4th Quarter: Up By 1 or Down By 2? – by Rick Sherman
November 9, 2009
Super Five Cross-Over – Beware of the Sharks! – by Dean R. DeLisle
November 9, 2009

The number three has always held intrigue. There are three primary colors, three galaxies and it is said that luck comes in threes. Here are 5 Cool Ideas on the number "3."

  1. 1. Good art features hidden triangles.
  2. Look at the art and photographs in your office. Most graphics have hidden triangles that make up the context of the image. The human face is really an inverted triangle with two eyes on top and a nose at the bottom. See it?

 

 

  1. 2. A third perspective can garner consensus.
  2. The consulting business is based on the concept of triangulation. Business leaders use consultants to help workers get the job done. The third perspective almost always offers value.

 

3.  Three price points can increase revenue.

If a men's clothing retailer shows a $300 suit, the buyer is more likely to buy that suit than any other suit in the store. If the salesman shows a $200 suit and the most expensive $600 suit, the shopper will most likely opt for the less expensive suit. But when a seller offers three price points (cheap, expensive and a mid-range $300 outfit), the shopper is influenced by the third, decoy price and usually spends an extra $100.

  1. 4. A third competitor can radically alter results.

 

In 2000, Ralph Nader, the Independent Presidential candidate received 97,488 votes in Florida. That's far more than the 537 votes that separated George W.Bush and Al Gore. In 1992, Ross Perot siphoned enough votes from W's father, George H. W. Bush, to sway the election in Bill Clinton's favor.

 

  1. 5. Journalism schools teach "the inverted pyramid."

 

You can write faster and better by putting the who/what/ where/when/why at the beginning of your report and then drilling down to the specifics. Think of the inverted pyramid as an upside-down triangle.

Signing off with my three names,

Michael Angelo Caruso