Episodes

  • 7 marketing psychology tips you can apply today

    7 marketing psychology tips you can apply today
    Feb 17 2025
    Join the Nudge Unit: https://maven.com/nudge-unit/course-cohort Why does a $5 Uber voucher turn angry customers into loyal fans? In this episode, Eva van den Broek and Tim den Heijer share actionable insights from their book The Housefly Effect, revealing seven marketing psychology tips you can use to grow your business. You’ll learn: How scarcity drives demand, from pineapple rentals to volume-limited products. Why a $5 apology voucher boosted Uber’s revenue (feat. reciprocity principle). How Tropicana’s rebrand taught marketers a costly lesson about habits. Why "95% fat-free" yoghurt sells better than "5% fat" (feat. framing effect). The clever way airlines manage flight-time expectations to keep customers happy. ---- Get the book: https://bedfordsquarepublishers.co.uk/book/the-housefly-effect Sign up to my newsletter: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/mailing-list Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phill-agnew-22213187/ Watch Nudge on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nudgepodcast/ ---- Sources: van den Broek, E., & den Heijer, T. (2024). The Housefly Effect. Bedford Square Publishers. Bundesliga study | Brandes, L., & Franck, E. (2012). Social preferences or personal career concerns? Field evidence on positive and negative reciprocity in the workplace. Journal of Economic Psychology, 33(5), 925–939 McFlurry sales boosted by 55% | Walsh, N. (2024). Tune in: How to make smarter decisions in a noisy world. Bedford Square Publishers. Uber $5 apology | Halperin, B., Ho, B., List, J. A., & Muir, I. (2019). Toward an understanding of the economics of apologies: Evidence from a large-scale natural field experiment (No. w25676). National Bureau of Economic Research. https://doi.org/10.3386/w25676 Berger, J. (2013). Contagious: Why things catch on. Simon & Schuster. Gu, Y., Botti, S., & Faro, D. (2013). Turning the page: The impact of choice closure on satisfaction. Journal of Consumer Research, 40(2), 268–283. Martin, S. J. (2024). Influence at work: Capture attention, connect with others, convince people to act. [Paperback]. Economist Edge. Yuan, Y., Liu, T. X., Tan, C., Chen, Q., Pentland, A., & Tang, J. (2020). Gift contagion in online groups: Evidence from WeChat red packets.
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    27 mins
  • Tiny nudges that can drastically improve your life

    Tiny nudges that can drastically improve your life
    Feb 10 2025
    Join the Nudge Unit: https://maven.com/nudge-unit/course-cohort Can tiny nudges dramatically change our behaviour? In this episode, Eva van den Broek and Tim den Heijer explore the subtle yet powerful psychological tools that influence daily decisions, often without us realising it. You’ll learn: Why doubling the size of a plate made kids eat 41% more (feat. the Delboeuf illusion). Why Schiphol Airport painted a fly in the urinals (“The Housefly Effect”). The role of defaults in organ donation, student loans, and fast food orders. How loss aversion turned teachers into top performers, improving student grades by 10%. Why IKEA sell cheap ice cream (feat. the peak-end rule). ---- Get the book: https://bedfordsquarepublishers.co.uk/book/the-housefly-effect Sign up to my newsletter: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/mailing-list Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phill-agnew-22213187/ Watch Nudge on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nudgepodcast/ ---- Sources: Carmon, Z., & Kahneman, D. (1996). The experienced utility of queuing: Experience profiles and retrospective evaluations of simulated queues. Dai, H., Milkman, K. L., Hofmann, D. A., & Staats, B. R. (2015). The impact of time at work and time off from work on rule compliance: The case of hand hygiene in health care. Journal of Applied Psychology, 100(3). Holden, S. S., Zlatevska, N., & Dubelaar, C. (2016). Whether smaller plates reduce consumption depends on who’s serving and who’s looking: A meta-analysis. Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, 1(1), 134. Kahneman, D., Fredrickson, B. L., Schreiber, C. A., & Redelmeier, D. A. (1993). When more pain is preferred to less: Adding a better end. Psychological Science, 4(6), 401–405. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.1993.tb00589.x Kaur, S., Kremer, M., & Mullainathan, S. (2015). Self-control at work. Journal of Political Economy, 123(6), 1227–1277. Levitt, S. D., List, J. A., Neckermann, S., & Sadoff, S. (2016). The behavioralist goes to school: Leveraging behavioral economics to improve educational performance. American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 8(4), 183–219. van den Broek, E., & den Heijer, T. (2024). The Housefly Effect. Bedford Square Publishers.
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    30 mins
  • Introducing: Nudge Unit

    Introducing: Nudge Unit
    Feb 7 2025
    Join the Nudge Unit: https://maven.com/nudge-unit/course-cohort
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    11 mins
  • Why most bestselling business books are BS

    Why most bestselling business books are BS
    Feb 3 2025
    Business books are everywhere, offering seemingly simple solutions to complex problems—but are they truly helpful? In this episode, Alex Edmans explores the biases that make us fall for oversimplified advice and why many popular business books fail to deliver. You’ll learn: How black-and-white thinking fuels the success of books like Dr. Atkins’ Diet Revolution and Start With Why. Why confirmation bias leads us to believe unproven claims (feat. Simon Sinek’s “Why” theory). The dangers of ignoring nuance, such as in Angela Duckworth’s Grit and Malcolm Gladwell’s 10,000-hour rule. Real-world examples of flawed reasoning, from the London Marathon tragedy to corporate missteps. How to critically evaluate the advice offered in bestsellers and avoid falling for universal “truths.” ---- Download the Reading List: https://nudge.kit.com/readinglist Sign up to my newsletter: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/mailing-list Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phill-agnew-22213187/ Watch Nudge on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nudgepodcast/ Alex’s book May Contain Lies: https://maycontainlies.com/ ---- Sources: Edmans, A. (2024). May contain lies: How stories, statistics, and studies exploit our biases—and what we can do about it. University of California Press. Atkins, R. C. (1972). Dr. Atkins' diet revolution: The high calorie way to stay thin forever. New York: Bantam Books. Seidelmann, Sara B. et al. (2018): ‘Dietary carbohydrate intake and mortality: a prospective cohort study and meta-analysis’, Lancet Public Health 3, E419–E428 DeLosh, Edward L., Jerome R. Busemeyer and Mark A. McDaniel (1997): ‘Extrapolation: the sine qua non for abstraction in function learning’, Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition 23, 968–86. Fisher, Matthew and Frank Kiel (2018): ‘The binary bias: a systematic distortion in the integration of information’. Psychological Science 29, 1846–58 Sinek, S. (2009). Start with why: How great leaders inspire everyone to take action. Portfolio. Gladwell, M. (2008). Outliers: The story of success. Little, Brown and Company. Duckworth, A. (2016). Grit: The power of passion and perseverance. Scribner.
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    27 mins
  • Can 10,000 hours of practice make you great?

    Can 10,000 hours of practice make you great?
    Jan 27 2025
    I explore the truth behind the famous 10,000-hour rule, popularized by Malcolm Gladwell. Today, Prof Alex Edmans uncovers why the rule persists despite its flaws and dives into the psychological biases that make misinformation so believable. You’ll learn: Why the 10,000-hour rule isn’t as universal as it seems (feat. insights from Alex Edmans). How confirmation bias shapes beliefs—from the Atkins diet to Deepwater Horizon. The dangers of narrative fallacy in explaining success (feat. 1975 Barry Staw study). Real-world examples of misinformation, from Belle Gibson’s cancer cure claims to Volkswagen’s diesel scandal. A simple mental trick to fight confirmation bias and save yourself from misleading ideas. ---- Download the Reading List: https://nudge.kit.com/readinglist Sign up to my newsletter: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/mailing-list Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phill-agnew-22213187/ Watch Nudge on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nudgepodcast/ Alex’s book May Contain Lies: https://maycontainlies.com/ ---- Sources: Gladwell, M. (2008). Outliers: The story of success. Little, Brown, and Company. Edmans, A. (2024). May contain lies: How stories, statistics, and studies exploit our biases—and what we can do about it. University of California Press. Kaplan, Jonas T., Sarah I. Gimbel and Sam Harris (2016): ‘Neural correlates of maintaining one’s political beliefs in the face of counterevidence’, Scientific Reports 6, 39589. Wong, Nathan Colin (2015): ‘The 10,000-hour rule’, Canadian Urological Journal 9, 299. Staw, Barry M. (1975): ‘Attribution of the “causes” of performance: a general alternative interpretation of cross-sectional research on organizations’, Organizational Behavior and Human Performance 13, 414–32.
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    37 mins
  • What sets top negotiators apart?

    What sets top negotiators apart?
    Jan 24 2025
    Neil Rackham’s groundbreaking research uncovered what separates skilled negotiators from the average. Drawing insights from real-world negotiation sessions involving union disputes, management decisions, and high-stakes contracts, this episode unpacks the actual behaviour of skilled negotiations. You’ll learn: The specific ways skilled negotiators prepare differently from average negotiators (feat. 48 skilled negotiators). Why immediate counterproposals can ruin a negotiation (feat. insight from 102 negotiations). The critical role of long-term thinking in effective negotiations. Key behaviours that skilled negotiators use to foster collaboration and transparency. Practical tips you can use. ---- Sign up to my newsletter: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/mailing-list Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phill-agnew-22213187/ Watch Nudge on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nudgepodcast/ ---- Sources: Rackham, N. (2003). The behavior of successful negotiators. McGraw Hill/Irwin, New York. Reb, J., Luan, S., & Gigerenzer, G. (2024). Smart management: Why successful leaders must embrace simple strategies in an increasingly uncertain and complex world. MIT Press. https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262548014/smart-management/
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    17 mins
  • Can you see the invisible gorilla?

    Can you see the invisible gorilla?
    Jan 20 2025
    75% of us expect to spot the unexpected. But we’re wrong. Today on Nudge, Dan Simons shares his results from perhaps the world’s best-known psychology experiment: the Invisible Gorilla. Listen, and you’ll take part in our own audio version of his experiment, and I'll dig into research papers to learn how Dan’s findings apply to marketing. Dan’s book Invisible Gorilla: https://www.theinvisiblegorilla.com/ Dan’s book Nobody’s Fool: https://dansimons.com/NobodysFool.html Outdoor Advertising Recall study: https://tinyurl.com/5e8s5nwv Subscribe to the (free) Nudge Newsletter: https://nudge.ck.page/profile
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    27 mins
  • Francesca Gino Scandal: What Really Happened

    Francesca Gino Scandal: What Really Happened
    Jan 17 2025
    The Francesca Gino scandal shook the academic world, exposing fraudulent research practices at one of the world’s most prestigious institutions, Harvard Business School. This episode unpacks the details of the case, from the initial discoveries to the implications for science. You’ll learn: How a PhD student uncovered data manipulation in a high-profile study (feat. Zoe Xani’s investigation). The critical role of whistleblowers in exposing fraud (feat. Data Colada’s analysis). Key findings from Harvard’s 1,300-page report on research misconduct. Which studies were faked and what they claimed to find. How self-correcting mechanisms can strengthen trust despite scandals. ---- Sign up to my newsletter: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/mailing-list Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phill-agnew-22213187/ Watch Nudge on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nudgepodcast/ ---- Sources: Data Colada. (2023). [109] Data falsificada (Part 1): “Clusterfake”. https://datacolada.org/109 Data Colada. (2023). Data falsificada (Part 1): Evidence that Francesca Gino fabricated data. Data Colada. Retrieved from https://datacolada.org/110 Data Colada. (2023). Data falsificada (Part 3): The cheaters are out of order. Data Colada. Retrieved from https://datacolada.org/111 Data Colada. (2023). Data falsificada (Part 4): Forgetting the words. Data Colada. Retrieved from https://datacolada.org/112 Data Colada. (2024). [116] Our (first?) day in court. https://datacolada.org/116 Data Colada. (2024). [118] Harvard’s Gino Report Reveals How A Dataset Was Altered, Data Colada. https://datacolada.org/118 Dalton, R. (2023, October 18). Embattled Harvard honesty professor accused of plagiarism. Science. Retrieved January 6, 2025, from https://www.science.org/content/article/embattled-harvard-honesty-professor-accused-plagiarism Dubner, S. J. (2024). Why is there so much fraud in academia? (Update) [Audio podcast episode]. In Freakonomics Radio. Freakonomics, LLC. https://freakonomics.com/podcast/why-is-there-so-much-fraud-in-academia-update/ Dubner, S. J. (2025). Can academic fraud be stopped? (Update) [Audio podcast episode]. In Freakonomics Radio. Freakonomics, LLC. https://freakonomics.com/podcast/can-academic-fraud-be-stopped-update/ Gino, F., Kouchaki, M., & Galinsky, A. D. (2015). The moral virtue of authenticity: How inauthenticity produces feelings of immorality and impurity. Psychological Science, 26(7), 983–996. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797615575277 Gino, F., & Wiltermuth, S. S. (2014). Evil genius? How dishonesty can lead to greater creativity. Psychological Science, 25(4), 973–981. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797614520714 Gino, F., Kouchaki, M., & Casciaro, T. (2020). Why connect? Moral consequences of networking with a promotion or prevention focus. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2Fpspa0000226 Harari, Y. N. (2024). Nexus: A brief history of information networks from the Stone Age to AI. Fern Press. Judo, P. (2024). It’s over – Gino vs Harvard fake data scandal [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/Q9tgyVPytBk Konnikova, M. (2023). They studied dishonesty. Was their work a lie? The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2023/10/09/they-studied-dishonesty-was-their-work-a-lie Lewis-Karus. (2024). How a scientific dispute spiraled into a defamation lawsuit. The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/how-a-scientific-dispute-spiralled-into-a-defamation-lawsuit Shu, L. L., Mazar, N., Gino, F., Ariely, D., & Bazerman, M. H. (2012). Signing at the beginning makes ethics salient and decreases dishonest self-reports in comparison to signing at the end. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 109(38), 15197–15200. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1209746109
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    31 mins