Will the Trend "Tip"?

The Tipping Point was an interesting and easy-to-read book. Malcolm Gladwell did a lot of research to come up with this analysis of how trends are sparked and how they do, or don’t, take hold. He explains how some trends receive wide-scale popularity and others fade away. I thought the three key factors he identified as playing a role in whether or not trends gain this popularity were really interesting and also spot-on. The Law of the Few contends that before widespread popularity can be attained, a few key types of people must champion an idea, concept, or product before it can reach the tipping point. He breaks this concept down further, describing the three types of influential people as Connectors, Mavens, and Salesman and describes the role of each of them and how they influence people to reach the tipping point of a product or concept. The Stickiness Factor is the quality that compels people to play close attention to that idea, concept, or product. The Power of Context is pretty broad but it helps determine whether a particular trend will tip into widespread popularity. Every little thing and every little second matters. The situation can change before, during or after the tipping point has been reached. Gladwell demonstrates his point by using the example of Hush Puppies, which I thought was funny but definitely gets the point across. Hush Puppies went from being an unfashionable look to a hugely popular one. Gaining exponential popularity, the company’s sales skyrocketed. All it took was a few people to start wearing the shoes and it slowly became a trend as other people started wearing them too. Once fashion designers gained interest and made a big fuss over them, they reached what Gladwell refers to as the “tipping point.” This is the point of the book exactly; sometimes all it takes is for a trend to reach a few of the “right” people for it to get to that tipping point.

While this probably isn’t a book I would have chose to just read on my own for fun, I did find it insightful especially as an individual wanting to pursue a career in the media. Trends begin and end with the media. Hey, you never know, my blog for this class could start trending. It would just need enough attention and someone to believe that it had a compelling idea or concept. Ideas and messages can spread just like viruses. Sounds weird buts it’s the truth isn’t it? In today’s society, where social media allows news, ideas, and trends to spread like wildfire, anything is possible. Twitter even has a “trending” section where you can see what people are talking about most on any given day. All of the information in this book is clear, concise and to the point so that you can understand the main idea. I would definitely recommend it to others. It opens up your mind to an idea that we all might have already known but never really thought about or explored as deeply as Gladwell.