“But you are free” persuasion technique -
- a reliever in the constant hunt for developers?
A/B test in Human Resources case
Direct search for employees can be time consuming — why not optimize it?
Direct search for candidates is a pain in the ass. It is! There are several approaches to what works and what does not when you want to be more persuasive during your first contact with a candidate. You can show or not wage brackets, “Mr” them or address them as your colleagues or contact them using your company’s technical consultant Linkedin profile. What if we use a persuasion technique which helped many charities get funded? Would it work in HR?
What is “But you are free” persuasion technique?
Do you like to have an option to refuse when someone asks you to do something? Sure you do! Everyone does. “But you are free” persuasion technique is not more than assuring a person who is asked to do something that he or she has an option to refuse. Even if this is obvious.
According to the research of Christopher Carpenter, simply saying “…but you are free to say no” at the very end of your request makes it more likely that a person is going to do what he or she is asked to do.
You don’t have to use exactly these words. The main aim is to assure a person you are talking to that he or she can choose to refuse the request, using any words. Other examples might be:
“It’s up to you”
“Whatever you like”
“However you choose”
This all derives from a psychological reactance theory which in just one sentence can be described with a common saying “Cutting off one’s nose to spite the face”. This may remind you of those blissful times when you were a stubborn kid :)
How I tested it in HR field?
I figured out that I can try “But you are free” persuasion technique in the first message to a candidate via Linkedin to check if using just one more sentence at the end of my message would increase the number of people connecting with me in the social network. I aimed at developers who have been more than accustomed to direct search trials these days. I researched some Java and PHP Developers who would be perfect for a job post in a software house I work for and sent out two versions of the first contact message to them.
First version (control group, n=29):
“I have been intrigued with your profile, especially your experience in Spring. I’m looking for a Java Developer for a job post in Divante. Great working atmosphere, SCRUM, benefits package, competitive salary. Would you like to know the details?”
Second version (experimental group, n=32):
“I have been intrigued with your profile, especially your experience in Spring. I’m looking for a Java Developer for a job post in Divante. Great working atmosphere, SCRUM, benefits package, competitive salary. Would you like to know the details? Of course, the choice is yours.”
The messages were sent to 61 candidates via “Connect” in Linkedin within 5 days. I waited at least 5 days for the responses.
What I measured was the number of people, who at least agreed to connect with me after getting a notification and an email with a persuasive message via Linkedin.
Results
There is no significant difference in the response rate of potential candidates between the control and the experimental group (p ≥ 0,05).
Emphasizing the possibility to refuse in the persuasive message did not significantly change the number of people who actually reacted as I was hoping for.
I also checked if there is any difference in response rate between Java Developers and PHP Developers. This comparison also turned out to be statistically insignificant (p ≥ 0,05)
Conclusion
Carpenter in his research shows that this type of persuasive messages work less frequently via emails and other indirect contact. This might be the reason why we were unable to see any significant difference between both tested groups in a test sample of 61 people.
This all might lead to a conclusion that there is no need for the researchers while direct searching to waste those precious characters in the Linkedin Connect message on reassuring a candidate that he may refuse the request. They don’t have to reminded of that and refuse anyway ;)
It would be great to hear about your doubts with hiring developers! Feel free to leave me some comments :)
You may find more about “But you are free” technique here:
Carpenter, C. J. (2013). A Meta-Analysis of the Effectiveness of the “But You Are Free” Compliance-Gaining Technique. Communication Studies, 64(1), 6–17. doi:10.1080/10510974.2012.727941
