Innovators need the support of other people to be successful. This often entails talking about their innovations in a positive light. But can innovators be too positive about their ideas? Both entrepreneurs seeking scarce resources and intrapreneurs compete for attention within corporations. Persuading others to back a new idea requires both intellectual and emotional appeal. Positive emotions are powerful tools in garnering support. Conventional wisdom suggests that displaying passion and enthusiasm for your idea can inspire and motivate others to join your vision. But can it be overdone, and when does enthusiasm become counterproductive?

The researchers found that there’s a delicate balance to strike for building trust and securing support. Excessive positivity can raise doubts about the integrity and authenticity of both the message and the messenger. This undermines trust and jeopardises efforts. This paradox is especially pronounced in high-stakes situations where potential supporters are making significant commitments and scrutinise proposals closely. Overly optimistic projections, grandiose claims, or excessively positive presentations can trigger scepticism. This leads stakeholders to doubt the innovator’s credibility.

Striking the Balance: Evidence from Crowdfunding

The authors’ research explores the delicate balance of positivity and offers insights into how innovators can inspire support while avoiding traps of over-enthusiasm. They analysed a sample of 2,500 music projects on the crowdfunding platform Kickstarter. They examined how the emotional tone of project descriptions (text), and images correlate with funding performance. They found that when pitches were overly negative or overly positive, supporters tended to be scarce. For example, one songwriter’s overly positive image and project description failed to inspire anyone: 'my dream and passion is to use this project to encourage and inspire people around the country through my songs [… and] to see this dream become a reality.'

The researchers found that balanced positivity consistently outperformed overly positive or negative approaches. Balanced projects attracted 65 funders on average, compared to only 49 for overly positive ones.

The size of a project amplifies these effects. For decision-makers or investors, larger projects imply significant financial commitments and higher risks, leading them to scrutinise and negatively perceive signs of excessive positivity. This was found to be especially true for visuals: overly positive images seemed to trigger perceptions of inauthenticity more than positive language. For small and medium projects, balanced positivity attracted seven more funders compared to excessive positivity. However, large projects with balanced positivity drew in 58 more investors than overly positive ones.

Takeaway

The research suggests that when it comes to seeking support for an innovative idea, balancing positivity in your communication (e.g. text and images) is precisely what you should do. You can effectively engage stakeholders without propelling them into scepticism by being authentic, using positive emotions judiciously, and backing up your enthusiasm with substance. Remember that people are more likely to support ideas - and the people behind them - when they feel they are getting a genuine, balanced perspective.

The paper Emotional brightness and crowdfunding performance was recently published in the journal Research Policy. This work was co-authored  with Northeastern University researchers Stine Grodal and Fernando Suarez, and Ludovic Dibiaggio (SKEMA Business School).