
Evidence grade B. Moderate evidence: solid studies with some limits.
A room with a viewpoint revisited: descriptive norms and hotel guests' towel reuse behavior · PLoS ONE, 2014

Source IDs: INF-T-SP-04

Book content is paraphrased, never quoted at length. Last verified October 24, 2026.

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