Ignore the rule of three at your peril

We know that B2B buying cycles are long, which makes the job of marketers that much harder when it comes to remaining top of mind with prospects who might only enter the category every 3-5 years. 

The 95-5 rule suggests that only 5% of category buyers are actively looking at any given time, so being mentally available for them when they start looking for a solution requires ongoing marketing effort and activity.

But there’s another rule that makes being top of mind just as important – the rule of three.  

What is the rule of three?

A study conducted by BBN of nearly 1,000 B2B companies showed that when someone moves into buying mode, they default to the search engine of their mind. In this case, typically one to three brands pop into their head that they think can solve their problem.

Hence, the rule of three. 

Where it gets really interesting is that when they eventually buy, in 90% of cases they buy from one of the brands that first came to mind. 

Remember, that was an unaided response that got the winner on the mental shortlist before any action was taken to find other organisations to add to that list. Then unsurprisingly, the winning business came from that first list. 

We might attribute this to confirmation bias, where someone seeks out the information that affirms their initial thoughts or beliefs. Either way, those businesses that are first thought of often get the chocolates.

Embracing the rule of three

The goal of B2B marketers is to be on the shortlist when prospects become active category buyers (which is often before they are even on your radar). So you need to make sure your brand is mentally available at the right time.

But more than that, you need to have educated prospective buyers about your ability to solve their problems (beyond just knowing you exist). This requires a comprehensive content marketing program that balances awareness and education through the strategic use of long and short form content. Think social posts, articles, thought leadership pieces, case studies and white papers. 

If you’re not sure how to build a content marketing program that creates awareness and authority so you make the initial mental shortlist of your prospects, we can help.