It’s no coincidence that the number three is everywhere in our lives. Remember when you started a game as a child? 1,2,3, go! Think about some of your favourite stories. The Three Apprentices, The Three Bears, The Three Musketeers... the list goes on! Why are three-word-tags so effective?
In an article titled, “When Three Charms, but Four Alarms: Identifying the Optimal Number of Claims in a Persuasion Setting,”, Kurt Carlson from Georgetown University and Suzanne Shu from UCLA conclude: “In settings where customers know that the message source has a persuasion motive, the optimal number of positive claims is three.”
Information presented in groups of three are more memorable than other clusters of items because our brain is hardwired to remember three items. This is why most big brands use three-word mantras.
We even use it here at Ducere: Enrol, Learn, Lead
The first item creates tension, the second builds it up, and the third releases tension.
You want your three-word-tag to spread like wildfire, right? Well because they are easier to remember, you're more likely to get brand recall. Anything that is easily quotable will get more shares on social media, blog mentions and ultimately, more hits for your company.
Employing three-word-tags allow you to communicate with clarity and remain truthful to your customers. The longer your sentence, the more chance of contradicting yourself and being misunderstood. Read the following long tagline, which is neither attractive nor logical.
"When a girl has a heart of stone, there's only one-way to melt it. Just add Ice". Now compare it with this tag from Bob Marley: “One love, one heart, one destiny.”
Final word? Captivate your audience with the power of three-word-tags.
By Ahmed Ali
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of Ducere.