Customer Reviews

The Anatomy of Buzz: How to Create Word of Mouth Marketing

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I bought this book rather quickly after hearing about the author and the subject matter from Inc. Magazine. While the book is a fast read, is well-structured, and covers the topic of word-of-mouth marketing as advertised, I did not walk away with a sense that I had learned a tremendous amount from it. Most companies and their marketing efforts have used the tactics that Rosen talks about. I also judge books by how many notes I write down that give myself ideas and plans for my own business, and I had very few to speak of.

Rosen seems to have used quite a bit of reference material and put a lot of effort into this book, so I don't want to seem as though I am slamming him, but he seems to have "dumbed down" his presentation for the masses. I would have liked to have seen more stats and research results presented rather than a case study on yo-yos. The "beef" of the subject matter, namely "buzz," did not seem to be included between the covers of the book.

This is still a good book for a budding product marketer, but I'd wait for the paperback version.

I really didn't like this book. I've read The Tipping Point, and Crossing the Chasm (and other Moore books), all the books by Ries and Trout books, and numerous other marketing/publicity articles and publications. This "Buzz" book didn't offer new thinking. And the "how" to create buzz that other readers liked, well, I found it trite. Many of the examples used by the author are either overdone, been done before, or simply not very interesting. There were a few parts of the book that were reasonable, but all in all, it was a waste of my time and money. Normally I wouldn't even bother spending one more minute with this book by posting a review, but I am hoping that I'll save some other reader from it. Blech.

This is the first book I recall that looks at the word-of-mouth phenomenon as a management activity for modern marketing. While Edward Bernays often recounted fascinating tales of how public relations helped move products by setting fashion, he never focused on the face-to-face aspects of how new ideas spread. Robert Cialdini has done remarkable work on describing how influence is created, but does not squarely focus on the word-of-mouth aspects of that influence.

Mr. Rosen has done a sound job of providing a number of interesting, behind-the-scenes examples as well as a context for thinking about word-of-mouth marketing. (I actually ended up trying some products describe here that I probably wouldn't have otherwise, such as the novel, Cold Mountain). The book's main weakness is that it focuses on word-of-mouth about products rather the broader question of how word-of-mouth creates opinions in all areas of society.

Mr. Rosen defines buzz as "the sum of all comments about a certain product that are exchanged among people at any given time." Naturally, you can have either good buzz ("It's great!) or bad buzz ("Avoid at all costs.").

It is easy to us to underestimate the power of these comments before we consider our own experiences. For example, if audiences hate a new movie, the word soon gets out and ticket sales plunge. You have probably seen people waiting in line to buy tickets asking those leaving a theater how the movie was. Here you have an example of perfect strangers advising each other and making purchase decisions based on these interactions. Naturally, this occurs much more frequently with authority figures (like Oprah for books) and people we know well (our family, friends and neighbors). For example, I always ask my older son before seeing any movie. He will have already seen the movie and knows my tastes. I will always have a good experience if I follow his guidance.

The examples in the book formed the core of the interest for me. The concepts in the book were familiar to me from my days as an executive in the alcoholic beverage industry. Because of significant limitations on selling liquor with advertising, new brands are built almost totally through buzz aided by bar parties and other activities. I was surprised that there were no substantial stories from liquor or cigarettes (remember the cartoon of Joe Camel?), both of which depend heavily on creating buzz.

In addition to learning more about how buzz works, this book also offers guidance on how to encourage and accelerate that buzz.

The book is divided into three parts: The first looks at how buzz spreads (a small percentage of all the people do all of the connecting together of information networks); the second examines what makes for success with buzz (having things people want to talk about and encouraging that talking); and the third details how to stimulate buzz for your business (this is summarized in a workshop for you in chapter 16).

Publishers, book authors, music companies, companies that provide breakthrough technology (the Palm Pilot), and people who make exciting consumer goods (like the BMW) will get the most benefit from this book. The examples and lessons best apply in those markets. People with limited marketing budgets should consider the book also to help organize the questions to ask oneself for stimulating interest in a product.

I also suggest that you read up on Edward Bernays, Robert Cialdini (Influence), and Ernest Dichter. A recent book, Networlding, is a very helpful complement to this book in describing how to create more effective and meaningful relations with others to transfer information and assistance.

After you have finished reading this book, I suggest that you step back and consider how you could improve the value of what you make for your customers and potential customers, reprice it to make it more accessible, and reduce your costs so that you have more resources to share with your customers and other stakeholders. In that way, you will have something better to buzz about!

Provide great products first!

Think about it. How many times have you been asked "Seen a good movie lately?" or "What's your favorite Italian restaurant?" or "Where can I get the best deal on an air conditioner?" The single most powerful but least understood form of marketing is word-of-mouth and yet, until now, no one has devoted to it the attention it deserves. In the Foreword to this book, Everett M. Rogers observes, "New products and services spread among the consumer public through interpersonal communication networks. These networks are for the most part invisible. They often operate in mysterious ways.. Thus we are largely blind to this very powerful marketing process. No wonder that we fail so often in our efforts to diffuse innovations." He's right.

Rosen explains how to create effective word-of-mouth marketing with material organized within three Parts: How Buzz Spreads, Success in the Networks, and Stimulating Buzz. It is important to stress that Buzz results only in combination with a superior product or service. As Jeffrey Gitomer correctly points out, "customer satisfaction" is achieved only on a per-transaction basis; the objective is to achieve and then sustain "customer loyalty." It is not only possible but common for a new product or service to generate Buzz initially but if the quality is not sustainable (preferably enhanced), what I call Positive Buzz can become Negative Buzz. (Even under Rosen's personal supervision, no matter how much perfume you pour on a pig, it's still a pig. The only buzz it generates will be provided by insects.) The "interpersonal communication networks" to which Rogers refers can just as effectively (and probably more quickly) "get the word out" about a defective product or unsatisfactory service. Obviously, no Buzz is preferable to Negative Buzz.

Rosen is talking about Positive Buzz. He explains HOW to take full advantage of the marketing opportunities it permits. In Chapter 16, "Buzz Workshop", he asks and then answers a series of very basic but profoundly important questions. (All by itself, this final chapter is well-worth the cost of the book. I strongly recommend that this chapter be re-read on a regular basis. Competitive marketplaces do have a way of changing, don't they?) Once having read the book, the reader is well-prepared to select and then implement those concepts, strategies, and tactics which are most appropriate to her or his own situation.

This book will be especially valuable to small-to-midsize companies with limited resources but the success of any marketing efforts (Buzz or otherwise) will still depend upon the quality of the product or service offered. All of us now actively involved in marketing owe a substantial debt to Rosen. Revealingly, the quality of his thinking and the originality of his ideas created Buzz long before his book was published. The acclaim he continues to receive is richly deserved.

Gladwell's "The Tipping Point" draws our attention to the idea of "word-of-mouth"; Seth Godin shows us what kinds of remarkable things can be achieved using viral marketing techniques; Emanuel Rosen's "The Anatomy of Buzz" walks us through how to make word-of-mouth marketing work for our own businesses.

This is an excellent book! It lays out a pathway to follow and provides pragmatic guidelines and best practices, verbally illustrated using real-world examples. A business book is a success for me if I find I've made a few notes while reading the book (and acted on those notes). In reading "The Anatomy of Buzz" I generated dozens of notes and ideas - many of which have been implemented or are in process today.

This is an excellent book. I'll say it again: This is an excellent book! I strongly recommend it to those who have "marketing", business development", "sales", or "founder" in their job titles.

When we run across a book that looks good (the cover), sounds good (the flap) and might just read good, we get excited. Heck, we might even talk to a friend regarding this cool new book were going to read, creating the buzz about which this author writes. So you can imagine it is quite a let down to find the book to be one step from an exceedingly long and drowsy MBA assignment.

Rosens basic point: buzz is borne from a product or idea that is interesting, exciting, and understandable. Unfortunately he failed to consider these points when executing his own offering. In Rosens favor though, he does have experience as a VP of Marketing for a company that designed a successful product which was marketed primarily by buzz, so there is no doubt he is familiar to some degree with what he writes, but we would have been more impressed (and inclined to talk positively) if Rosens tale had been one with a wider appeal. Selling very specific software to a small and very specific group is, to us, not as exciting an achievement than if the very book in which he had written the anecdote had been buzz-worthy.

Our other gripe arose as we read yet another anecdote based solely on Rosens personal experience. Readers get more inspired if there are examples of a variety of other people being successful with the books concept: If they can do it so can I is the thought, and Rosens reliance on anecdotes describing how he has been affected by buzz (instead of creating it) is less than stimulating. Few notions are more compelling than knowing the author writes from successful experience, and not just successful research.

At the end the author includes a chapter entitled Buzz Workshop, as well as a glossary of terms. Our advice? Read these two items and get all youll need from this book-unless you want the sleep.

--LiteratePlanet.com

A detailed, yet simple system for creating buzz about your product or service. Here are the roots of effective viral marketing. Rosen has also included many fascinating stories - both personal and business - that support his teachings. Count on great reading that concludes with a step-by-step "workshop" to help you launch the word on your product or service. Learn how some of your efforts may be wasted without employing the proven suggestions of this "BuzzMaster." I picked up the book when I saw that Everett Rodgers had written the intro. He's the guru of understanding (for over 30 years) on how to get innovations into the marketplace.

I have read both the Tipping Point and the Anatomy of Buzz. Although those two books talk about the same subject (the word-of-mouth buzz), they might be suited for different needs.

Whereas the Tipping Point is explaining the reasons behind buzz ("know why" knowledge), the Anatomy of Buzz explains how to create such buzz ("know how" knowledge).

The Anatomy of Buzz is unfortunately not as easy to read, and not as captivating as the Tipping Point, hence "only" 4 stars. I don't think it is due to the content, but due to the style, and to the examples chosen. A great book however, with a wonderful idea: the last chapter is a workshop, and sums up the key ideas of the book.

To put it simply, buzz marketing is a technique of getting people to talk about your product and spread the word. Instead of purchasing an advertisement in print media and hoping that potential customers will read it, or purchasing expensive television ads, the basis of buzz is to get friends, experts or other "hubs" to recommend the product or at least to talk about it.

How successful is a correctly implemented buzz program? It continues to break sales records and speed the acceptance of new products in phenomenal fashion. Often referred to as viral marketing, it spreads the same way a virus spreads, from one person to another, between friends, relatives, co-workers and any other social group that you belong to.

This book discloses the principles of buzz marketing, when it can be used, when it is not successful, how it has been most successful in the past and the basic principles that make it work or fail. Thoroughly detailed with many examples, it is an excellent source of information on how to market your product or service in this manner.

Probably the best book available on buzz marketing, it is definitely the most thorough that I have come across. I had the chance to try some of the techniques recently on an experimental basis and had tremendous success opening up new market areas with ease, speed and efficiency. Highly recommended.

Rosen has done a great job of making Internet marketing accessible and cheap. The first time I read this book, I did it in two sittings. Now, I pick up pieces of it every day as I try to plot strategy for marketing books on the Internet. While his discussion of hubs and distribution channels get a bit heavy at times, he gives you clear, concise strategies that anyone can use to get people talking. Having said that, let me echo Rosen's most important piece of advice: In order to create buzz, you have to have a great product. Without it, you won't get very far in your efforts. Highly recommended.