Can anyone summarise the book The Tipping Point?

Question

I've been asked to read it as part of a course of study but I'm swamped at work! A quick summary from someone who has read it would be so helpful.

Answer 1

Basically the concept of the "tipping point" is that a phenomenon (like wearing unusual shoes) begins small and usually in a specific segment of the population. Then, a few more people notice that these unusual shoes are being worn. . .they think, "wow - those are unusual" and go get some. Now there are more people wearing these unusual shoes, so even more people notice them and think they should get some. The tipping point is when the phenomenon spills over into the general population.

Check out the "excerpts" on amazon - it will probably give you a feel. It's a fairly interesting book if you get the time.

Answer 2

The Tipping Point Summary

Answer 3

The Tipping Point , is a book by Malcolm Gladwell, first published by Little Brown in 2000. Tipping point is a sociological term that refers to the moment when something unique becomes common.

The book seeks to explain "social epidemics", or sudden and often chaotic changes from one state to another. For example, he cites the drop in the New York City crime rate in the 1990s. The ability to generate these epidemics is highly-sought in marketing. They are similar, in their mathematical properties, to disease epidemics.

Gladwell identifies three types of people who have the power to produce social epidemics:

Connectors: Those with wide social circles. They are the "hubs" of the human social network and responsible for the small world phenomenon.
Mavens are knowledgeable people. While most consumers wouldn't know if a product were priced above the market rate by, say, 10 percent, mavens would. Bloggers who detect false claims in the media could also be considered mavens.
Salesmen are charismatic people with powerful negotiation skills. They exert "soft" influence rather than forceful power. Their source of influence may be the tendency of others, subconsciously, to imitate them rather than techniques of conscious persuasion.
i hope this helps!

Answer 4

In a nutshell, it is about creating a paradigm shift in a person's mind on a certain thing. Gladwell shares his insight on how easily can people's point of view be tipped over to the other side of the fence even when he is staring at the same issue. Especially important in marketing as the book reminds you that you can influence your consumers' mind and tip them over to get the product once you found that tipping factor.

Answer 5

I think it's like this: if you wear a nylon raincoat in a light rain for half an hour, you stay just as dry near the end of the 30 minutes as near the beginning.

but, if, in the 31st minute, the raincoat becomes saturated with water, you will get wet from that point onward. that's the tipping point ... the vew few raindrops that actually cause you to get wet in that 31st minute.

Answer 6

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316346624/
sr=8-1/qid=1150257451/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-4951603-6001751?
%5Fencoding=UTF8
I think the link a bit out.