The book The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell is about the phenomenon that happens to certain products, concepts, or trends that makes them extremely popular or successful, reaching the point where the immense growth of whatever it is, is inevitable, hence “tipping point” On his book, Gladwell focuses on three things; the law of the few, the stickiness factor and the power of context. The law of the few states that a small number of people are enough for something to reach its tipping point. This law involves connectors, mavens, and salesmen. Connectors are influential people involved with a diverse number and kinds of people.
Mavens help the consumers in their decision making, while salesmen are charismatic people that persuade people to buy are act on certain things. Stickiness factor is the appeal of the product or concept to the public. Gladwell discusses about why educational shows like Sesame Street and Blue’s Clues are very successful shows. The power of context is concerned about the influence of the environment when a certain product or concept is introduced. Gladwell gives as an example the “broken windows” theory, stating that bad environments tend to have bad people.
Another aspect of the power of context is the intimacy factor; groups within 150 members tend to be more influential because they develop close and intimate relationships with each other. The book explains about notable patterns that are observed on “epidemics” that caught the world’s (or at least a significant number of the world) attention. It can be summed up to: The people that spread it, the appeal, and the environment during the “tipping point. ”
Works Cited
Gladwell, Malcolm. The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference.