Malcolm Gladwell – The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make A Big Difference
Last modified: May 20, 2011The following synopsis is from
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The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make A Big Difference
The New York writer Malcolm Gladwell looks at why major changes in our society so often happen suddenly and unexpectedly. Ideas, behavior, messages, and products, he argues, can often spread like outbreaks of infectious disease. Just as one single sick person can start an epidemic of the flu, so too can a few fare beaters and graffiti artists fuel a subway crime wave, or a satisfied customer fill the empty tables of a new restaurant! These are social epidemics, and the moment they take off, they reach their critical mass, or the Tipping Point. Gladwell introduces us to the particular personality types who are natural pollinators of new ideas and trends; the people who create the phenomenon of word of mouth. He analyzes fashion trends, smoking, children’s television, direct mail, and goes back to the early days of the American Revolution for clues about making ideas infectious. He visits a religious commune, a successful high-tech company, and one of the world’s greatest salesperson to show how to start and sustain social epidemics.
The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire. Just like a single sick person can start an epidemic of the flu, so too can a small but precisely targeted push cause a popular new product, a fashion trend, or a drop in the crime rate. This widely acclaimed bestselling book, in which Malcolm Gladwell explores and brilliantly illuminates the tipping point phenomenon, is changing the way people throughout the world think about selling products and disseminating ideas.
Chris’ Review
I have to admit that I struggled to finish this book. I found it fascinating and took away some great ideas and insights but it was repetitive at times and I’d find myself jumping back and forth to see where I was actually up to.
Why is a product popular? Is it the clever marketing, luck, or the fact some cool kids starting wearing a certain brand and it caught on. Often it is a combination and having the right people spreading the word about the product to make it stick. Some people are naturally great sales people and the way they deliver a message is what makes it stick.
I recommend it as a great book to learn about social trends but don’t feel you have to read the book in its entirety when the same examples repeat themselves in later chapters.
I have to admit that I struggled to finish this book. I found it fascinating and took away some great ideas and insights but it was repetitive at times and I’d find myself jumping back and forth to see where I was actually up to.
Why is a product popular? Is it the clever marketing, luck, or the fact some cool kids starting wearing a certain brand and it caught on. Often it is a combination and having the right people spreading the word about the product to make it stick. Some people are naturally great sales people and the way they deliver a message is what makes it stick.
I recommend it as a great book to learn about social trends but don’t feel you have to read the book in its entirety when the same examples repeat themselves in later chapters.