What makes things popular?
If you answered propaganda, think again. Today people don't give much importance to ads, they listen to opinions. But why do we talk more about certain products and ideas than others? Why do some stories and rumors spread more easily? And what makes online content go viral? Jonah Berger, marketing professor at Wharton, has spent the last decade answering these questions. He studied, for example, why articles from The New York Times are always on the list of the most sent texts by email, or why some products generate mouth-to-mouth, and how social influence defines from the cars we buy to the clothes we wear and the names we give to our children.
Contagion combines innovative research with powerful stories,. Understand how a luxury steakhouse has gained popularity with a humble cheese steak sandwich, why drug commercials may have actually increased drug use, and why more than 200 million consumers share a video about one of the seemingly most unfunny products there is: blender.
From Livestrong bracelets to Greek yogurt, to Gangnam Style music in the way of diets, this book mentions some of the best known examples of viral phenomena. In other words, these are cases where certain products, ideas or views have spread throughout society on a large scale. Jonah Berger explains what steps to follow to turn a product into a viral phenomenon.
Good reading!!!
