The Rule Of Seven - Say It Seven Times

You Know Prospects Seldom Buy On First Contact

They say it takes 7 times, 7 contacts, 7 messages.

So what’s the best way to get the message out 7 times?

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Say it 7 times to make it so. There is a reason this became an adage. It works.

It works so well that a friend of mine Buckley Brinkman, Executive Director of Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership, made 7 Times a policy. He was tired of people saying to each other, “Don’t they listen? I told them this two days ago.” Anytime they heard such a complaint, employees were instructed to ask, “Did you say it 7 times?” If they had not, the complainer had to take responsibility for delivering the message again. After the seventh message, responsibility shifted to the person who failed to hear it. Buckley says that since they implemented the 7 Times policy everyone in his organization has gotten better at both delivering and hearing messages.

When I was president of my company, I found the need to repeat myself exasperating. These days, I tell executive coaching clients that repeating messages is both one of the most exasperating and boring aspects of leadership. There are ways to make it less boring and more effective, though.

Try some of the following approaches to delivering a message:

1. Ask it as a question so that the other person can actively respond to you;


2. Use a metaphor to punctuate the point like Charles Schwab’s President/Co-CEO David Pottruck did when he had the top 150 managers symbolically walk across the Golden Gate Bridge to signal a transformational shift from broker to online broker. Or like OEM Manufacturer CEO Mark Tyler did when he gave a New Orleans-style funeral to the recession in 2012; employees dressed in black and gathered around a casket with recession inscribed on it. Even others from town showed up to give their respects;


3. Send it in an email;


4. Put it in the newsletter;


5. Hold a town hall meeting (and video it);


6. Show the video a month later;


7. Tell a story that is shocking or memorable;


8. Hook into the other person’s emotions;


9. Move from implicit to explicit;


10. Ensure the person is not distracted. Look them in the eye and, if they are not staring back at you, don’t provide your message until they are;


11. If they are on the phone with you, listen for keyboard clicking sounds or long pauses (indicating a wandering mind). If you sense they are distracted, ask them to focus on this conversation before you provide the message;


12. Have posters made;


13. Have wallet-size cards made.

Saying it 7 times can get rather boring, but it really does work–especially if you vary your approach.

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The Rule Of Seven - Say It Seven Times