What is Behavioural Design for communication?

Behavioural Design for communication is the application of behavioural science to communication challenges such as campaigns, change communication, internal communications and stakeholder management. The method helps communication professionals understand why people act on (or tune out) their message, and how to design communication so that the desired behaviour becomes the natural response. The foundation is the SUE Influence Framework: a model of six behavioural forces - goals, anxieties, habits, context, barriers and triggers.

What does Behavioural Design actually do for my communication work?

You learn the SUE Influence Framework: a method for analysing why people respond the way they do to your messages, and how to design communication that actually changes behaviour. You work on your own communication challenge during the training and go home with a fully worked-out strategy you can apply the next day.

For whom → communication professionals

Behavioural design × AI training for communication

The communication training for messages that actually move people.|

Everything you do as a communication professional, from campaigns and newsletters to change communication and stakeholder management, comes down to influencing behaviour. Most communication informs. Behavioural Design teaches you to design for the automatic mind: the one that actually drives what people do.

Nine communication behaviour challenges → Or jump straight to our programmes →

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accredited

€1.190

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Communication professionals during the Behavioural Design Fundamentals training at SUE Amsterdam

Communication is a behaviour profession

Every communication professional runs into these behaviour challenges.

Campaigns, internal communications, change messaging. Again and again: people receive the message but don't change their behaviour. The question is not whether you recognise this. The question is how you break through it.

01 · Campaigns

Why does our campaign reach everyone but move no one?

Reach is not the problem. Awareness is not the problem. Something between awareness and action is failing.

02 · Internal comms

Why does the intranet get 8% open rates?

The content is relevant. The timing is good. Still nobody reads it. Information and communication are not the same thing.

03 · Framing

Why does the same message land differently every time?

One version gets questions, the other gets commitment. Framing is not spin - it is how the brain processes choice.

04 · Stakeholders

Why does the stakeholder hear it but still not act?

The presentation was good. The proposal was thorough. The answer was: "let's schedule a follow-up." There is a gap between understanding and deciding.

05 · Change communication

Why does our change communication increase resistance?

The more we explain the change, the more people worry. Communication that informs is not communication that moves people.

06 · Persuasion

How do I write copy that persuades rather than informs?

Good writing is not enough. The brain skips most of what it reads. Designing for the automatic mind is a skill, not a talent.

07 · Annual reports

Why does the annual report get filed unread?

It is well-written, well-designed, well-positioned. And nobody opens it. Obligation and communication are different goals.

08 · Social proof

Why do our campaigns work in testing but not in the real world?

The focus group loved it. The A/B test won. Real behaviour did not change. Context is the difference.

09 · Behaviour

How do I design a communication that actually changes what people do?

Not what they think, not what they say they will do. What they actually do. That requires a different design process.

Why the SUE Behavioural Design method

Behavioural science made practical for professionals who are not behavioural experts.

Most behavioural science knowledge is locked in academic papers and consultancy reports. SUE built its own method, the Influence Framework, which translates that knowledge into a practical step-by-step process any communication professional can apply, without a scientific background.

Read: the SUE Influence Framework explained →

No academic theory — you work on your own communication case during the training and go home with a fully worked-out plan

Built on Kahneman, Cialdini and Thaler, scientifically grounded but accessible for practitioners

Our own method, the Influence Framework is not taught anywhere else, described in the #1 management bestseller

16 years of experience, from ING to Heineken to the Dutch Government: the method has been proven on the biggest communication challenges in the Netherlands

9.3/10

★★★★★

4.8/5

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5.0/5

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What communication professionals say after the training

10.000+ professionals have followed a SUE Behavioural Design training.

The communication professionals among them have one thing in common: afterwards they look at campaigns, copy and stakeholder management differently.

I had very nice and inspiring days, with both insights and practical tips and examples to apply in my practice as a communication professional.

Karine van den Noort – Communicatie expert/Eigenaar

De Communicatie Experts

★★★★★

As a content specialist, it is important to know and understand what is really going on in the target group.

Annette Abels

Contentspecialist

★★★★★

SUE Behavioural Design gives you a powerful and practical framework to effectively influence customers and clients. They are focused on client insights that lead to changing behaviour.

Erik Jan Coenraad

Marketing manager

★★★★★

And see the person behind your customer. Insights like this are really going to help us and our customers.

Marijana Goronja

Communication specialist

★★★★★

you learn how you can get people to do things and why they sometimes do not move and how you can solve this by little interventions in both text, visual or content.

Viola Rijnsdorp

Senior Marketing Manager T-Mobile

★★★★★

In my projects, this led to surprising behavioural interventions and great satisfaction among my clients.

Josette Häger

Independent Strategic Communication Consultant · Häger, Häger & Häger

★★★★★

I am out to optimise my consumer journey from A to Z.

Frank Heuts

Sr. Communication Advisor – Obvion Mortgages

★★★★★

The Behavioural Design Academy is very interesting & helps companies give structure/ a good method to create and test new ideas/ start campaigns and products. I definitely use these methods in my daily work.

Veronique de Bos

Communication Specialist

★★★★★

I've studied science of communications. It's hard to use the things I've learned in my daily work.

Anke van Dalfsen

Marketing and communication

★★★★★

We have, in an effort to embed this way of working in the organisation, infused our briefing template with the

Dave Westerhof

Global Marketing Director – BEAT

★★★★★

After the training

What communication professionals do differently after the Behavioural Design training

Not abstract knowledge. Concrete changes in how you approach campaigns, internal comms and behaviour change.

You analyse behaviour before you design the communication

You use the Influence Framework as your starting point: what drives these employees, what's holding them back, what context helps?

You design context, not just communication

You shape the work environment so that the desired behaviour becomes the easiest choice, not just the most communicated one.

You speak the language of behaviour in communication decisions

You share a common framework with your team: goals, anxieties, habits, context, friction, triggers. Communication decisions become more concrete and better grounded.

Frequently asked questions

Frequently asked questions about the communication training

Yes. The programmes are EQAC-accredited and you finish with a certificate. You can start with the two-day Fundamentals Course (€1,490 ex VAT) or progress to the Advanced Course for experts (€3,990 ex VAT).

Most participants start without any prior knowledge. The training teaches you the behavioural science you need, linked directly to your own communication practice. No academic theory for its own sake, just actionable insights you can apply the very next day in your campaigns, internal comms or stakeholder work.

You learn the SUE Influence Framework: a method for analysing why people act on (or tune out) your message, and for designing communication that genuinely changes behaviour. You work on your own communication case during the training, such as internal change comms, campaign engagement or behaviour-led messaging, and go home with a fully worked-out strategy you can apply the next day.

The training is most valuable for experienced communication professionals. You've got the practical experience. The training gives you the scientific framework that backs up your intuition and sharpens your approach. Many participants say afterwards: I was already doing parts of this, but now I understand why some campaigns work and others don't.

A deliberately mixed group: HR professionals, marketers, communication advisers, policymakers and leaders all together. Maximum 16 participants. That mix is what makes it valuable, because you learn not only from the content but also from how people in other sectors deal with similar behavioural challenges.

Yes. We invoice in the company name and the training is EQAC-accredited, which makes reimbursement easier. Get in touch if you need a quote or additional information for your request.

Start with the Fundamentals. That gives you the complete Behavioural Design framework: the Influence Framework, the JTBD method and all core tools. A Deep Dive builds on that with communication-specific applications. Without the Fundamentals, the Deep Dive lacks its foundation.

The Fundamentals course is the broad foundational training: 2 days live (or 33 online lessons) in which you learn the complete Behavioural Design framework. After that, you can apply it to any communication challenge. A Deep Dive training lasts 1 day and goes deep on one specific topic, such as campaign design, stakeholder management or internal communications. If you do both, the Fundamentals course is always the first step.

Yes. The Behavioural Design training is EQAC-certified, which makes reimbursement from employers easier. We invoice in the company name and provide a quote on request. The course is given in Amsterdam and online. Get in touch for personal advice on which training best fits your situation.

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10.000+ professionals have gone before you · 9.3/10 rating · EQAC accredited

Behavioural Design is the missing layer.

Why a well-intentioned communication initiative doesn't automatically change behaviour

Behavioural Design for communication professionals is the application of behavioural science to campaigns, change communication, internal communications and stakeholder management. The method helps you understand why people respond the way they do to your messages, and how to design communication so that the desired behaviour becomes the natural response.

96% of behaviour is automatic. Most communication addresses the conscious mind: posters, e-learnings, wellbeing campaigns. The Behavioural Design Method teaches you to read the unconscious, and design for it.

Five forces shape every behaviour. Pains, gains, anxieties, comforts and jobs-to-be-done. The SUE Influence Framework teaches you to recognise them in employees, managers and candidates, and use them to influence communication decisions.

Behaviour is designable. The Behavioural Design Method gives you a step-by-step process for changing the work environment, not the person, so that ownership, engagement and sustainable employability become the natural default.

The communication training for messages that actually move people.|

Every communication professional runs into these behaviour challenges.

Why does our campaign reach everyone but move no one?

Why does the intranet get 8% open rates?

Why does the same message land differently every time?

Why does the stakeholder hear it but still not act?

Why does our change communication increase resistance?

How do I write copy that persuades rather than informs?

Why does the annual report get filed unread?

Why do our campaigns work in testing but not in the real world?

How do I design a communication that actually changes what people do?

Behavioural science made practical for professionals who are not behavioural experts.

Communication training: three featured programmesfor communication

Behavioural Design Fundamentals Course

Behavioural Design Masterclass

Deep Dive Leading Change & Transformation

Or browse all our trainings and programmes

10.000+ professionals have followed a SUE Behavioural Design training.

What communication professionals do differently after the Behavioural Design training

You analyse behaviour before you design the communication

You design context, not just communication

You speak the language of behaviour in communication decisions

Frequently asked questions about the communication training

Why a well-intentioned communication initiative doesn't automatically change behaviour

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