Always try to give something to your users before you ask anything from them.

<aside> ℹ️ Reciprocity is a social norm of responding to a positive action with another positive action, rewarding kind actions. In the context of digital product experiences, users are more likely to engage with your product if you first provide them value. They'll be more likely to trust you and reciprocate. That's even more important when you're about to ask for something big from your users (sign up, paywall, etc).

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Reciprocity is a cornerstone of society and social networking, but what is it, and how do we employ it effectively in design?

Much of what we do in interaction and user-experience design is to get people to buy our products and services, read our content, subscribe to our newsletter and so on. We typically use simple persuasion to accomplish this by saying that our content, products or services are better, faster or cheaper than elsewhere. But there are more powerful and subtle ways of encouraging engagement. One of the most effective of these is reciprocity. It is powerful because it is a social norm in virtually all societies.

In Social Psychology, Reciprocity is a social rule that says people should repay, in kind, what another person has provided for them.

In his book Influence, Robert Cialdini’s first principle is reciprocity. (See → )

The simple premise is that if you want someone to do or give something to you, you do or give something first. He bases this argument on well-established characteristics of reciprocity:

• It is a social norm. Without exception, human societies value reciprocity, and individual psychological responses are significant.
• The initiator of reciprocity is free to choose the initial offering and the favor subsequently asked (if applicable).
• The reciprocal favor does not have to be equal and may be substantially larger.
• Participants of reciprocity often feel more positive about the outcome, especially where negotiated concessions are involved.
• Even small reciprocal exchanges can promote loyalty.

Resources

Reciprocity (social psychology)

What is Reciprocity?

The Reciprocity Principle: Give Before You Take in Web Design

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