The Rule of Seven…

Why don’t people get the message the first time? Frustrated when you have to repeat the message over and over before people admit that they get it, let alone remember it?

The “Rule of Seven” in advertising & media is important to remember. Simply put; consumers are more likely to purchase a product or service after having seen an ad at least seven times. The rule is not new – not really that modern. I found a reference dating the first time the rule was articulated in writing to the 1880’s. There are other references that date the idea back even further.

Think about it. You drive past a billboard every day at work. The subconscious “sees” that message on the board in the first few impressions. If the message triggers a “basic need” response in the subconscious the message is “escalated” to the conscious. If not, it takes a few more impressions before the conscious “sees” the message and sorts and filters the message. It is those steps you make the mental effort to “tune out” the message – or act upon the message. Same goes for Radio, Television and print. That is why so many advertising “campaigns” use multiple forms of “delivery” and repetition.

A few years ago in the middle of a major change in process, I coached the team that we had to have a higher level of patience with our trading partners and internal customers – that it would take time for the message of the change to get out and become important to our partners and customers that they would start to comply to the changes. I stressed that is was our job to continue to communicate to each of the partners of the change – that we would need to use different forms or communication – and deliver the message in a number of ways and with repetition before we would see widespread compliance.

“You have to be kidding,”; “They are adults – they can read – it’s their problem”; the idea that we would have to keep communicating the message just did not make sense to some members of the team.

I knew better – from firsthand experience. Before I became a logistician I was an “Ink-stained wretch”; I worked in newspaper and magazines. I sold advertising – lots of advertising. It was in that stage of my career development I learned firsthand about the “Rule of Seven” and how it applied to so many other areas. One of the biggest arguments made against “buying advertising” is that it does not work – an argument made by the “tried it once and it didn’t work” crowd. I also learned that my best accounts did not buy on the first visit, but if they were going to buy it was around the seventh contact that I made with them. Those “contacts” could be nothing more than a phone call or a note in the mail, but if they were going to buy it was going to be after 7 contacts.

Do you respect the “Rule of Seven” in your communications?