The Ungentle Art of Persuasion

Over the past two decades, the profusion of influencers on social media has been nothing short of overwhelming.

- SAYANTAN NANDI

Over the past two decades, the profusion of influencers on social media has been nothing short of overwhelming. With unrelenting consistency, influencers have poured out of social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, and the controversial TikTok.

From fashion to health, from management lessons to relationship advice, from spirituality to how to converse with your cat, there seems to be nothing which is off-limits for influencers.

As per an article in the Harvard Business Review, by the end of 2023, the influencer industry is going to be worth $23 billion, with 300 million people claiming to be content creators. The arrival of influencers has immutably rearranged the socio-cultural conversation.

Though seen as a recent phenomenon, the art of influencing has been around for centuries. In Aristotle's Ars Rhetorica, which dates back to the 4th century BCE, we find mention of the art of influencing through three methods, namely Ethos, Pathos, and Logos. In simple terms, they mean the ability to influence other's opinions through authoritative, emotional, and cognitive triggers.

This conceptual framework is still relevant today, as people continue to be influenced by expert opinion, emotion-laden appeals, and cleverly crafted arguments. Our ways of thinking, behaving, and accepting are somehow the after-effects of influence.

Originating from the Latin word 'influere' which meant 'flowing', the initial meaning of influence had divine connotations earlier. It signified the transmission of a liquefied ethereal power which impacted human destiny.