For a client, we are looking at the area of outreach and engagement, particularly with young people. We recommended, “Join the club”. The book is about how social pressure works and how “join the club” models can change behaviour.
Examples and science
The book combines lost of examples (tackling AIDS, anti-smoking, teenagers, promoting math, microlending, obesity, terrorism, etc.) with recent findings in social psychology, neuroscience, sociology, public health and lots of other fields.
The empire of irrationality
The best chapter is “the empire of irrationality” which explains how we consistently kid ourselves by rationalizing, repressing, denying and a wonderful mechanism called “cognitive dissonance”.
Business tools
These mechanisms can be tackled by peer pressure and the examples show how is done. Talks about how a combination of community building, the internet and creating a culture, norms and values can be a powerful instrument to instigate change. Social capital and peer pressure as business tools.
Other books
It follows the lessons in books such as “Engage”, Loose”, “Tipping point”, “Generation Einstein”, “The old rules of marketing are dead”, “Marketing 3.0”, “Emotionomics”, “Here comes the crowd” and even “The secret”.
Parenting and the greater good
Not a typical business book but a good read for policymakers, social entrepreneurs and marketers who want to understand peer pressure and community building for the greater good.
As one of the founders of www.smallbusinesscan.com, a community that helps entrepreneurs to help each other it has given me lots of food for thought. And as a dad of two teenagers, the book has also given me a handle on some current parenting issues.
Deep, dense, nearly 400 pages (you can skip some chapters) but definitely worthwhile.
