Set a deliberate anchor before the target number

Present a higher figure first so that your actual offer or ask appears more reasonable by contrast.

Why it works

Anchoring works because the first number heard colonizes the cognitive reference point against which subsequent numbers are evaluated. Adjustment from an anchor is typically insufficient — people stay closer to the initial figure than logic would justify. This is not a judgment error to exploit; it is a perceptual reality to account for in how you sequence information.

How to do it

1. In a negotiation or pricing conversation, introduce a higher reference point naturally before your actual number.
2. Make the anchor a real, defensible figure — not an arbitrary inflation that destroys credibility when challenged.
3. After the anchor, make the contrast explicit: "Compared to X, what I’m proposing is Y."

Evidence

Anchoring is among the most replicated findings in behavioral economics and judgment research. Tversky and Kahneman’s original work and hundreds of replications show anchors shift numerical estimates significantly. (rct)

Implausible anchors can backfire — if the initial number is obviously unreasonable, it signals bad faith and disrupts trust rather than shifting reference points.

Sources

• Tversky & Kahneman (1974), "Judgment under uncertainty: Heuristics and biases", Science

Common mistake

Using an anchor so extreme it reads as dishonest — anchors work best when they are plausible reference points, not opening bids meant to shock.