the Paper Clip: Blog Post 4

Start with a paper clip and see what you can get for it. Continue to trade as many times as you can, making an argument for why people should trade with you. What did you say to persuade people to make these trades? 

http://www.bloomberg.com/ss/06/07/redpaperclip/source/2.htm

         Trading is a integral part of history. We trade stories. We trade services. We trade commodities, and often, we trade lies. Salesmanship is a tough but legitimate job at which many are incredibly successful. Trade and salesmanship both had an element of persuasion. Without the power to persuade, appeals to trade of sell an item will often fall on deaf ears. It is the individual with the power to persuade the trade partner that they need or want this item desperately in order to facilitate a trade or sale.

         This held true for the assignment that prompted this blog post. Starting with a paper clip, I worked my way up to see what I could get. I felt in the situation with my roommate that the most effective form of persuasion was to tell her that this was for an assignment in school. Because we are close friends, she wanted to help which made her more willing to sit and listen/trade with me. Initially, she gave me tape in exchange for the paper clip. Then she gave me a pen for the tape. After that, she offered a quarter for the pen and a piece of gum for the quarter. However, when it came to trading for the gum, she said "I would just take it" because gum is not particularly valuable to her or to me. The times that she was most open to trading was when she considered a situation in which she would be in a particular need for the item I offered. This is key to persuasion when it comes to trading and selling items. The buyer must truly believe they need the item or desperately want the item in order to give something in exchange for it. Whatever they give will be of lesser value to them than the thing they are getting.