The Existential Doom

In "Contagious: Why Things Catch On", Jonah Berger analyzes a variety of phenomena, such as growing name brands, upscale eateries, and YouTube stars, that become popular through word-of-mouth advertising, drawing on his own brilliant research. The seeming randomness of trendiness hides discernible dynamics: we naturally talk about things that seem to be trending, secretive, useful, or unusual, that evoke our emotions, that pop into our minds regularly in everyday situations, and that wrap themselves in interesting narratives.

He uses these principles to shed light on a variety of marketing mysteries, including why a Philadelphia restaurant thrived by charging $100 for a cheese steak, why "Just Say No" advertisements may cause children to say yes, why people occasionally pay more in order to receive a discount, and why that Budweiser commercial with the dudes saying "Wassup?" was genius.

Whether you're buying a car, negotiating a salary, buying a home, renegotiating your rent, or deliberating with your significant other, life is a series of negotiations. A book I read this year (although it's much older) made me rethink how negotiations can be handled much, much better. I honestly can't recommend it enough, if you haven't already read it.

Penned by hostage negotiator for the FBI Chris Voss, the book lists out nine effective principles that you too can use to become more persuasive in both your professional and personal life.

The disruption to normal working life over the last few years has reinforced the critical role HR plays in managing a business's reputation – and, as recent media stories aptly demonstrate, it is the “people” news that can often attract widespread public attention.

Risky business – HR's role in reputation management The disruption to normal working life over the last few years has reinforced the critical role HR plays in reputation management.

From the butter board craze to the catchy song “It’s Corn!”, TikTok gave us dozens of new trends this year. https://buff.ly/3YtGmPd

The top 5 TikTok trends of 2022 From the butter board craze to the catchy song “It’s Corn!”, TikTok gave us dozens of new trends this year.

The former CEO, IKEA Italy, and Spain talks about the challenges of localizing while staying true to the brand ethos.

“Marketing is like an invitation to a party. Branding is the reason they say yes”: Belen Frau, Ikea - ET BrandEquity Belén Frau, Former CEO, IKEA Italy, and Spain talks about the challenges of localising while staying true to the brand ethos. At the sidelines of her visit to India, ETBrandEquity caught up with Belén to talk about her journey at IKEA, and understand the opportunities and challenges a global organ...

The rise in big tech’s activity on TikTok is reflective of a larger cultural movement.

Why Apple, Google and Microsoft are spending more time on TikTok The explosion of TikTok's popularity has pushed it into big tech's focus and companies including Apple, Microsoft and Google can't ignore the platform.

Five campaigns that used OOH advertising as a perfect PR play.

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Out-and-out out-of-home: 5 campaigns that used OOH as a perfect PR play For The Drum’s out-of-home Deep Dive, Emma Grace of PrettyGreen argues that outdoor advertising's role in PR is too often overlooked.

Were they the best campaigns of the year? Arguable. They were, however, regarded as campaigns that gave us the feels – in a good way. Here are 9 marketing campaigns that boosted the mood in 2022.

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9 campaigns that boosted the mood in 2022 Amid persistent economic woes, an ongoing war and a series of controversies, efforts by McDonald’s, Old Spice and Chipotle found a way to cut through the noise.