Contagious: Why Things Catch On - Hardcover

Berger, Jonah

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1476776687 ISBN 13: 9781476776682

Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 2013

Synopsis

New York Times bestseller and named Best Marketing Book of 2014 by the American Marketing Association

What makes things popular?

If you said advertising, think again. People don’t listen to advertisements, they listen to their peers. But why do people talk about certain products and ideas more than others? Why are some stories and rumors more infectious? And what makes online content go viral?

Wharton marketing professor Jonah Berger has spent the last decade answering these questions. He’s studied whyNew York Times articles make the paper’s own Most E-mailed List, why products get word of mouth, and how social influence shapes everything from the cars we buy to the clothes we wear to the names we give our children. In this book, Berger reveals the secret science behind word-of-mouth and social transmission. Discover how six basic principles drive all sorts of things to become contagious, from consumer products and policy initiatives to workplace rumors and YouTube videos.

Contagious combines groundbreaking research with powerful stories. Learn how a luxury steakhouse found popularity through the lowly cheese-steak, why anti-drug commercials might have actually increased drug use, and why more than 200 million consumers shared a video about one of the seemingly most boring products there is: a blender. If you’ve wondered why certain stories get shared, e-mails get forwarded, or videos go viral,Contagious explains why, and shows how to leverage these concepts to craft contagious content. This book provides a set of specific, actionable techniques for helping information spread—for designing messages, advertisements, and information 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.

About this title

Review

"A provocative shift in focus from the technology of online transmission to the human element and a bold claim to explain 'how word of mouth and social influence work . . . [to] make any product or idea contagious."

"An infectious treatise on viral marketing. . . . Berger writes in a sprightly, charming style that deftly delineates the intersection of cognitive psychology and social behavior with an eye toward helping businesspeople and others spread their messages. The result is a useful and entertaining primer that diagnoses countless baffling pop culture epidemics."

"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

"Jonah Berger is the rare sort who has studied the facts, parsed it from the fiction--and performed groundbreaking experiments that have changed the way the experts think. If there's one book you're going to read this year on how ideas spread, it's this one."--Dave Balter, CEO of BzzAgent and Co-founder of the Word of Mouth Marketing Association

""Contagious" contains arresting -- and counterintuitive -- facts and insights. . . . Most interesting of all are the examples Berger cites of successful and unsuccessful marketing campaigns."--Glenn C. Altschuler "The Boston Globe "

"The book is just plain interesting. Berger's cases are not only topical and relevant, but his principles seem practical and are easily understood. . . . I have a strong feeling that this book will catch on."--Ben Frederick "The Christian Science Monitor "

"Jonah Berger knows more about what makes information 'go viral' than anyone in the world."--Daniel Gilbert, Professor of Psychology, Harvard University and author of Stumbling on Happiness

"For nonexperts who puzzle about the best way to make an impact in a world of social media addicts with short attention spans, it provides plenty to think about. . . . If there were a 'like' button underneath it, you'd probably find yourself clicking it."--Maija Palmer "Los Angeles Times "

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"

Jonah Berger knows more about what makes information go viral than anyone in the world. --Daniel Gilbert, Professor of Psychology, Harvard University and author of Stumbling on Happiness"

About the Author

Jonah Berger is an associate professor of marketing at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. His research has been published in top-tier academic journals, and popular accounts of his work have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Science, Harvard Business Review, and more. His research has also been featured in the New York Times Magazine's "Year in Ideas." Berger has been recognized with a number of awards for both scholarship and teaching. The author of Contagious and Invisible Influence, he lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Edition details

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Publication date: 2013
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1476776687
• ISBN 13: 9781476776682
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 244