Contagious: Why Things Catch on

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These are all triggers that go beyond just seeing your logo on something. They’re a part of or connected to the person’s daily routine, so the likelihood of them thinking of your product increases naturally. He emphasizes the importance of creating narratives. You should have stories that you can use to explain your product or idea and not just cold, hard facts. Narratives are more interesting than statistics, anyways. If there is built into a product or idea easy cues that can trigger it to come to mind, then it has a strong 'Trigger'. Jonah Berger is as creative and thoughtful as he is spunky and playful. Looking at his research, much like studying a masterpiece in a museum, provides the observer with new insights about life and also makes one aware of the creator’s ingenuity and creativity. It is hard to come up with a better example of using social science to illuminate the ordinary and extraordinary in our daily lives.” — Dan Ariely, James B. Duke professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University and bestselling author of Predictably Irrational

The human brain is hot-wired to use this so-called “currency” to make a good impression on others. Companies and individuals can use this to their advantage, by providing their customers with products, experiences, and content that connect directly with them in a way that encourages sharing with others, while promoting the company’s ideas, causes and/or products simultaneously. What effective strategies do you have to develop to promote or sell your products and ideas? What are the potential tips for creating influential content? The following key points will reveal how you can create contagious content by keeping in mind your audience and their requirements. Moreover, the tips below will also help you upgrade your marketing knowledge. It’s possible to find the inner remarkability in any product or idea by thinking about what makes something stand out. Blendtec, for instance, was able to get millions of people talking about their products with a series of YouTube infomercials. ii. Leverage Game Mechanics

Why do certain products and ideas go viral? Dynamic young Wharton professor Jonah Berger draws on his research to explain the six steps that make products or ideas contagious.Why do some products get more word of mouth than others? Why does some online content go viral? Word of mouth makes products, ideas, and behaviors catch on. It’s more influential than advertising and far more effective. Can you create word of mouth for your product or idea? According to Berger, you can. Whether you operate a neighborhood restaurant, a corporation with hundreds of employees, or are running for a local office for the first time, the steps that can help your product or idea become viral are the same. Contagious is filled with fascinating information drawn from Berger’s research. You will be surprised to learn, for example, just how little word of mouth is generated online versus elsewhere. Already praised by Dan Ariely and Dan Gilbert, and sold in nine countries, this book is a must-read for people who want their projects and ideas to succeed. Contagious: Why Things Catch On by Jonah Berger – eBook Details When we care, we share. Emotional content often goes viral, so focus on feelings rather than function. And kindle the fire using high arousal emotions. Learn more about why emotional videos work better in our E for Emotions post.

CEO’s, marketers, politicians, sociologists, and entrepreneurs alike, expend excessive time and resources to explore new ways to fuel buzz around their latest products, service, advertisements, campaigns or causes – yet without clear structure, it’s easy to spend millions of marketing dollars on methods that miss the mark every time. But what if we could use research in a way that helps us understand how things go viral?

Contagious

PDF / EPUB File Name: Contagious_Why_Things_Catch_On_-_Jonah_Berger.pdf, Contagious_Why_Things_Catch_On_-_Jonah_Berger.epub We’ve collaborated with the world’s leading academics, dug deep into our unique data set and carried out our own research into why some videos get shared in their millions while others are a flop. Emotional content evokes feelings, both positive and negative, that drive people to share and act on those emotions. Tax hikes, price increases, new iPhone releases, elections and policy stances – all evoke positive and negative outbursts that drive people to talk about it with those around them. In many cases, it can drive activism in politics, switching from one product to another, or writing a Yelp review online to encourage people to eat or not eat at a certain cafe. The key to being successful across all of these factors, is to build intrinsic motivation within people – if something is truly successful, people will want to talk about or buy into your product or service if it means they will gain value from the product or experience, as well as look good to others. If you get someone bought in, they will likely tell their friends and family about it, thus beginning the cycle of creating something viral. 2. Triggers – “Top of mind, tip of tongue” A few years ago, Dove skin products created a viral video that showed how unrealistic professional models look in advertisements – showing how much make-up, hairspray, and photoshopping went into creating a “beautiful” advertisement. The video encourages the viewer to be natural and to be happy in one’s own skin. The story was only a few minutes long – but it told a positive story, while simultaneously plugging the Dove brand. Dove asked customers to send in videos of their own stories under the rubric of “Real Beauty.” Thousands of video stories were sent in, which generated millions of views. Analytics showed that the sales response functions of all promotional activities were enhanced by this program.

It's also research based, so that is a strength of the book. Chapter notes (at the end of the book) are similar to any sort of journal/text book that you may be used to. It breaks the chapters into sections, and allows one to further his or her reading. For this reason, it may be particularly useful in an education setting. These principles can be compacted into an acronym. Taken together, they spell STEPPS. Contagious Summary

Contagious provides specific, actionable techniques for helping information spread—for designing messages, advertisements, and content that people will share. Whether you’re a manager at a big company, a small business owner trying to boost awareness, a politician running for office, or a health official trying to get the word out, Contagious will show you how to make your product or idea catch on.Review It is also possible to create a trigger by expanding the “habitat” that people exist in – meaning creating new habits / further associating your product or idea with things we do on a daily basis. For example, in 2007, Colleen Chorak was the Hershey brand manager tasked with revitalizing the Kit Kat brand. The candy bar’s jingle had been around for 21 years, and had run its course. To get consumers thinking about the brand again she looked at when people ate Kit Kats the most… during breaks and usually with a hot beverage. She began releasing ads that tied Kit Kats to coffee breaks at work, specifically eating them while drinking coffee. The spots did exactly as she hoped, and soon sales increased by 8% by the end of the year. having a high temperature during the first 3 months of pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, although this is very rare

Just as people use money to buy products or services, they use social currency to achieve desired positive impressions among their families, friends, and colleagues.In trying to craft contagious content, valuable virality is critical. That means making the idea or desired benefit a key part of the narrative. Certain characteristics make products and ideas more likely to be talked about and shared. Recommended Reading