I’ll Have What They’re Having: The Subtle Art of Persuasion and Social Proof

What’s the first thing you do when you sit down at a new restaurant?

You scan the room.

You check out other tables.

You subtly side-eye what someone else is having.

And then the moment of truth—“What’s your favorite thing on the menu?” you ask your server, looking for that nudge of confidence in your decision.

That, right there, is social proof.

It’s not flashy.

It’s not salesy.

It’s subtle, persuasive, and rooted in one universal human trait: we trust what other people love.

Now think about it in the digital world.

We do the same thing when we scroll TikTok or Instagram.

We pause when someone’s holding up a cute pair of sneakers, a bomb face serum, or biting into something that looks way too good to ignore.

That’s UGC—user-generated content—at its most powerful. And it’s why creators like me are not just influencing buying decisions…we’re building businesses with our phones, cameras, and creative storytelling.

UGC: Modern-Day Word of Mouth

User-generated content is today’s version of “Hey, where’d you get that from?” It’s real people (like me) talking about real products they actually use. It’s less about big budgets and more about trust.

Whether I’m showing off a new beauty product I’ve been loving, walking through my kitchen with an air fryer dinner that slaps, or unboxing a delivery on my living room floor—that’s persuasive content in its most authentic form. No scripts. No frills. Just real reactions, real opinions, and a real person behind the camera.

Social Proof in Action

Robert Cialdini called it one of the six principles of persuasion: Social Proof.

When people are uncertain, they look to others to guide their decisions.

As creators, we don’t just share experiences—we influence them. We show what it looks like to use that thing, to enjoy it, to trust it.

And the wild part? You don’t need a million followers to make it work.

You just need influence.

And influence starts with experience.

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We’re Not Just Creating Content, We’re Creating Commerce

Content creators today are digital storefronts. When we show something we love, our audience wants to know:

• Where’d you get that?

• Does it really work?

• Is it worth it?

And through affiliate links, brand partnerships, and creative UGC campaigns, we get to turn our recommendations into revenue.

Whether it’s a phone, a mic, a camera, or just some good lighting and a lot of passion—we’re turning curiosity into clicks, clicks into trust, and trust into conversions.

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So yeah.

I’ll have what they’re having.

Because what they’re having looks real, tested, enjoyed—and that’s the kind of content that moves people.

Add a camera. Add your voice. Add your lived experience.

That’s the subtle art of persuasion.