Viral Loop

(Paperback)

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Description

Here s how it works: you read a book, you recommend it to a friend. That friend tells another friend. And another... until the book becomes this year s word-of-mouth sensation.

This is the first to analyse the power of the 'pass-it-on phenomenon, introducing us to the architects of the mightily efficient, money-spinning model known as the Viral Loop - the secret behind some of the most successful businesses in recent history.

Outfits such as Google, eBay, Flickr and Facebook all employ the model at their core; all have seen their stock valuations skyrocket within years of forming. The genius lies in the model s reliance on replication: what s the point of using Facebook if none of your friends can see your profile, or using Flickr if you can t share your photos Where s the joy in posting a video on YouTube if no one watches it Thus, in creating a viral product that people want, need and desire, growth can, and will, take care of itself.

Find out why the Loop will catch us all up, sooner rather than later...

Reviews

One of the most astounding things about the Web age is how the best advertising is often no advertising at all. Penenberg masterfully explains how this works with case studies of products that were designed to spread. Every product can use a dose of this technique; this is the book to get to learn how. Recommended! - Chris Anderson, bestselling author of The Long Tail and Free

In tight, engaging prose, Adam captures the essence of the ever-scaling power of the virus. It's not just for geeks any more. - Seth Godin, author of Tribes

Penenberg has unlocked the secret to the most successful digital businesses. An indispensable read. - Robert Safian, Editor-in-Chief, Fast Company

Adam Penenberg's lively book opens a window to all of our futures. - Ken Auletta, author of Backstory

If you want to understand all things viral, this is the place to start. Penenberg's reporting gives us a ringside seat for some of the biggest viral success stories in history, from Tupperware to Ning. - Dan Heath, co-author of Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die

Penenberg discovers the perpetual motion machine for business and marketing... Buy this book. Catch a virus. Make a fortune. - Jeff Jarvis, author of What Would Google Do

Instead of entrusting your business to a guru with an agenda and a ghostwriter, you should be turning to a pro journalist like Adam Penenberg, who understands the way media and money interact, has the critical faculty to engage with these phenomena in an unbiased fashion, and the technical facility to explain them to you in an entirely engaging, informative, and actionable way. - Douglas Rushkoff, author of Media Virus and Life Inc.

An intriguing expose of a simple idea worth its weight in gold and then some. - Cairns Post

Author Bio

A former senior editor at Forbes, Penenberg garnered national attention in 1998 for unmasking serial fabricator Stephen Glass of The New Republic. The story was a watershed for online investigative journalism and is portrayed in the film 'Shattered Glass'. He has also written for The New York Times, Fast Company, Slate, Wired and The Economist. Now a journalism professor and assistant director of the Business & Economic Program at New York University.