Designing for Yes: Inside the Psychology of Influence

In this energizing episode of What One Thing?, Devon Montgomery Pasha sits down with behavioral science expert and global keynote speaker Nancy Harhut to explore why people say yes and how understanding human decision-making can transform both marketing and event design. Nancy breaks down the emotional shortcuts that drive behavior, the four decision defaults that shape how audiences take in information, and the powerful impact of designing for attention, resonance and action. With real-world examples ranging from dentists to conference campaigns, she shows how small psychological cues can unlock major results and why test-and-learn thinking matters more than ever. Whether you craft attendee experiences or brand messages, Nancy offers a fresh, inspiring lens on what truly moves people.

 Produced by: Eming Piansay

Transcript

Devon Montgomery Pasha (00:02.627)
Welcome to What One Thing, a Smart Meetings podcast where we ask successful people what makes all the difference in their life and career so you can learn from their journeys and spark your own growth. Today’s guest is someone whose insights have completely changed the way I think about behavior and communication. I first met her when she took the stage at Namoah Conference in Boston, and I’ve been inspired ever since by the way she helps us understand why people say yes.

Nancy Harhut is the chief creative officer at HBT Marketing, where she blends behavioral science with creative strategy to inspire action. Named one of the 10 most fascinating people in B2B marketing and a top 100 creative influencer, Nancy has helped brands like Nationwide, H&R Block and Great West Life achieve record-breaking results. She’s the award-winning author of Using Behavioral Science in Marketing, now translated into nine languages, and a global keynote speaker who has captivated audiences from South by Southwest to Stockholm. Nancy’s work reminds us that the best marketing and the best events are built on understanding how people think, feel and act. Nancy, welcome to What One Thing.

Nancy Harhut (01:15.768)
Devin, thank you so much. I am pumped to be here.

DMP (01:20.261)
I’m so excited to get you here. Your insights have been such a fascinating journey to follow. And every time we get to hear you speak, it’s like, wow, that makes a lot of sense, why didn’t I think of that? But the way you present it just helps connect what feels like natural dots. For listeners who might not know as much about your journey, what first drew you into this space? How did you discover behavioral science and how it could unlock this world of communication and connection?

NH (01:56.334)
Sure. A mentor of mine recommended Robert Cialdini’s Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. It took me a bit to get around to reading it, but once I did, I was highlighting, writing margin notes, thinking about the clients I was working for. I was trying to get subscribers for the Boston Globe. I was trying to get people to increase their insurance. All real marketing challenges. And I thought, I could test that. That might be applicable.

So I began to test tactics and techniques and saw that they were working. That sent me in this direction and I never looked back. Behavioral science is simply the study of how people behave — why they do what they do and how marketers, salespeople and businesspeople can get their audience to do more of what we’d like them to do. When you understand how people really make decisions, you’re in a much better place to influence them.

DMP (03:23.997)
I love that. And I know you shared some impressive results once you had that lightbulb moment. Can you talk through a campaign that still makes you smile — when you tried it and it worked?

NH (03:47.096)
Yeah, there’s one that stands out. I was reading the book, testing things quietly, not really saying anything. Then I got recruited to a new agency. Not long after, they told me their biggest client was considering making a move. They said, we want you to move the needle.

I thought, this is the moment to put a stake in the ground and say we use marketing best practices plus behavioral science. So we did an assignment where we needed to convince dentists to increase their insurance coverage. No rational argument was moving them.

We used something from Cialdini called the magnetic middle. We showed a graph. On one end, zero dollars of insurance. On the other, three million. Then we said, “You are here,” placing them left of center. People don’t like feeling behind, so we believed they’d move toward the middle.

That’s exactly what happened. We had a 459 percent lift in sales. Not inquiries. Sales. It cemented the client relationship for years. It was the first time I publicly said, here’s what we’re doing and why — and it marked a turning point.

DMP (07:49.944)
I wish listeners could’ve seen my eyebrows. They shot past my hairline at 459 percent. And you’re right — you focused on how people felt when they saw where they landed on the graph, and the action followed. It’s a fascinating example of how simple insight can inspire incredible behavior change.

NH (09:00.994)
Exactly. And you used an important word — feel. Feelings drive behavior. In both B2B and B2C, we decide for emotional reasons, then justify with rational ones. When you understand that, you can create more effective communication.

DMP (10:03.835)
I’m writing down “emotional first, rational later.” I love how this connects to experience design in events. We talk about designing for behavior change. Can you share how what you do in marketing correlates with behavior change in event experiences?

NH (11:14.254)
Absolutely. Behavioral science is all about influencing behavior. When designing experiences — or marketing communications — we need to think about decision defaults. Information alone rarely changes behavior.

There are four goals:

1. Capture attention
2. Make information understandable
3. Make it memorable
4. Drive action

Behavioral science gives us tools for each of those steps.

There’s also the peak-end rule. People remember two things: the peak moment and the final moment. So anything you can do to make those stand out will shape how the entire experience is remembered. A restaurant recently ended dinner by giving guests cotton candy. Unexpected. Delightful. Memorable. It changed the whole impression of the meal.

DMP (15:10.544)
That’s such a great example. And you’re right — it’s better than the aluminum-foil swan. I also love the idea that the same principles apply to marketing our events as to designing the onsite experience.

NH (16:44.622)
Yes. Whether it’s a surprising email subject line or showing which companies have already registered to invoke social proof, behavioral science helps us motivate action.

DMP (19:24.273)
I love it. And now our favorite question. What’s the one thing that has made all the difference in your life and career?

NH (19:42.734)
Discovering behavioral science. I was doing well, but once I started experimenting with behavioral science, everything changed — new clients, more speaking opportunities, the book. It was the turning point.

DMP (20:37.597)
Leaders are learners, and clearly that changed everything for you. How have you continued evolving your approach in a rapidly changing attention economy?

NH (21:15.374)
Marketing and advertising change constantly. You have to stay a student of the craft. Read. Attend conferences. Test. Talk to peers. Try new channels. If you love what you do, staying curious becomes energizing, not exhausting.

DMP (22:27.473)
You’ve talked a lot about testing and learning — not failing. How do you help clients embrace that mindset?

NH (23:15.374)
There’s no failed test. You always learn something. Start with a hypothesis, test it and benchmark results. Some clients rotate a suite of top-performing messages and constantly test new ones to replace ones that fatigue. You minimize risk but maximize learning.

DMP (26:16.615)
Music to every planner’s ears. Because we hear “this is how we’ve always done it” all the time. And what you’re saying is: you don’t have to reinvent the wheel, but doing the same thing forever guarantees diminishing returns.

NH (27:35.438)
Exactly. We don’t discard what we know works, but we carve out small test segments to explore what might work better.

DMP (28:40.285)
Before we close: what keeps you curious and inspired after all these years?

NH (29:15.618)
Human behavior. There’s no end to the things that might influence action. Marketing lets you learn a little about a lot — insurance, education, fast food, nonprofits. For someone who loves learning, that’s endlessly motivating.

DMP (30:26.021)
Nancy, thank you for inspiring us, for reframing testing as learning and for reminding us that understanding decision defaults helps create resonance and drive behavior. And to our listeners, thank you for joining us on What One Thing, a Smart Meetings podcast where every story sparks inspiration for your own journey. Until next time, keep creating, keep connecting and keep sparking change.