Memetics & Attention · Theory
Virality: Why Things Spread
What makes content and products catch on: Jonah Berger's STEPPS, high-arousal emotions from the NYT most-emailed study, the K-factor, weak ties and seeding, and why most 'viral' hits are really broadcasts plus a little contagion.
Step 1 of 5 · Overview30 min read ·
Key idea
Prereqs: Memes: Dawkins to the internet. Next: The attention economy; Building an audience in public. Sources: Jonah Berger, *Contagious* (2013); Berger & Milkman, *Journal of Marketing Research* (2012); Goel et al., 'The Structural Virality of Online Diffusion' (Management Science, 2016); Granovetter (1973).Next: 1. STEPPS