Nudge
Nudge

Nudge

Phill Agnew

Overview
Episodes

Details

Nudge is the UK's #1 marketing podcast, breaking down the hidden psychology behind what we do and why we do it. No BS, just smart, science-backed insights that actually work.

Recent Episodes

Can this “magic” number change your behaviour?
MAR 9, 2026
Can this “magic” number change your behaviour?
Do nine-ending prices really work?  Will £9.99 sell more than £10.00? Can it be used for high-quality products? What about hedonic products? Can it be used on speed limits?  For years this debate has raged on. But today on Nudge, I speak with pricing expert Dr Markus Husemann-Kopetzky to settle the argument. ---  Markus’ book: https://amzn.to/46Hetcg  Unlock the Nudge Vaults: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/vaults Join 10,534 readers of my newsletter: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/mailing-list  Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phill-agnew/  --- Today’s sources:  Gendall, P. (1998). Estimating the effect of odd pricing. Journal of Product & Brand Management, 7(5), 421–432. Husemann-Kopetzky, M. (2018). Handbook on the psychology of pricing: 100+ effects on persuasion and influence every entrepreneur, marketer and pricing manager needs to know. Independently published. ITN Archive. (2022, November 28). “I will not accept that it’s a highly dangerous road” (1988) [Video]. YouTube. Kim, J., Novemsky, N., & Dhar, R. (2013). Adding small differences can increase similarity and choice. Psychological Science, 24(2), 176–182. Nunes, J. C., & Park, C. W. (2003). Incommensurate resources: Not just more of the same. Journal of Marketing Research, 40(1), 26–38. Rubinstein, A., & Yee, V. (2020). The left-digit bias: When and why are consumers penny wise and pound foolish? Journal of Marketing Research, 57(3), 467–485. Schindler, R. M., & Kibarian, T. M. (1996). Increased consumer sales response through use of 99-ending prices. Journal of Retailing, 72(2), 187–199. Shotton, R. (2018). The choice factory: 25 behavioural biases that influence what we buy. Harriman House. Suwelack, T., Hogreve, J., & Hoyer, W. D. (2011). Understanding money-back guarantees: Cognitive, affective, and behavioral effects. Journal of Retailing, 87(4), 462–478. Wadhwa, M., & Zhang, K. (2015). This number just feels right: The impact of roundedness of price numbers on product evaluations. Journal of Consumer Research, 41
play-circle icon
25 MIN
“These two words increased sales by 18%.” Robert Cialdini
FEB 23, 2026
“These two words increased sales by 18%.” Robert Cialdini
16 years ago a chain of Chinese restaurants wanted to increase sales without changing the price.  They didn’t change the product.  The service.  The chef.  The food.  Instead, they changed two words on their menu and increased sales by 18%.  The restaurants used the advice of today’s guest on Nudge, Robert Cialdini.  Today, Cialdini explains the social proof principle, sharing how changing just two words could increase your sales. ---  Unlock the Nudge Vaults: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/vaults Read Cialdini’s bestseller Influence: https://amzn.to/4prHb7Y Read the new and expanded Influence: https://amzn.to/43TY0jI Read Pre-Suasion: https://amzn.to/48hA6Qr  Read Yes! (Containing 60 Psyc-Marketing Tips): https://amzn.to/48ddNNf  Join 10,428 readers of my newsletter: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/mailing-list  Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phill-agnew/  ---  Today’s sources:  Aune, R. K., & Basil, M. D. (1994). A relational-obligations approach to fund-raising: The effects of guilt and credibility appeals on compliance. Communication Research, 21(4), 486–498. Binning, K. R., Kaufmann, N., McGreevy, E. M., Fotuhi, O., Chen, S., Marshman, E., Kalender, Z. Y., Limeri, L. B., Betancur, L., & Singh, C. (2020). Changing social contexts to foster equity in college science courses: An ecological-belonging intervention. Psychological Science, 31(9), 1059–1070. Boh, W. F., & Wong, S.-S. (2015). Managers versus co-workers as referents: Comparing social influence effects on within- and outside-subsidiary knowledge sharing. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 126, 1–17. Borman, G. D., Rozek, C. S., Hanselman, P., & Destin, M. (2019). Reappraising academic and social adversity improves middle school students’ academic achievement, behavior, and well-being. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 116(33), 16286–16291. Cai, H., Chen, Y., & Fang, H. (2009). Observational learning: Evidence from a randomized natural field experiment. American Economic Review, 99(3), 864–882. Frank, R. H. (2020). Under the influence: Putting peer pressure to work. Princeton University Press. Goldstein, N. J., Cialdini, R. B., & Griskevicius, V. (2008). A room with a viewpoint: Using social norms to motivate environmental conservation in hotels. Journal of Consumer Research, 35(3), 472–482. Hallsworth, M., List, J. A., Metcalfe, R. D., & Vlaev, I. (2017). The behavioralist as tax collector: Using natural field experiments to enhance tax compliance. Journal of Public Economics, 148, 14–31. Jung, J., Busching, R., & Krahé, B. (2019). Catching aggression from one’s peers: A longitudinal and multilevel analysis. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 13(4), e12440. Linder, J. A., Meeker, D., Fox, C. R., Friedberg, M. W., Persell, S. D., Goldstein, N. J., Knight, T. K., Hay, J. W., & Doctor, J. N. (2017). Durability of benefits of behavioral interventions on inappropriate antibiotic prescribing in primary care: Follow-up from a cluster randomized clinical trial. JAMA, 318(14), 1391–1392. Meeker, D., Linder, J. A., Fox, C. R., Friedberg, M. W., Persell, S. D., Goldstein, N. J., Knight, T. K., Hay, J. W., & Doctor, J. N. (2016). Effect of behavioral interventions on inappropriate antibiotic prescribing among primary care practices: A randomized clinical trial. JAMA, 315(6), 562–570. Murrar, S., Campbell, M. R., & Brauer, M. (2020). Exposure to peers’ pro-diversity attitudes increases inclusion and reduces the achievement gap. Nature Human Behaviour, 4(9), 889–897. Nolan, J. M. (2021). Social norm interventions as a tool for pro-climate change. Current Opinion in Psychology, 42, 120–125. Peterson, R. A., Kim, Y., & Jeong, J. (2020). Out-of-stock, sold out, or unavailable? Framing a product outage in online retailing. Psychology & Marketing, 37(4), 535–547.
play-circle icon
24 MIN
When you can’t stop seeing the thing you’ve just discovered
FEB 16, 2026
When you can’t stop seeing the thing you’ve just discovered
I watched Home Alone and suddenly started hearing the theme tune everywhere.  I thought I was going insane.  But Tom Bowden-Green and Luan Wise explained that I actually fell for a fairly well-known bias.  A bias you’ve almost certainly experienced as well.  ---  Come to Uplift Live: https://uplift-live.com/ (Use code NUDGE to get £50 off)  Tom and Luan’s book: https://amzn.to/49aZnh3 Unlock the Nudge Vaults: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/vaults Join 10,428 readers of my newsletter: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/mailing-list  Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phill-agnew/  ---  Today’s sources:  Costello, J. P., Garvey, A. M., Germann, F., & Wilkie, J. E. B. (2024). The Uptrend Effect: Encouraging healthy behaviors through greater inferred normativity. Journal of Marketing Research, 61(1), 110–127. Cruz, R. E., Leonhardt, J. M., & Pezzuti, T. (2017). Second person pronouns enhance consumer involvement and brand attitude. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 39(1), 104–116. Khan, U., & Dhar, R. (2006). Licensing effect in consumer choice. Journal of Marketing Research, 43(2), 259–266. Lim, S., van Osselaer, S. M., Goodman, J. K., Fuchs, C., & Schreier, M. (2024). The Starbucks effect: When name-based order identification increases customers’ store preference and service satisfaction. Journal of Retailing, 100(2), 316–329. Sahni, N. S., Wheeler, S. C., & Chintagunta, P. (2018). Personalization in email marketing: The role of noninformative advertising content. Marketing Science, 37(2), 236–258. Van Boven, L., Dunning, D., & Loewenstein, G. (2000). Egocentric empathy gaps between owners and buyers: Misperceptions of the endowment effect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79(1), 66–76. van der Meulen, M. (2022). Are we indeed so illuded? Recency and frequency illusions in Dutch prescriptivism. Languages, 7(1), 42. Zwicky, A. (2006). Why are we so illuded. Retrieved from https://web.stanford.edu/~zwicky/LSA07illude.abst.pdf
play-circle icon
26 MIN