Today we’re gonna discuss what the 3 7 27 rule of branding is, and how it could serve your operation.
Specifically with building trust and earning sales.
I’ll preface this by sharing that I’m unaware of this rule.
It’s my first time ever hearing about this thing.
But it deals with branding obviously, and anything new for me to learn should be good enough for you too.
So without further ado, let’s move on:
What is the 3 7 27 rule of branding?
It’s a rule of thumb that suggests a brand’s message should aim for an initial impact within 3 seconds. It has to build a connection and establish clarity in 7 seconds. Finally, it requires 27 exposures to be fully remembered and trusted enough for a customer to engage with it.
Understanding the 3-7-27 Rule: A Branding Foundation
The first number (3) in this rule is easily the most important part of it.
You lead with this one and you’re gonna be on the cusp of learning what it takes to go viral.
You might have the most powerful message the world’s ever seen, but it’s irrelevant if you can’t catch someone’s attention.
It could easily be paralleled with the thesis statement that could be found in an essay.
Next is moving onto the 7 portion.
Earlier, we understood it to be the connection and clarity area of the rule.
Here’s where we focus less on attention grabbing, and more on speaking to close friends.
These are gonna be the people that will at least have an idea of what it is you’re talking about.
You can really shine in this area by connecting dots (or as I keep saying [paralleling] your points).
If you can introduce a new concept and bring up another that’s more familiar, it helps your audience get what you’re saying much quicker.
Last is the 27.
This as I’m understanding it to be is where you can start spamming your platform (I mention spam loosely) with a plethora of examples.
Specifically, it suggests 27 pieces of material that has to be shared.
The best way to go about approaching this that I’m finding is sharing personal stories.
There’s nothing like being able to share experience with your audience.
The book that I mentioned before was in one of my more recent posts (within a week) you can find.
It helps me understand this concept and where it fits in much better.
Optimizing Your Brand Strategy for Today’s Marketing Landscape
I look at the title and it reminds me of how optimistic you can be with marketing.
I’ve mentioned several times before about how marketing isn’t a cut and dry skill.
In order to optimize it: you need to figure out what the “old” method was.
How I saw it was being a robot (where a customer doesn’t feel welcomed to approach the name).
The company or brand just puts things out in a highly regulated market.
They communicate through usually predictable channels with them having a product:
- TV
- Radio
- Billboards
- Newspapers
Very traditional forms of media.
What we have now however is a new medium.
I’m talking about the internet of course!
It’s a generally unregulated marketing tool that quickly rose to being the most popular.
And it hasn’t been around for a super long time either.
That’s what makes and defines the new marketing landscape: understanding the internet.
I’m not saying to get how every single logistic works when it comes to the web either.
Just focus on the things that serve you.
I’ll address the pink elephant in the room and steer the focus on social media.
Optimizing your branding strategy around the internet is mastering the art of creating digital content.
You’re gonna go on a journey to learn ways to communicate different layers of your product or service.
You have to balance the desire to just hop on the internet and stay there all day.
Just remember: there was a life before it (and people lived great then too)
It’s just a decision that you have to consciously make, which could dramatically shape your future.
How the Rule Influences Branding Decisions
The rule influences branding decisions because it concentrates the narrative being put out by the brand.
Imagine a timer where you only have so much time to communicate a specific thought.
Almost like Pictionary: there’s only so much time you get to effectively capture an agenda
The 3 is the shock value in many ways.
You get somebody to say “Are you serious?!, Look at that!, What’s going on here?”
It gets you thinking: “Am I gonna have enough time to brief about this complicated thought?”
Things like that.
That 7 being the connection period is finding a way to share emotion.
This is where you get a good idea with what makes the marketer is coming from.
If they tend to utilize music heavy, draw movie comparisons, be flashy— whatever they care about.
As competition grows, whoever’s in front constantly changes because there’s real creatives.
Someone might be able to fit in more important points early on.
There might be somebody that can extend seemingly simple messages and break them down best.
This branding rule is a set of training wheels: it doesn’t tell you where to go, just keep you on your feet.
Applying the Rule Across the Customer Journey
When I apply this rule to the customer journey, it just reminds me how time is short.
When you only have 3 seconds to cope approach, you have to be highly creative.
I’d say this is when you have to get a good idea of your target audience’s demographic.
Find out more about the way they get their information.
Gen X will be different from Millennials, same way they would be from Z or Alpha.
That could be changing as you run an official campaign.
I learned somewhere with it taking anywhere from 7-10 exposures before a customer buys.
Final thoughts
So the 3-7-27 rule is one that accounts for where the most minuscule portion becomes important.
From there it’s putting more effort towards connection building and exposure with specifics.
The best advice I could provide moving with this rule is to practice adding the golden rule to your marketing efforts.
With having creativity to market in a way that’s on your call, you still have to be mindful.
If you dish out your messages in a way you’re willing to accept it, anything else moving forward will be acceptable.
RealTalkAJ 
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