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Is The Tipping Point Wrong?

January 25, 2008

Fast Company published an interesting article looking at Duncan Watts assertion that the theories in the Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell are false.

The Tipping Point is a popular book that refers to how a small group of people are influential and can create trends.

Duncan makes some interesting points that I agree with in the Fast Company article.  In fact, while I respect the idea of influentials, we have always based Buzzoodle on the desire to create steady buzz, knowing that any given connection has a statistical chance of creating no buzz, some buzz or a great deal of buzz.  Those odds depend on the message, the audience, the product - and after reading this article, it obviously depends on the general social readiness to accept a new trend or idea.

I believe that you have to respect and try to get the attention of the big inluencers, but you will create a lot more success by paying attention to the wealth of people that rarely get attention but do have audiences in the 100’s or 1,000’s.

But remember, it still does not hurt to get your book on Oprah.

Updated 1/28/2008:  Guy Kawasaki discussses this article as well on his blog.

- Thank You!

Posted by Ron McDaniel | Filed Under Word of Mouth Marketing, Blog 

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Comments

2 Responses to “Is The Tipping Point Wrong?”

  1. Andrew Reynolds on January 29th, 2008 11:15 am

    Lol nice dig about Oprah. She’s a one woman marketing machine right there. It’s sad but true that she can make a career just by mentioning a book / DVD / course. Still it’s a great example of how to build a loyal following of viewers.

    In many ways it’s the ultimate Tipping Point argument: Oprah is a group of one, and she sure can influence trends.

  2. Teknoloji Blog » Blog Archive » Influencers Shminfluencers – a podcast with Duncan Watts on February 28th, 2008 3:05 pm

    […] Is The Tipping Point Wrong? […]

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