The Power of 3 Updated

Monday, I had Subway for lunch.

As soon as I sat down at my desk, I realized that the reason I was about to eat my cold cut combo was the power of 3.

There is a rule that many advertising professionals follow that says it takes 3 impressions to motivate a person to action.

It started on my way to work. I usually have a hot breakfast. McDonalds was too busy so I kept driving. A few weeks ago I had an egg white melt from Subway and it was pretty good, so when I got downtown, that's where I went and what I got.

That was #1.

Then around 11:30 a couple of the women I work with mentioned that they were going to Subway for lunch.

That was #2.

About an hour later, as I was leaving to get my lunch, I stopped by one of the offices of the women who had Subway and she was finishing off the last bite.

That was #3.

As I pulled out of the parking lot, I was considering either chicken or Chinese. But I passed both of those options and continued a few more blocks to Subway where I ordered a custom made sandwich, chips and a drink.

With the increase in the number of advertising impressions we are exposed to daily, (somewhere between 3,000 and 5,000), is the rule of 3 still relevant? Yes, given certain conditions.

I have also been exposed to at least 5 lottery ads each day, but have never played. I'm not in the market for a lottery ticket. But when I was driving I was in the market for lunch.

Still, if I didn't like Subway, or never had been previously exposed to Subway, the 3 impressions I had that day wouldn't have been enough.

When you are planning an advertising/marketing campaign, realize that everyone will not become your customer (Lottery tickets).

Also each single person needs 3 positive impressions within a short time period to motivate them to action.

And finally, most people are not even aware of these 3 impressions that motivated them to action, so tracking the advertising effectiveness can be difficult.

Still.....