Every now and again a company releases an advertisement incorporating a suitably catchy but nevertheless irritating phrase. Regardless of its memorability, consumers may forever associate that company with a negative and annoying brand image. Is this what happens when a company makes use of a vanity number? A basic understanding of the human mind and modern consumerism will suggest otherwise.
An Effective Sales Tool
Human minds are conditioned to respond to familiar details, details that can be recalled, communicated and understood. The approach of any business serious about increasing its revenue must utilize tools with a proven record of achieving this on the market and dispense of mere gimmicks which act only to deteriorate brand image. A vanity number, as a sales tool, cannot only rely on its supporting rationale but on years of success in the market.
Numerical Complexity
There is a reason our 365 day years are segmented into 12 month periods. The same reason explains the common practice of rounding numbers. Long numbers can be complicated, difficult to recall and even harder to memorize. In fact, one of the reasons numbers are used is that they provide scope for extreme variety and the possibility of attributing a unique value to any item, for example ISBN numbers. Words or patterns, on the other hand, are more limited in scope. There are only 26 letters in the alphabet and common words are rarely longer than 8 characters. A potential customer is more likely to remember something less unique and more familiar to them: a word or a pattern.
Modern Consumerism
The well documented success of vanity numbers over the past 50 years has not occurred by chance. Vanity numbers emerged as the free market reached an unprecedented high. The world was getting smaller and companies and their products became international. Consumers became burdened with choice. With more money in their pockets and busier lives, they often substituted detailed market research for products they could recognize and purchase instantly. Since that time, consumerism has only grown and companies have had to adapt to the market conditions. The numerical complexity of almost every allocated phone number does not fit this model. Complexity is time consuming, laborious and due to the emergence of vanity numbers, unnecessary.
History Speaks for Itself
Vanity numbers act as a bridge between numerical complexity and the consumer, leaving a memorable impression that has countless times led to the radical expansion of businesses. The story of Jim McCann does much to illustrate just how effective vanity numbers can be. When McCann bought out a struggling flower company in the late 80’s, he changed its name to 1-800-FLOWERS, focused advertising on communicating this name and watched the company rise to become a national phenomenon.
Vanity numbers are an effective and well proven marketing tool. The rationale is logical, the application simple. They bridge the gap between human limitations and numerical complexity providing customers with a proven method of recognizing and communicating your details. Any business looking to expand their company on the market should seriously consider vanity numbers as a key marketing tool.
An Effective Sales Tool
Human minds are conditioned to respond to familiar details, details that can be recalled, communicated and understood. The approach of any business serious about increasing its revenue must utilize tools with a proven record of achieving this on the market and dispense of mere gimmicks which act only to deteriorate brand image. A vanity number, as a sales tool, cannot only rely on its supporting rationale but on years of success in the market.
Numerical Complexity
There is a reason our 365 day years are segmented into 12 month periods. The same reason explains the common practice of rounding numbers. Long numbers can be complicated, difficult to recall and even harder to memorize. In fact, one of the reasons numbers are used is that they provide scope for extreme variety and the possibility of attributing a unique value to any item, for example ISBN numbers. Words or patterns, on the other hand, are more limited in scope. There are only 26 letters in the alphabet and common words are rarely longer than 8 characters. A potential customer is more likely to remember something less unique and more familiar to them: a word or a pattern.
Modern Consumerism
The well documented success of vanity numbers over the past 50 years has not occurred by chance. Vanity numbers emerged as the free market reached an unprecedented high. The world was getting smaller and companies and their products became international. Consumers became burdened with choice. With more money in their pockets and busier lives, they often substituted detailed market research for products they could recognize and purchase instantly. Since that time, consumerism has only grown and companies have had to adapt to the market conditions. The numerical complexity of almost every allocated phone number does not fit this model. Complexity is time consuming, laborious and due to the emergence of vanity numbers, unnecessary.
History Speaks for Itself
Vanity numbers act as a bridge between numerical complexity and the consumer, leaving a memorable impression that has countless times led to the radical expansion of businesses. The story of Jim McCann does much to illustrate just how effective vanity numbers can be. When McCann bought out a struggling flower company in the late 80’s, he changed its name to 1-800-FLOWERS, focused advertising on communicating this name and watched the company rise to become a national phenomenon.
Vanity numbers are an effective and well proven marketing tool. The rationale is logical, the application simple. They bridge the gap between human limitations and numerical complexity providing customers with a proven method of recognizing and communicating your details. Any business looking to expand their company on the market should seriously consider vanity numbers as a key marketing tool.
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