How it spreads
A common motif in the book is the mentioning of an important event from the American history that took place in the 1970s. Then, a man heard about the imminent British invasion on the American soil and then went all night from one town to another, warning people and urging them to fight back. The reason why the event is mentioned is because through this event, the author describes how a single person can be responsible for starring a new trend and how quickly a piece of information can be transmitted from one corner of the globe to another, at a galloping peace.
Hush Puppy trend
In the second chapter, the author mentioned the Hush Puppy trend and how a man named Mark Alpert may have been responsible for the product’s popularity. The Hush Puppy trend is also used here as a symbol to suggest just how quickly information can spread and how much a person’s opinion can influence the market and the choices someone makes when buying a certain product.
The little things that influence us
Another things promoted by the writer and a common motif is the idea that we are influenced by those we see even though we are not fully aware of the way they influence us. The author argues that if we watch TV and a news anchor talks about a politician while also expressing certain facial features denoting either his dissatisfaction or approval of the politician, we are more inclined to develop the same attitude as the person we are watching. These changes are however extremely subtle and we are more than often unaware that they have an effect on us. However, they do affect us and they do influence is in such a way that if the person we are watching is a skilled presenter, we may change completely our views simply because we may perceive at an unconscious level their opinions and ideas.
Adapting to the audience
A common motif found in the book is the idea that in order for a piece of advertisement to be successful, the people behind a successful ad researched various groups of people and then adapted their strategy according to the way in which the audience reacted. Because they adapted to the audience, the ad was more successful and they managed to make their message stickier and more attractive to the public.
Small changes have a powerful impact
Another common motif in the book is the idea that small changes can affect drastically the society as a whole. This theory was proven to be true when the crime rates declined drastically in the 1990s in New York, something that did not happen in other cities. When analyzing the reason behind the decline in the crime rates, it was proven that a project entitled Broken Windows had a great influence on the crime rates. The project theorized that is smaller and less significant crimes are punished, and then the people in the cities will be less inclined to commit greater crimes such as murder. The project proved that even the smallest changes can have an important impact in society and that they can change the way we think.
