How Much is Too Much? Finding the Sweet Spot in Repetition

Think back to your favorite childhood snack, how often did you eat it? At first you probably loved it so much you probably had it weekly or maybe even daily. What feelings or emotions did it bring to light today? Did it provoke disgust or maybe even make you nauseous? In marketing, that’s called wear-out, which is triggered by exaggerated repetition of a brand and marketing messages work in a very similar way. 

This can be explained through psychology. The Mere Exposure Effect shows how people tend to pick brands they recognize, even if they have no previous experience with it. Just by seeing, or hearing (in the case of jingles) the brand repeatedly, we develop a sense of familiarity that makes us favor said brand. The Two-Factor Theory explains that repetition can cause two effects: new, and light repetition leads to easy brand recall and learning. However, after a certain point that repetition can cause boredom or even irritation. I.e. think about a trendy song you can no longer stand. 

But how much repetition is too much? That's when the previously mentioned wear-out comes into play. The key to repetition is balance. For example, in social media, make sure to be consistent but not boring, in advertising, make sure to have a rotation of creatives that can be changed every few weeks, and in email marketing, set the number of reminders and follow ups to reflect the need of your industry.  

Now, alongside this, it is crucial to keep track of engagement: clicks, likes, shares, comments, new subscriptions, etc. If you see these numbers drop, it may be a sign that your audience is experiencing wear-out and it might be time to adjust your strategy. 

In summary, repetition can be your friend, or your enemy. Your goal should always be consistency with variety. Deliver your message frequently enough to stay on your audiences’ mind but change it up so they don’t get bored from it. 

When you are planning your next campaign think about the message you want to put out, are you making it bolder or simply reinforcing it? Remember, rotate your content, keep track of the data, and adjust your strategy accordingly to your audience’s response.