We all know that consumers have many choices in America. This is true for goods bought by consumers for their own personal use as well as b2b consumers who buy products for their company.
Think about the decision process for selecting a product. In most cases at least one brand is known to the buyer. Smart buyers will want options, alternatives, and choices. They want at least a second and probably a third option for all products. This is especially important for buyers who purchase products for their businesses. It is true for engineers selecting products for their designs. And it is true for maintenance professionals who replace products on machinery.
So if these professionals buyers and specifiers do indeed consider about three brands in their purchasing products, it makes sense that if you are a marketer of products, you want to get your product into more and more lists of three choices. Advertising does that better than any other means. Word-of-mouth publicity helps. A sales force making visits and phone calls helps. Neither one has the mass appeal of advertising.
Select the right medium, put your message together, and run the ad for at least a year with a frequency of at least every other month. You will get into more 3s than you think.
