Dr. Seuss was famous for his rhyming writing style, and as it turns out, he was onto something! Research suggests that rhyming language increases processing fluency, which makes it easier for employees to understand your main message.1 What’s more, when people easily understand something, they judge it to be more true and more likeable.2 Another great bonus with rhymes is that they are often eye-catching, which is key to making your communications stand out so employees stop and pay attention to them. This technique is most powerful when it’s applied to headlines for communication emails, posters, and postcards, so focus your rhyming efforts there for maximum impact.
Let’s see how this came to life in a few campaigns:
Sample of rhyming headline
Sample of rhyming headline
Sample of rhyming headline
The next time you’re looking for inspiration, we encourage you to try some rhymes in your lines! For more easy ideas inspired by behavioral science, check out our guide, Motivating Employees to Live Healthier Lives: Behavioral Science for Benefits Communication.
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1 M. McGlone and J. Tofighbakhsh, "Birds of a Feather Flock Conjointly (?): Rhyme as Reason in Aphorisms," Psychological Science, 11(5), 424–428, September 2000.
2 D. Westerman, M. Lanska, J. Olds, and Robert L. Greene, "The Effect of Processing Fluency on Impressions of Familiarity and Liking," Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 41(2), 426-438, March 2015.