Reactance
Push people and they push back.
What it is
When people feel their freedom to choose is being removed, they resist, even against their own interests. Forced registration, aggressive pop-ups, pre-ticked boxes and "no thanks, I hate saving money" links all trigger it. The remedy is to give the choice back and make the preferred option easy.
The research
Threats to behavioural freedom produce a motivational state directed at restoring that freedom, often by doing the opposite of what was demanded.
Brehm, 1966
How to use it
Offer an honest exit
"Not now" instead of a shaming decline. People who leave with dignity come back.
Ask, do not force
A guest checkout beside the sign-up option converts better than sign-up alone.
Explain the constraint
If something is required, say why. A reason turns a demand into a request.
Put it to work
I use Reactance in landing pages, offers and enquiry forms. If you want it applied to your own funnel, that is part of my lead generation work, usually inside a fractional CMO engagement.
Related
Sources that shaped this entry: growth.design.