This is a short debunker after last week’s treatise on ethics …sorry, I just had to get that one out of my system. Thanks for all of the comments, some of which appear on nospin debunkers (remember, I will NOT use comments without your permission).

Over the next three weeks I am going to write short reviews/summaries of three "must-read" business books. Although they are very different books, each in its own way challenges fundamental beliefs about what it takes and doesn’t take to grow a business. Each debunks a lot of sacred cows about business and marketing. This week is the "The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference" by Malcolm Gladwell, next week "The Cluetrain Manifesto" by Levine, Locke, Searls and Weinberger, finally "The End of Marketing as We Know It" by Sergio Zyman. Please send me names of your favorite marketing books, and I’ll include others in the future.

There are no quick answers or roadmaps in these books. No tricks or magic. No easy prescriptions. But there is a mountain of wisdom in each–that, if applied to your business could yield immense dividends. Each book, I promise, will rattle your cage and force you to think and reexamine some assumptions that you hold near and dear. You may not agree with that all that is said, but you will not be unaffected if you read them.

Malcolm Gladwell’s book, "The Tipping Point," is a joy and really fun book to read. To get a more detailed synopsis of the book see his site at The Tipping Point . It’s not really a business book per se, but most bookstores categorize it in "Marketing." Gladwell does a great job of analyzing others’ studies of cause and effect and draws his own insightful conclusions. His is a fascinating examination of how ideas, messages, behaviors, products, diseases and other social phenomena become contagious and then "tip." A few of Gladwell’s "case studies" include: how AIDS went from being a rare disease among gay men to a worldwide epidemic, why Paul Revere's night ride through the Massachusetts countryside helped start the Revolutionary War (and why another rider had no effect), the improbable reasons for the precipitous drop in NYC crime in the 1990’s, how Sesame Street became a break-through educational show for kids and how Blues Clues eclipsed it, why Hushpuppies mysteriously became popular in a big way again in the late 90’s, how a low budget direct marketer trounced McCann-Erickson in a big-time marketing showdown for Columbia Records, why teen (vs adult) smoking has grown in the past decade in spite of all the anti-smoking messages, how a novel by a relative unknown became a New York Times best seller two years after it was first released.

Tipping Points are contrary to lots of intuition and popular belief. Gladwell shows convincingly that very little, very subtle things can make a monumental difference that "tip" the balance and cause wildfires (social epidemics) to spread. It is a book of incredible optimism, especially in these times where many people feel that they cannot make a difference in face of insurmountable odds at work or in society.

Gladwell writes,"…merely by manipulating the size of a group we can dramatically improve its receptivity to new ideas. By tinkering with the presentation of information, we can significantly improve its stickiness. Simply by finding and teaching those few special people who hold so much social power, we can shape the course of social epidemics." In the end, Tipping Points are a reaffirmation of the potential for change and the power of intelligent action."

The good news for marketers and business people, in particular, is that you don’t have to have the world’s largest ad budget to get a message and a product to "tip" and take off like an epidemic. That’s the good news. The flip side, though, is that you have to be a lot more analytical and thoughtful to figure out the right information messages, to make them what Gladwell calls "sticky," to find the right marketing vehicles and context for those messages. Finding what Gladwell calls "Connectors," "Mavens," and "Salesmen" who get the word out, each in different ways, can be a bonanza also. But you have to find them.

Take your time reading this short book. You won’t want it to end, and you’ll probably read it again and give a copy of the Tipping Point to a friend.

If you are interested in getting a free copy of the "Tipping Point," all you have to do is be one of the first ten people who read this newsletter and then answer the attached survey about email–and return it to me. The survey will only take you a couple minutes. The only rules of the survey are: you must be in a business with at least 10 people, and there is only one free book per company. On the honor system, I’m also going to ask you also to send the email survey to 3 or 4 of your business acquaintances (outside of your company, also with at least 10 employees) and ask them to send it back to me. Thanks.

Everyone else has a 2^nd chance to win a copy of not only the "The Tipping Point," but also the other 2 books that will be discussed the next two weeks. Only one requirement. I’m looking for guest debunkers to take a rip at a sacred business cow that I haven’t dealt with yet, and offer your ideas and alternatives. The best debunker received by July 16 will receive a copy of the Tipping Point, The Cluetrain Manifesto, and the "The End of Marketing as We Know It."

You can purchase the Tipping Point and other 2 books at local bookstores (it’s in hardback and paperback–although most good stores are often sold out–so call), or online. For those of you who don’t get a free copy, you can purchase one at Amazon.

PS: If you need a big laugh during the 4^th of July holiday week and haven’t seen the movie "Office Space," go out and rent or buy it. Definitely a cult classic, "Office Space" is a brutally hilarious parody of a high tech company–and it’s even funnier the second time you watch it. If you’ve ever worked in an office with cubicles, you’ll get it. Enjoy!

NoSpin Debunkers are free weekly online newsletters written by Tom Ranseen. If at anytime you would like to be removed from the NoSpin Debunker reader list, please Unsubscribe. Otherwise, enjoy, join the conversation, and please forward this debunker to as many friends/acquaintances as you think may be interested–or send me their email addresses. Thanks.

Tom Ranseen NoSpinMarketing 615.383.7157