Product Description

Seth Godin examines how companies like Napster and Hotmail have successfully launched idea viruses - a customer-to-customer dialogue. He offers a recipe to creating your own idea virus and shows how businesses can use idea virus marketing to succeed in a world that doesn't want to hear from traditional marketeers anymore.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #59384 in Books
• Published on: 2002-01-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

About the Author
Seth Godin is Vice President, Direct Marketing, for Yahoo! He founded the phenomenally successful online marketing company Yoyodyne before selling it to Yahoo in 1998.

Customer Reviews

Not Seth's Best
Seth takes a whole book to tell you what you probably already know about "idea viruses" and the bits you didn't he could have told you in a few pages. It's not truely devoid of merit, it's just like many books of this sort, it doesn't tell you how to do something, which to be fair Godin says this much himself towards the end of the book, but it does give you those sparks... "Ah we could do something like that" or "We do have advocates who might be able to help".

The Idea Virus is guilty of rebranding other marketing ideas with cheesy new names, calling Advocates or Opinion Formers, Sneezers etc, but it is an easy to read book that does give some insight into why good ideas have worked.

It is not a book that for a few pounds investment will make you millions! - But it probably made him loads!

If you are studying business/marketing etc, then this book is great for providing "real world" examples.

A book of his that I'd really recommend is the Big Red Fez - which tells you how to make effective, marketing driven websites and it does tell you what to do.

A must read for marketers
With the proliferation of advertising and marketing messages, your target customers are over communicated, tuned out, and tired of the latest promotion gimmick. Instead of sending even more direct mail, spamming with e-mail, or spending big money on advertising schedules, look into the power of the word of mouth and how to influence customers today. Seth Godin has got it right, and put forth a framework to understand the tremendous marketing power from employing 'sneezers' to spread the word about your product. This is a must read for any marketer in today's economy.

a exciting read and some very positive thinking
I'll start by saying out of all of Seth's books my favourite still remains 'Free Prize inside'. It was also the first book of his I read, so maybe that made a difference.

however, I find his style of writing to be very entertaining, not preachy and full of enthusiasm from someone who obviously enjoys what he does.

Some of the anecdotes have cropped up before, but unlike other authors who write similar books, he is forgiven as the vast majority makes you think.

Some books pertain to have all the answers, this one gives you a helping hand along the way... I read books of this nature to get inspiration and ideas or how others have approached situations previously.

Seth's books are easy to read and very enjoyable.