INFLUENCE AS AN ART & DECEPTION

“The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist”
– Charles Baudelaire, French poet & essayist

Influence is a carefully crafted art form that blends strategy, creativity, and connection. People who master it understand the rules, which include shaping the narrative, inspiring emotions and guiding perceptions with purpose and originality.

While the world may remember Napoleon as a military genius, few acknowledge that he was also a master of propaganda who controlled how France saw itself.

Steve Jobs was the inspiration behind Apple IOS 20, which is expected to be rolled out next year.

A viral TikTok challenge can turn a subpar song by an amateur into a storyteller who could turn something ordinary into a revolution.

India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, understood the power of personal branding with his trademark rose on his sherwani. Today, it has become a symbol of modern India. His book The Discovery of India was not just some literary work. It was, in fact, a narrative manifesto. The book positioned him as an intellectual architect of independent India.

Although the late Raj Kapoor was a great actor, he was considered a cultural architect. His portrayal of the ‘Simple, lovable common man’ in films such as Shree 420 and Awara deeply connected him with post-independent India. This later even created a new cinematic archetype. Songs like Mera Joota Hai Japani became cultural anthems, influencing Indian identity and earning him international recognition.

Cut to today. The game has evolved from what it was.

A well-placed tweet at the right time can shift stock markets.

A single YouTube video can influence history.

An AI-generated image can ignite outrage or admiration. All this without a shred of reality behind it.

We are currently living in the golden age of influence. Perception is currency, and manipulation is considered an unspoken art.

So, let’s get uncomfortable because how much of what you see is real? How much has been fed to you by an unseen puppet master?

Welcome to Influence: The Art

With the rise of purpose, influencers have reshaped brand engagement.

What do Anand Mahindra’s uplifting Twitter posts, inspiring the younger generation, or Greta Thunberg’s mobilising millions for climate change signify? They signify that ethical influence drives progress.

Influence has been prevalent since the grand courts of ancient kings to the virtual stages of today’s digital leaders. It has been the silent architect of civilisation. Similarly, Chanakya’s strategic prowess, Aristotle’s persuasive speeches, and Martin Luther King Jr.’s electrifying speeches have shaped the course of history through influence.

Today, this very same power is wielded by digital influencers manifold. They use it to shape cultural narrative, social discourse and consumer choices.

Case Study: The Ice Bucket Challenge

What began as a grassroots campaign turned into a global phenomenon. In 2014, the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge raised $220 million, mainly through influencers, for ALS research. This was evidence of the power of viral influence, which is engaging, participatory, and anchored in a cause.

Welcome to Influence: The Deception

Case Study in Manipulation: The Invisible Strings

1996. A nation mesmerised.

A Cola war was being waged in India. Coca-Cola and Pepsi weren’t just selling soft drinks back then; they were selling status, identity, and youth.

Pepsi turned a beverage into a generational anthem with its “Yehi Hai Right Choice Baby!” campaign.

Coca-Cola retaliated with the “Thanda Matlab Coca Cola.” This embedded itself into the subconscious of Indians.

Some reports emerged in 2003 stating that the Coca Cola and Pepsi brands contained pesticide residues. The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) revealed what shook the market. This caused people to panic, leading to sales plunging for both brands.

But here’s the fact – both companies used the same water source for decades. The only thing that visibly changed was people’s perception of the brands.

Celebrity endorsements, feel-good advertising and counter-reports managed to change this within months.

This again resulted in people trusting the brands, which made the sales recover.

In this scenario, influence was not about the truth but about which story could outshine the other.

The Three Laws of Influence

The Law of Perceived Authority

Did you know that people follow perceived expertise, not just expertise itself? The study named ‘Televised medical talk shows—what they recommend and the evidence to support their recommendations’ by Korownyk et al. (2014), published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), analysed health recommendations given on popular medical talk shows, including The Dr Oz Show.

Researchers scrutinised 80 random episodes, which revealed that 46% of Dr Oz’s recommendations were supported by scientific evidence. 15% were directly contradicted by existing research, and the remaining 39% had insufficient or no evidence to support the claims.

The Law of Emotional Hijack

The human brain is wired for emotional reactions, not rational decision-making. That’s the way we are born.

A Harvard Business Review study found that brands that can create an emotional connection outperform competitors by 52% in customer loyalty—a classic example of emotion outweighing satisfaction.

Why do we digest outrage-driven content? Why do we believe influencers over facts? Well, it is because logic whispers and emotions shout.

The Law of Repeated Lies

A study published in the Psychonomic Bulletin & Review found that repeated exposure to statements increased their perceived truthfulness. Even when the statements were false, they were considered the truth.

This phenomenon is known as the illusory truth effect. It occurs because repetition enhances cognitive ease, which makes information seem more credible and familiar.

Have you ever wondered why brands keep repeating their slogans tirelessly? Why do political parties nail the exact phrases into the public’s consciousness? Why do influencers have to keep reinforcing their expertise? It is because the human brain can confuse familiarity with the truth.

The Influence Mastery Blueprint (An Exercise for You!)

Audit Your Influences

• Who are the top 5 people or brands that shape your thinking?
• Why do you trust them? Is your trust reasoned with logic or emotional appeal?

Test the Power of Perception

• You need to present one idea in two different ways:
a) The first way of presenting your idea will be as a casual suggestion.

b) The second with confidence, authority, and a bold statement.

• You will notice the difference in reaction.

If you want the world to associate with you, keep repeating it consistently and creatively until it becomes undeniable. I would term it the Art of Weaving.

The Closing Thought

You can now figure out that there are two sides of influence. One is art, and the other is deception.

The question is: Will you use this knowledge to exert influence, or will you be a victim? Make no mistake here; someone is always influencing you. The only question that remains is, do you know who it is?

(Book Extract from The Human Demi-Gods by Author Sumanth Kumar)
Publisher: Notion Press
Available: Amazon.in, Flipkart, Amazon.com, Notionpress.com