Mark Twain once observed, "A lie can get halfway around the world before the truth can even get its boots on." His observation rings true: Urban legends, conspiracy theories, and bogus public-health scares circulate effortlessly. Meanwhile, people with important ideas-business people, teachers, politicians, journalists, and others-struggle to make their ideas "stick." Why do some ideas thrive while others die? And how do we improve the chances of worthy ideas? In Made to Stick, accomplished educators and idea collectors Chip and Dan Heath tackle head-on these vexing questions. Inside, the brothers Heath reveal the anatomy of ideas that stick and explain ways to make ideas stickier, such as applying the "human scale principle," using the "Velcro Theory of Memory," and creating "curiosity gaps." In this indispensable guide, we discover that sticky messages of all kinds-from the infamous "kidney theft ring" hoax to a coach's lessons on sportsmanship to a vision for a new product at Sony-draw their power from the same six traits. Made to Stick is a book that will transform the way you communicate ideas. It's a fast-paced tour of success stories (and failures)-the Nobel Prize-winning scientist who drank a glass of bacteria to prove a point about stomach ulcers; the charities who make use of "the Mother Teresa Effect"; the elementary-school teacher whose simulation actually prevented racial prejudice. Provocative, eye-opening, and often surprisingly funny, Made to Stick shows us the vital principles of winning ideas-and tells us how we can apply these rules to making our own messages stick.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Must Reading for any Marketer of Ideas:
If I wanted to follow one particular principle in this book, I'd put my last line first-but for this article, I'm following a different one. See if you can guess the one I followed and the one I didn't. [Quiz answer is below the review, in brackets] I've long been fascinated by the study of influence: what changes an individual's mind? What changes the direction of a whole society? This is something I look at in my own organizing and writing, and when a book discusses what makes ideas last-or... more info
Make Room on Your Shelf for this Book:
This is a terrific book on how to turn your drab message into something that will stick, turn viral, generate enthusiastic support and generally turn into action. The six tenets - simple, unexpected, concrete, credible, emotional and storytelling - are straightforward and easy to implement right away. There are practical insights a-plenty in this book. I like the advice to not spend too much time trying to tell your story with statistics, but to focus on the implications of the statistics rather than... more info
Best Marketing Book I Have Read in Recent Times:
This is great marketing information, inclusive of tangible examples. Each year I set a goal of reading a book each week--this year having doubled back to re-read Made to Stick because it a just that great! I look forward to reading more from the Heath Brothers.
An Informative Guide and Reference:
Keeping it simple really keeps people tuned-in. Authors and brothers, Dan and Chip Heath break down the common factors that keep some ideas around for years and leave others out on the street. Primarily a book on effective communication, Made to Stick, is a valuable, easy and fun read drawing on examples and years of research by the authors. SUCCES - Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credible, Emotion and Stories are the common factors which make certain ideas stand out. Urban legends, for example, are... more info
