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The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference, by Malcolm Gladwell, examines how inventions and ideas seem to catch on, undergoing slow growth, and then, all of a sudden, a rapid exponential explosion. Examples are provided for both business products, such as the cell phone; social campaigns, against smoking for example; and overarching intangible philosophies. 

Gladwell proposes three rules in his analysis: "The Law of the Few, the Stickiness Factor and The Power of Context," and suggests their use by anyone with a product or message to promote. These rules are often counterintuitive but are thoroughly documented in the course of the book.

The first rule, "The Law of the Few," looks at the role of a small number of individuals in the spread of products and ideas to the larger population. These "connectors" are people with diverse relationships in multiple, generally unrelated, groups. They spread a product or an idea from a small avant-garde bunch (labelled in the book as "innovators") to the larger population.

The second rule, "The Stickiness Factor," examines the message in addition to the messenger. What gives a message, or a product, long-lasting value and endurance? The book found that marginal promotional changes can make a big difference. For example, including a graphical map on pamphlets to promote tetanus shots for college students, changed the response rate from three to 28 percent, even though the students already knew where the health center was located.

The third rule, titled "The power of Context," found people don't react the same way in different environments. The book looked at the success of reducing crime in New York City subways just by eliminating the graffiti!

Other interesting example are provided throughout the book including such diverse items as Paul Revere's midnight ride, the spread of the Methodist Church, the phenomenon of teenage suicide in Micronesia and the success of the TV program, Sesame Street. For anyone with a product or message to promote, it's well worth picking up a copy.