57 minutes | Jan 15, 2020

Nancy Harhut — Blending Behavioral Science with Marketing Practices

Nancy Harhut is the Co-Founder of HBT Marketing and has over a decade of experience as a Creative Director with a focus in Behavioral Science. She has worked at the executive-level for companies such as Hill Holliday and Mullen and is an award-winning keynote speaker taking the stage across the globe.


Key Takeaways:

[2:10] Nancy was first inspired by Robert Cialdini’s book Influence and his work sparked a long journey down behavioral science and its application into marketing.

[5:30] Even with the use of behavioral science, it still isn’t a magic bullet. We can’t make people do what they don’t want to do.

[7:15] How does Nancy’s approach differ from other marketing agencies?

[10:50] How does behavioral science help with the discovery process of an ideal customer persona or avatar?

[19:20] As a keynote speaker, the key is to never stop learning. Nancy is always consuming various sources of information so she can deliver better messages on stage.

[24:50] Are marketers today bold enough? It depends. Some come in really swinging at full force whereas others take it slow — almost too slow — because they have a lot at stake.

[26:15] There is a duplication of a lot of best practices, but not enough duplication of next practices.

[26:50] What has been the most successful campaign Nancy has created in her career?

[31:45] Why do the basics of journalism and behavioral science need to bleed into marketing?

[37:15] Nancy shares her thoughts on the decline of the newspaper industry.

[44:05] Do persuasive words ever really change or go out of fashion?

[47:25] How does Nancy apply behavioral science to her personal life?

[52:45] Marketing helps people find solutions to problems.

[55:15] Nancy’s legacy


Mentioned in This Episode:


Nancy on Twitter

Nancy on LinkedIn

Influence: 6 Principles of Persuasion,” by Robert Cialdini






Play Next