Jonah Berger’s insightful book into the secrets of marketing holds plenty of astute advice for anyone wanting to sell their books, ideas, and products. Berger’s analysis of social media uses to sell products and services makes a lot of sense. Contagious is a book you can dip into and find plenty of information on how to build an audience and provide what they need and want. Jonah Berger supplies plenty of examples of how each technique and approach works. If you want to sell something, start a small business, or entice people to buy more of your “stuff” this book will tell you how to do it. GRADE: B+
TABLE OF CONTENTS
i. Introduction/Synopsis

1. An Introduction to Contagiousness
◾a. If You Want Your Message to Spread, You Need to Get People Talking, and Imitating
◾b. The STEPPS
2. Social Currency
◾a. On the Importance of Appearances
◾b. The Appeal of the Remarkable
◾c. Manufactured Remarkability
i. Snapple
ii. Blendtec
◾d. On the Importance of Status
i. Our Accomplishments
ii. What Distinguishes Us
3. Triggers
◾a. Top of Mind, Tip of Tongue
◾b. Indirect Triggers
◾c. Natural and Artificial Triggers
i. Wassup?
◾d. When Triggers Influence Behavior
i. Mars Bars, and the Planet Mars
ii. The Effect of Music on Wine Sales
iii. Kit Kat and Coffee
◾e. Diluted Triggers
4. Emotion
◾a. Awe
◾b. Sadness
◾c. Positive and Negative Emotions
◾d. Low Arousal and High Arousal Emotions
◾e. Focusing on Emotions
i. The ‘Three Whys’
5. Public
◾a. Monkey See, Monkey Do
◾b. Solving Binge-Drinking at American Universities
◾c. The Movember Movement
◾d. Livestrong and the Yellow Wrist-Band Campaign
6. Practical Value
◾a. What’s Useful Gets Spread
◾b. Giving Advice
7. Stories
◾a. People Love Stories
◾b. Stories in Advertising: Subway
◾c. Valuable Virality
8. Conclusion