Communicating 7 times, 7 different ways (2024)

Communicating 7 times, 7 different ways (1)

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Dennis Zajac, PhD Communicating 7 times, 7 different ways (2)

Dennis Zajac, PhD

Digital Transformation, OCM, & OD | Evidence-Based Practice | AI

Published Aug 24, 2022

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The Rule of 7, or some variation of it, is frequently cited in communications. It says a message must be received at least 7 times, in 7 different ways, for it to be “heard” and ultimately result in desired behavior change. It originated in Marketing and has spread far and wide as an unquestioned maxim.

Unfortunately, there is ZERO research to support it!

Fortunately, there IS research to support how to communicate for true understanding and actual behavior change! Communicate in a small group or one-on-one, face-to-face, and with your immediate manager where there is an opportunity for discussion and clarification (Obal & Morgan, 2018; Larkin & Larkin, 1994, 2001).Moreover, this approach is extremely effective THE FIRST TIME.

There certainly is communication overload. But if something is not working (e.g., yammer, TV screen bulletins, website/sharepoint, newsletters, emails) why repeat it 7 times? (I will leave that as a rhetorical question)

More importantly, how does this fact impact your plans to communicate an important organizational change? How are your communication resources allocated? What communication channels are you emphasizing?Who is delivering the most important information?

Dave Schnell

Open to consulting/mentor opportunity in business transformation, process development & integration, project management

1y

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Absolutely on point.

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Ron Leeman

Delivering my ultra-successful Driving Change Management course to those who want practical and non-theory.

2y

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PART 1COMMUNICATION IS KEY WHEN YOU WANT PEOPLE TO CHANGE ... but in contrast …COMMUNICATION IS AN AREA THAT IS MOST FREQUENTLY COMPLAINED ABOUT BY EMPLOYEESAs Change Managers one of our first and most important tasks is to create an all-encompassing Communication Plan that must take account of four key factors:(1) Whoever is sending the message must ensure that the message is clear and with the right amount of details.(2) Whoever is receiving the message must make a decision to listen, ask questions and trust the sender of the message.(3) The delivery mechanism must suit the circ*mstances and the needs of both the sender and the receiver.(4) The message content has to connect on some level with the receiver, should contain information that the individual wants to hear and as far as possible allow the individual to assess the WIIFM factor.

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John Deel - "Always-On CHANGE"

Organizational Change Management (OCM) Practitioner - CHANGE is in my DNA and CHANGE is what I do!

2y

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Dennis - nice to open this up a bit. Research or no research, we all know that COMMUNICATIONS is often the contributor to success and more often the source of many failures.We could fill a page of research sources and stories on this.I have used this simple visual on Communications (below) as another way explain 7 times 7 ways.In fact, I talked about this today with my client who is rolling out a global data governance / master data management (DG/MDM) solution. Stressed that even inside a kickoff meeting (real-time teams meeting that combined voice with video), 3 separate speakers, saying basically the same thing but using slightly different words, intonation, energy and facial expressions, can be of a way of covering 3 out of 7 in just one setting. As an OCM Practitioner, make 7 times 7 ways (not literally) a fabric of how you communicate and how you help others to communicate.This can and will drive adoption for the overall DG/MDM solution. Stay relevant, consistent and don't give up – behaviors will change.😎

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Frank Barnes

PMO Program Manager / Project Manager

2y

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I find this information to be well suited for the IT industry . Yes you MUST state what is happening to the Customer's environment. You also need to make sure you can obtain the highest Leader in that organization to sponsor your communications. If not individuals will not read/listen to what is being said. When that happens inmplementation of any stature will be difficult to incorporate into their Business World.

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Gene McWilliams

Retired CFO

2y

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Denny, makes sense for organizational or culture change. However, we experienced direct proof of rule of seven in marketing (our internal research and testing) when we were in the online venture business for twelve years. In online marketing of new services it did work when we sent the same message 5,6 and 7 times. We tracked all email and social media campaigns. Again this is not the best approach in attempts to change culture or organizational change - direct top down executive communication is a must and it does not have to be seven times!

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Communicating 7 times, 7 different ways (2024)

FAQs

Communicating 7 times, 7 different ways? ›

The Rule of 7, or some variation of it, is frequently cited in communications. It says a message must be received at least 7 times, in 7 different ways, for it to be “heard” and ultimately result in desired behavior change. It originated in Marketing and has spread far and wide as an unquestioned maxim.

What is 7 times 7 ways of communication? ›

The 7×7 concept means you need to have at least 7 ways of communicating the same change throughout your organization at least 7 different times.

What is the 7 rule in communication? ›

The 7-38-55 Rule indicates that only 7% of all communication is done through verbal communication, the words we speak, whereas the nonverbal component of our daily communication, such as the tonality of our voice, make up 38% and 55% from the speaker's body language and facial expressions.

What is the 7x7 concept? ›

Understanding the 7x7 Rule

The 7x7 Rule of communication suggests that you should convey the same message in at least seven different ways, repeated at least seven times. While it may sound excessive, this principle has its roots in marketing, also known as the Rule of 7.

What is the 7 times 7 ways of change management? ›

What is the 7×7 Rule? Not to be confused with the 7×7 rule for PowerPoint presentations, the 7×7 rule of communication says you need to have at least seven ways of communicating the same change throughout your organization at least seven different times.

What is the 7x principle? ›

The Rule of 7 asserts that a potential customer should encounter a brand's marketing messages at least seven times before making a purchase decision. When it comes to engagement for your marketing campaign, this principle emphasizes the importance of repeated exposure for enhancing recognition and improving retention.

What is the 7c rule of communication? ›

The 7 Cs stand for: clear, concise, concrete, correct, coherent, complete, and courteous. Though there are a few variations. You can use the 7 Cs as a checklist in your written and spoken messages.

What is the 7x7 Rule in public speaking? ›

Slides are NOT meant to be handouts. 7x7 rule (7 bullets per slide, 7 words per bullet)—don't put everything on slides, or the audience has to choose between reading your slides or listening to you. Use short phrases.

What is the seven times seven different ways? ›

The Rule of 7, or some variation of it, is frequently cited in communications. It says a message must be received at least 7 times, in 7 different ways, for it to be “heard” and ultimately result in desired behavior change. It originated in Marketing and has spread far and wide as an unquestioned maxim.

What is the Rule of 7 in speech? ›

Professor Mehrabian combined the statistical results of the two studies and came up with the now famous—and famously misused—rule that communication is only 7 percent verbal and 93 percent non-verbal. The non-verbal component was made up of body language (55 percent) and tone of voice (38 percent).

What is the 7x7 technique? ›

The 7x7 rule is simple: For every slide, use no more than seven lines of text — or seven bullet points — and no more than seven words per line.

What is the 7x7 challenge? ›

Some examples of this minimalist wardrobe challenge are the 7X7 challenge (wear 7 items for 7 days) or the 10x10 challenge (wear 10 items for 10 days).

What does 7x7 mean in text? ›

As discussed earlier, keeping presentations clear and engaging is the goal of the 7×7 rule. This means limiting each slide to around seven lines of text (excluding the title) with each line containing roughly seven words.

What is the 7 R's rule? ›

So, what are the 7 Rs? The Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport UK (2019) defines them as: Getting the Right product, in the Right quantity, in the Right condition, at the Right place, at the Right time, to the Right customer, at the Right price.

What is the 7s process? ›

The McKinsey 7-S Model depicts seven shared values: Structure, Strategy, System, Shared Values, Skill, Style, and Staff. The McKinsey 7-S Framework then categorizes these seven elements into two categories: hard elements and soft elements.

What is the rule of seven in leadership? ›

The rule states that every attendee over seven reduces the likelihood of making a good, quick, executable decision by 10%. The rule of 7 is especially important when managing a remote or distributed team and when you're coming together to make decisions.

What are the 7 methods of communication? ›

Summary: Let's explore the seven types of communication: verbal, non-verbal, written, feedback, visual, group, and mass. Through examples like speaking, body language, emails, and more, we delve into how each communication form plays a unique role in effective interaction.

What are 7 communication cycles? ›

When the communication process is described in elements or components rather than sequential steps, the terms "sender" and "receiver" may be listed to clarify the process's participants. Thus, the seven elements are sender, idea formation, encoding, channel selection, receiver, decoding, and feedback.

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