There are moments in childhood that shape our understanding of communication long before we encounter the theories that explain it. For Zimbabweans who grew up in the 1980s and 1990s, one such moment arrived each morning on Radio 2, now Radio Zimbabwe. Around 06:45 hours the voice of radio personality Wellington “Wally” Mbofana and in later years, that of Lazurus Tembo would burst through the airwaves with the famous Jarzin Supermarket sponsored radio segment. Within seconds listeners knew exactly what it was.
As young boys growing up in Zimbabwe the Jarzin man jingle became embedded in our routines. If it played while we were still at home, it was an instant signal that we were running late for school. Without anyone instructing us to act, behaviour adjusted automatically. School bags were grabbed, shoelaces tightened and the morning suddenly accelerated.
Unknown to us then, what we were experiencing was a powerful demonstration of a principle that sits at the heart of modern marketing. Brands build what marketers call memory structures through repetition and consistent messaging. Jarzin’s promotion did not become memorable because it aired once. It became memorable because it aired consistently, with the same voice, the same rhythm and the same excitement day after day.
Over time the message embedded itself in the minds of listeners. In marketing science this process creates what is known as mental availability. This refers to the ease with which a brand comes to mind in moments of decision. Marketers achieve this by constructing memory structures that link a brand to everyday cues such as time, context or need. Decades later many Zimbabweans still remember the cadence and excitement of those broadcasts. This seemingly simple example carries an important lesson for public policy.
Public policy does not succeed simply because it is well designed. It succeeds when it is understood, internalised and ultimately adopted by society. Between policy announcement and policy impact lies a critical but often overlooked process called policy socialisation. This is the deliberate effort to ensure that citizens, institutions, and markets understand a policy’s intent and align their behaviour accordingly.
One useful lens through which to understand this process is what communication theorists describe as the ‘Saturation Doctrine’. The doctrine suggests that ideas gain legitimacy and acceptance not only through their merit but through their consistent and strategic presence in the public domain.
In practical terms ideas become powerful when they are repeated, reinforced, and embedded across multiple platforms of communication until they become part of collective consciousness. Zimbabwe’s policy experience offers an instructive case.
Over the years the country has introduced numerous economic and regulatory policies ranging from currency reforms to industrial development frameworks and fiscal stabilisation measures. Yet many of these policies have struggled to achieve widespread behavioural alignment. Often the challenge has not been the technical formulation of the policy itself but the insufficient socialisation of the policy narrative.
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A policy announced once is rarely a policy understood. In this regard government communication can learn an important lesson from marketing. Marketers understand that consumers rarely change behaviour after a single exposure to a message. Instead, brands invest heavily in building memory structures through strategic consistency, repetition, and visibility across multiple touchpoints such as media, digital platforms, and public engagement.
Repeated exposure strengthens familiarity and familiarity builds trust. The same principle applies to policy communication. For economic reforms or regulatory changes to gain traction they must be communicated repeatedly in ways that make them clear and easy to recall. The objective is not simply awareness but cognitive embedding so that the policy narrative becomes part of everyday public discourse.
If there are technical faulty lines in the policy, repetition also helps in surfacing such early and course correction can be executed.
Without such saturation an information vacuum emerges. When official communication is sporadic, alternative narratives often fill the space. These narratives may be shaped by speculation, misinformation, or partisan interpretation. Markets become uncertain, citizens become sceptical and the policy’s intended outcomes become harder to achieve.
Zimbabwe has seen this dynamic play out repeatedly. Announcements around currency regimes, for example, often generate immediate public debate and speculation. In many cases the official explanation appears briefly in formal channels while informal interpretations circulate continuously through social networks and everyday conversation. In communication terms, the unofficial narrative begins to out saturate the official one.
This is where strategy becomes indispensable. A modern policy communication strategy must treat policy socialisation as a continuous process rather than a single event. It should identify key audiences such as businesses, investors, civil servants, and ordinary citizens and communicate consistent messages tailored to each group. These messages must then be reinforced through multiple channels including traditional media, community engagement platforms, educational forums, and digital communication.
Repetition in this context should never be viewed as redundancy. It is reinforcement. Each repetition strengthens the mental availability of the policy narrative. Over time it transforms a government announcement into a shared national understanding.
Message discipline is equally important. When ministries, agencies and public officials communicate the same core message the policy narrative becomes clearer and more credible. Consistency builds confidence and confidence encourages behavioural alignment. Zimbabwe’s economic renewal efforts, whether focused on industrialisation, fiscal consolidation or investment promotion, would benefit significantly from this strategic approach. Policy design must be accompanied by sustained communication that allows the public to understand and internalise the direction of reform.
In an age defined by information abundance the most influential message is often not the most complex. It is the one that is most consistently present. The Jarzin promotion demonstrated this principle decades ago with remarkable clarity. Through simple repetition and strategic placement, it embedded itself in the collective memory of a generation.
The lesson for policymakers is straightforward. If policy is to shape behaviour it must first shape perception. And perception is shaped through strategy, consistency, and repetition. In the marketplace of ideas visibility is power.
- Dennis is a business leader and public policy scholar. He is a Chartered Marketer and Fellow of the CIM (UK)and holds an MBA,Master in Public Policy and Governanceand an MSc in Marketing. He can be contacted on [email protected]
