Contagious
Contagious
My Summer Reading List
The first book on my reading list was Contagious by Jonah Berger. This New York Times bestseller is about how and why certain things go viral. It sounds kind of simple, but honestly, why do certain trends go viral? I was super excited to dig deeper into the psychology of word-of-mouth marketing.
This book is broken down into 6 main categories: Social Currency, Triggers, Emotion, Public, Practical Value, and Stories. Each component helps to answer this “why.”
In Social Currency, we learn why we share certain things. Essentially, people share things to make themselves look good and to relate to others. Has someone ever told you a secret and you went right ahead to tell someone else? Sharing knowledge makes us feel like we have the inside scoop!
If I said Peanutbutter, what is the FIRST thing that comes to mind? For many people, it’s its partner Jelly. Triggers are cues that help us think of a product or idea.
People crave connection. Feelings are something that helps people connect. In emotions, we learn what type of emotion a product or business generates and how people react to the said product.
Some of the most shared Youtube videos are on practical knowledge. People love to learn how to do things more efficiently and to help others. Practical Value is SO important to not only care about your product but to share it as well to others.
Your business has to make sense to the general population. In Public we learn how a product or idea can advertise itself. Self-advertising needs to be self-explanatory. Nobody should have to explain what you are doing.
Lastly, Stories. People LOVE to share stories. The main example in this book is the Trojan Horse. Yes, many historical details about this event have been lost as more people continue to share the story, BUT the main ideas carry through no matter who is telling it.
I won’t give any more away but I really enjoyed this read. It opened up my perspective on how to effectively promote word-of-mouth marketing and as result, grow a business. I would recommend to any entrepreneur or business owner!
My Summer Reading List
The first book on my reading list was Contagious by Jonah Berger. This New York Times bestseller is about how and why certain things go viral. It sounds kind of simple, but honestly, why do certain trends go viral? I was super excited to dig deeper into the psychology of word-of-mouth marketing.
This book is broken down into 6 main categories: Social Currency, Triggers, Emotion, Public, Practical Value, and Stories. Each component helps to answer this “why.”
In Social Currency, we learn why we share certain things. Essentially, people share things to make themselves look good and to relate to others. Has someone ever told you a secret and you went right ahead to tell someone else? Sharing knowledge makes us feel like we have the inside scoop!
If I said Peanutbutter, what is the FIRST thing that comes to mind? For many people, it’s its partner Jelly. Triggers are cues that help us think of a product or idea.
People crave connection. Feelings are something that helps people connect. In emotions, we learn what type of emotion a product or business generates and how people react to the said product.
Some of the most shared Youtube videos are on practical knowledge. People love to learn how to do things more efficiently and to help others. Practical Value is SO important to not only care about your product but to share it as well to others.
Your business has to make sense to the general population. In Public we learn how a product or idea can advertise itself. Self-advertising needs to be self-explanatory. Nobody should have to explain what you are doing.
Lastly, Stories. People LOVE to share stories. The main example in this book is the Trojan Horse. Yes, many historical details about this event have been lost as more people continue to share the story, BUT the main ideas carry through no matter who is telling it.
I won’t give any more away but I really enjoyed this read. It opened up my perspective on how to effectively promote word-of-mouth marketing and as result, grow a business. I would recommend to any entrepreneur or business owner!
