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Imagine this…

You squeezed the last bit of toothpaste out this morning.

So you make a mental note to stop by the store on your way home from work to grab a new tube.

After all, you don’t wanna step into the office tomorrow like this (and get fired):

Flash forward 9 hours later…

As you’re walking down the pharmacy’s designated toothpaste aisle, you make a beeline for the spot where your go-to brand usually sits.

But you realize it’s sold out. Noooooo.

That’s a problem. A big problem.

You won’t just buy *any* toothpaste.

It’s gotta be SLS-free—any other type leaves you with a peeling, burning mouth.

So you start scanning the shelves and spot another brand you remember one of your favorite healthy-lifestyle podcasters recommended a few episodes ago.

It’s either this or a brand you’re totally unfamiliar with.

“This is a no-brainer,” you think as you grab the podcaster-recommended toothpaste and head for the check-out.

What persuaded you to buy the recommended toothpaste over other brands?

In today’s edition of Why We Buy 🧠 we’ll explore Authority Bias—why we often follow recommendations when they come from people in positions of authority.

Let’s get into it…

🧠 The Psychology of Authority Bias

In 1961, Psychologist Stanley Milgram conducted a now-famous experiment at Yale University—an esteemed institution.

Participants were greeted by researchers wearing white lab coats—a trusted uniform worn by scientists.

Then they were divided into 2 groups:

1. “Teachers”
2. “Learners”

The teachers were instructed to ask the learners questions and deliver electric shocks for every wrong answer, increasing the voltage with each mistake.

Unbeknownst to the teachers, the learners were part of the experiment and faked their reactions.

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But despite the learners screaming in “pain” and begging the teachers to stop…

65% of the teachers delivered the maximum voltage, solely because the researchers told them to.
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Why?
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There’s a two-fold possible answer.

First, from the time we could talk, we’ve been conditioned to obey and respect authority figures.

Second, decision-making is mentally taxing and time-consuming.
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So Authority Bias likely serves as a cognitive shortcut to “efficient decisions” since those we’re ingrained to obey and trust did the mental heavy lifting for us.
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This is why weaving authority figures into marketing campaigns can be wildly successful.

You’ve just gotta do it ethically (no electric shocks allowed).
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🤑 How to Apply This

Ok. So how can you apply this to sell more stuff?

eCommerce​
​Partner with people your audience already trusts

In the 1980s, Michael Jordan was a rising basketball star who quickly became an “authority” in the sports world.

So it’s no surprise his partnership with then-struggling Nike was (and still is) iconic.

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Fans trusted the Air Jordan collection because Michael was an expert in basketball (and, by association, an expert in quality sneakers).

Nike’s original goal was to make $3M within 3 years. They ended up making $126M the first year alone.

But you don’t have to call up Michael Jordan to reap the benefits of a partnership.

Identify influencers you can collaborate with in your space who your target audience views as an authority.

That way some of their authority and credibility will transfer to you by association.​

Content creation​
​Become the authority in your industry

There are a looooot of people who call themselves “SEO experts” on the Internet.

But Neil Patel has managed to stand out from the crowd and become known as the go-to (legit) expert on SEO.

A large reason for this is he consistently posts long-form, incredibly informative, high-quality content.

Not only does that show he knows his sh*t, but it also helps him beat out his competitors and appear higher in Google searches for topics his target audience is searching for.

All this has worked together to establish him as an authority in a crowded industry.

Entrepreneurs​
​Feature expert endorsements

Whether it’s testimonials or logos of well-known brands you’ve worked with, strategically showcase these expert endorsements everywhere—on your social profiles, newsletter, and website.

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Neal O’Grady, my UNIGNORABLE co-founder, does this brilliantly.

In the above-the-fold section on his website, he features the impressive companies he’s worked with.

And without saying a word, he instantly establishes himself as an authority.
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💥 The Short of It

The human brain is lazy and loves to defer tasks.

So like it or not, people look to authorities to guide their decision-making.

Tapping into the Authority Bias is a seemingly simple way to get a big boost in your own authority status.
This means—you guessed it—more trust (and sales).

Until next time, happy selling!