Its an age old fact that people are far more inclined to say ‘yes’ to people they like.
Shared identity, consistent positive interactions and a personalised experience can turn large audiences into enthusiastic collaborators and customers.
- We gravitate towards people we think resemble us in interests, values or background. So being similar is important.
- If a person is sincerely praised, it will activate reward centres and foster goodwill. For this reason you want to compliment people and provide positive feedback.
- Working together on tasks builds trust and affinity to cooperation is a key pre-condition of liking.
Tactics to build rapport
- Personalised onboarding - ask three preference questions (goals, fears, favourite things about AI) and tailor the welcome message accordingly.
- Shared identity signals - Use community badges or something similar to show progress through the material. E.g. Agent Architect, or Prompt Master, or Master Builder.
- Regular micro interactions - send a short note to people, with feedback in individual success when you see it. This can be hard at mass scale - but there are no excuses if the groups are small.
- Storytelling and vulnerability - highlight your own failures, in everything you’ve done. You want to humanise your situation and let people know what you’re trying to achieve.
- Reciprocol support is where you call out for help - or connect calls for help with others. Being a good moderator of connection is a good idea.
Conclusion
Liking is the lubricant of influence. By thoughtfully personalising interactions, reflecting shared identities, celebrating contributions, facilitating peer rapport you build genuine support.
If you get it right, you’ll transform casual users into loyal, vocal advocates.