Contagious by Jonah Berger

This was a fantastic read and especially relevant in this age of social media and viral posts. Scroll through your Facebook feed for more than 5 minutes and you’ll see a wide--and random--assortment of posts. Berger lays out 6 clear reasons why something can become a social epidemic by using a long list of diverse and impactful examples. 

Here is a quick breakdown of the 6 whys:

Social Currency: 

“People share things that make them look good to others.” More often than not, people want to make themselves look good to others. Whether they want to pass along what they consider insider information or think they’ve found the next cool thing, they’re going to tell someone about it. Being ahead of the next hot trend makes pays in social currency.

Triggers:

“Top of mind means tip of tongue.” This is the whole key to marketing, right? Working towards associating products with things that will make you think of them more pays, and it pays big. Why is that? Because thoughts lead to actions and companies want that action to be purchasing their goods or services.

Emotion:

“When we care, we share.” Emotions are a powerful force. They trigger people to talk and share. The more that people do that, the quicker the trajectory something has to catching on and going viral. 

Public:

“If something is built to show, it’s built to grow.” Ultimately, it’s about safety in numbers. When people see other people doing something, they are more willing to do the same. People are very willing to imitate one another. Very few people want to look like the odd person out, so it’s better to fall in line and copy what everyone else is doing.

Practical Values:

“Practical advice is shareable advice.” People like to share information that they find useful because they believe it will help others. It also makes them look knowledgeable, authoritative and like a leader. 

Stories:

“Narratives are inherently more engrossing than basic facts.” Stories are more engaging than simply listing off facts. Stories have been told since, literally, the beginning of time. Clearly, there is a reason for that. It’s no coincidence that there is a massive shift towards storytelling in marketing right now. At the core, narratives are just more interesting than listing off facts.

This book is such a great read. It’s not dry at all. It mixes research and specific examples seamlessly through great storytelling. It definitely gives a fresh checklist to measure your marketing and social media efforts against.

Want to have a conversation about what tactics would be most useful in helping your brand be contagious? Reach out to us here!