- Hardcover: 208 pages
- Publisher: Financial Times/ Prentice Hall; 1 edition (7 Aug 2008)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0137145500
- ISBN-13: 978-0137145508
- Product Dimensions: 23.1 x 15.7 x 2.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 56,606 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
Conversational Capital
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Product Description
Product Description
“In The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell presents an important idea without any ‘how to.’ Now Bertrand Cesvet provides the ‘how to’ you need to create ‘Tipping Points’ for your business and success. This book is a compelling presentation of a powerful idea. This is how the new world will do business. Highly recommended if you care about your future.”
Stewart Emery, coauthor of international best-seller Success Built to Last
“Ultimately, magic is unexplainable. Still, Conversational Capital provides the most insightful analysis of what makes our shows ring in the heart of fans.”
Guy Laliberte, founder, Cirque du Soleil
“Like all great ideas, Conversational Capital is at its core simple: word-of-mouth momentum can be created, harnessed, and used to build consumer passion for a brand better and more cost-effectively than almost any other marketing medium.”
Rupert Duchesne,CEO of Aeroplan
“Marketing is an art that Conversational Capital turns smartly into science. This book provides the complete prescription for getting consumers excited about your ideas.”
Jim Champy, coauthor, Reenginering the Corporation, and author, Outsmart!
Embed into Your Products and Experiences the Ingredients that Drive Advocacy:
- Create products and services that consumers find truly significant
- Intensify consumption experiences to transform your brands into market leaders
- Don’t settle for serendipity: manage and control the word-of-mouth around your brand by manipulating eight powerful experience amplifiers
For all the books that speak of the value of consumer advocacy, few indicate how to create it to begin with. Armed with a compelling set of examples from their own work in fostering leading brands, the authors reveal the triggers of word-of-mouth and a process to embedding them in your own products, helping you create stuff people love to talk about. From Bertrand Cesvet, chairman of Sid Lee, a leading purveyor of experiential design and communications services that leverages commercial creativity for breakthrough brands including Cirque du Soleil, adidas, and Red Bull.
1% of the proceeds from the royalties earned by the authors will be donated to the One Drop Foundation. The mission of the One DropTM Foundation is to fight poverty around the world by giving everyone access to safe water.
From the Back Cover
“In The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell presents an important idea without any ‘how to.’ Now Bertrand Cesvet provides the ‘how to’ you need to create ‘Tipping Points’ for your business and success. This book is a compelling presentation of a powerful idea. This is how the new world will do business. Highly recommended if you care about your future.”
Stewart Emery, coauthor of international best-seller Success Built to Last
“Ultimately, magic is unexplainable. Still, Conversational Capital provides the most insightful analysis of what makes our shows ring in the heart of fans.”
Guy Laliberte, founder, Cirque du Soleil
“Like all great ideas, Conversational Capital is at its core simple: word-of-mouth momentum can be created, harnessed, and used to build consumer passion for a brand better and more cost-effectively than almost any other marketing medium.”
Rupert Duchesne,CEO of Aeroplan
“Marketing is an art that Conversational Capital turns smartly into science. This book provides the complete prescription for getting consumers excited about your ideas.”
Jim Champy, coauthor, Reenginering the Corporation, and author, Outsmart!
Embed into Your Products and Experiences the Ingredients that Drive Advocacy:
- Create products and services that consumers find truly significant
- Intensify consumption experiences to transform your brands into market leaders
- Don’t settle for serendipity: manage and control the word-of-mouth around your brand by manipulating eight powerful experience amplifiers
For all the books that speak of the value of consumer advocacy, few indicate how to create it to begin with. Armed with a compelling set of examples from their own work in fostering leading brands, the authors reveal the triggers of word-of-mouth and a process to embedding them in your own products, helping you create stuff people love to talk about. From Bertrand Cesvet, chairman of Sid Lee, a leading purveyor of experiential design and communications services that leverages commercial creativity for breakthrough brands including Cirque du Soleil, adidas, and Red Bull.
1% of the proceeds from the royalties earned by the authors will be donated to the One Drop Foundation. The mission of the One DropTM Foundation is to fight poverty around the world by giving everyone access to safe water.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Useful Strategic Marketing Principles Delivered in a Way That Belies the Book's Messages
18 April 2009
Format:Hardcover
Whenever I teach a class of entrepreneurs, they immediately grasp the key elements of this book: Stun customers with something very special so that they won't be able to stop talking about the experience. Everyone can tell at least one story about having had such an experience.
When these same "expert" entrepreneurs begin describing how they intend to do the same thing, the concept immediately becomes unattainable. Why? They need a "how to" process that leads them to create such a result.
I picked up this book hoping to find such a process . . . which I didn't find. I did find a solid list of factors that can be involved in such success, defined best in terms of Cirque de Soleil which the authors represent from their Montreal base.
Conversational Capital misses three big opportunities:
1. To provide such a "how to" in more detail than simply encouraging people to brainstorm around a few principles.
2. To lead business people to other sources of information that might inspire or direct them into taking useful steps (I think that a lot of the new neurological information about how we make decisions and are influenced by our surroundings would have been very useful).
3. To write the book in such a way as to exemplify the point.
I didn't find the book demonstrated much value in those three dimensions.
The authors' main contribution is to encourage strategists to think in terms of creating an on-going source of amazement that stimulates continual discussions about offerings. That's a fine thing to do, and I was glad that I read the book for that purpose.
If you already can think of five excellent examples of how others have achieved that result, this book may add one or two more.
Knock their socks off . . . and keep those socks knocked off!
When these same "expert" entrepreneurs begin describing how they intend to do the same thing, the concept immediately becomes unattainable. Why? They need a "how to" process that leads them to create such a result.
I picked up this book hoping to find such a process . . . which I didn't find. I did find a solid list of factors that can be involved in such success, defined best in terms of Cirque de Soleil which the authors represent from their Montreal base.
Conversational Capital misses three big opportunities:
1. To provide such a "how to" in more detail than simply encouraging people to brainstorm around a few principles.
2. To lead business people to other sources of information that might inspire or direct them into taking useful steps (I think that a lot of the new neurological information about how we make decisions and are influenced by our surroundings would have been very useful).
3. To write the book in such a way as to exemplify the point.
I didn't find the book demonstrated much value in those three dimensions.
The authors' main contribution is to encourage strategists to think in terms of creating an on-going source of amazement that stimulates continual discussions about offerings. That's a fine thing to do, and I was glad that I read the book for that purpose.
If you already can think of five excellent examples of how others have achieved that result, this book may add one or two more.
Knock their socks off . . . and keep those socks knocked off!
Format:Hardcover
Both as a student studying for a degree in marketing management and branding, and as a young marketer starting out in my first agency, this book is providing me with a unique perspective on how brands can achieve success in the increasingly fragmented consumer marketplace. A great, thought provoking and inspiring read!
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
107 reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Good observations but not a 'How-to-build a strong brand"
9 Dec 2008
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
Overall:
--------
The book is a high-level description of "Conversational Capital" or what makes a consumer into an active advocate for your brand combined with the description and benefits of lifestyle brands. The key concepts are: Rituals, Initiation, Exclusive product offering (EPO), Over-delivery, Myths, Relevant Sensory Oddity (RSO), Icons, Tribalism, Endorsement and Continuity. Each concept is given examples using well-known brands to help you understand the concept. The designing process is defined at a high-level with some useful tips. However, it does not really have anything revolutionary or even barely evolutionary.
If you have taken more than basic marketing classes, you will see the validity in the concepts but will be wishing for more substance on how to make your brands into the described brands.
Take-aways from the book:
Rituals -- "Rituals are behaviors or rites we engage in to mark certain activities as exalted. When ritual behavior becomes associated with a consumer experience, it is marked out as more resonant" (pg. 68)
Initiation -- "Initiation is a special subset of ritual. When consumers feel they have worked a little harder to acquire special knowledge of or access to a consumer experience, they feel set apart." (pg. 75)
EPO -- "EPO occurs when a consumer experience offers a notable degree of individualization. When you feel something has been designed just for you, or in a distinclty personal way, you can claim an experience as your own, it becomes more salient. EPO sings in high-end experiences, but we've also observed it in simple products such as Cracker Jack or the Kinder Egg." (pg. 83)
Over-delivery -- "Over-delivery is an aspect of EPO. It's what happens when brands make an experience feel special by going much further than they have to in terms of customer satisfaction. Over-delivery occurs when consumer experiences include features that anticipate needs and desires consumers haven't even thought they would want but end up loving. In the end, it can be understood as an attitude; the desire to be the best and keep improving, just for the sake of it." (pg. 89)
Myth -- "Myth might be the most critical engine of Converstational Capital because it embodies a brand story. Essentially, stories set brands apart because they are so important in the identity-forming and affirmation process. We are the sum of our stories and we look to myth to provide them. If your brand is powered by myth, it might be all you need." (pg. 97)
RSO -- "RSO stands for relevant sensory oddity. IT can be observed when a consumer experience surprises and delights a full range of sense. IT recognizes that human beings see, touch, hear, taste, and feel and communicates with them on that level. However, doing so in a manner tha is relevant, and resonates with the consumer experience in a meaningful way, is key." (pg. 105)
Icons -- "Icons are signs and symbols that are rich in evocative power and associations. Almost anything can take on the shorthand power of an icon: places, buildings, people, logos, labels, and more. The key is that these icons have to evoke a compelling brand story." (pg. 113)
Tribalism -- "In essense, Conversational Capital occurs when brand stories become part of the identity formation and affirmation process. Determining which tribe you belong to is a bedrock component of that process. Tribalism takes place when consumer experiences draw the like-minded together in a quest for mutual discovery." (pg. 121)
Endorsement -- "Endorsement is not a matter of well-known people speaking for your consumer experience. Rather, it is a matter of consumers advocating on your behalf in a free and unsolicited manner. This is the most powerful form of marketing there is. However, endorsement comes with a built-in caveat. If you are endorsed, you need to live up to consumer support. If they recommend you to someone who is disappointed, they look bad, too." (pg. 125)
Continuity -- "Conversational Capital demands continuity. Because it is about creating consistent brand stories, it works best when there is no disconnect between how a product is designed, marketed, and perceived. The best brands are the result of a united, cohesive strategy, and they walk the talk." (pg. 131)
Prose:
------
The book was clearly written quickly with marginally editting. The book is a fast read where the text is concept light. So, it is good for getting some key marketing vocabulary with supporting real-world high-level examples.
--------
The book is a high-level description of "Conversational Capital" or what makes a consumer into an active advocate for your brand combined with the description and benefits of lifestyle brands. The key concepts are: Rituals, Initiation, Exclusive product offering (EPO), Over-delivery, Myths, Relevant Sensory Oddity (RSO), Icons, Tribalism, Endorsement and Continuity. Each concept is given examples using well-known brands to help you understand the concept. The designing process is defined at a high-level with some useful tips. However, it does not really have anything revolutionary or even barely evolutionary.
If you have taken more than basic marketing classes, you will see the validity in the concepts but will be wishing for more substance on how to make your brands into the described brands.
Take-aways from the book:
Rituals -- "Rituals are behaviors or rites we engage in to mark certain activities as exalted. When ritual behavior becomes associated with a consumer experience, it is marked out as more resonant" (pg. 68)
Initiation -- "Initiation is a special subset of ritual. When consumers feel they have worked a little harder to acquire special knowledge of or access to a consumer experience, they feel set apart." (pg. 75)
EPO -- "EPO occurs when a consumer experience offers a notable degree of individualization. When you feel something has been designed just for you, or in a distinclty personal way, you can claim an experience as your own, it becomes more salient. EPO sings in high-end experiences, but we've also observed it in simple products such as Cracker Jack or the Kinder Egg." (pg. 83)
Over-delivery -- "Over-delivery is an aspect of EPO. It's what happens when brands make an experience feel special by going much further than they have to in terms of customer satisfaction. Over-delivery occurs when consumer experiences include features that anticipate needs and desires consumers haven't even thought they would want but end up loving. In the end, it can be understood as an attitude; the desire to be the best and keep improving, just for the sake of it." (pg. 89)
Myth -- "Myth might be the most critical engine of Converstational Capital because it embodies a brand story. Essentially, stories set brands apart because they are so important in the identity-forming and affirmation process. We are the sum of our stories and we look to myth to provide them. If your brand is powered by myth, it might be all you need." (pg. 97)
RSO -- "RSO stands for relevant sensory oddity. IT can be observed when a consumer experience surprises and delights a full range of sense. IT recognizes that human beings see, touch, hear, taste, and feel and communicates with them on that level. However, doing so in a manner tha is relevant, and resonates with the consumer experience in a meaningful way, is key." (pg. 105)
Icons -- "Icons are signs and symbols that are rich in evocative power and associations. Almost anything can take on the shorthand power of an icon: places, buildings, people, logos, labels, and more. The key is that these icons have to evoke a compelling brand story." (pg. 113)
Tribalism -- "In essense, Conversational Capital occurs when brand stories become part of the identity formation and affirmation process. Determining which tribe you belong to is a bedrock component of that process. Tribalism takes place when consumer experiences draw the like-minded together in a quest for mutual discovery." (pg. 121)
Endorsement -- "Endorsement is not a matter of well-known people speaking for your consumer experience. Rather, it is a matter of consumers advocating on your behalf in a free and unsolicited manner. This is the most powerful form of marketing there is. However, endorsement comes with a built-in caveat. If you are endorsed, you need to live up to consumer support. If they recommend you to someone who is disappointed, they look bad, too." (pg. 125)
Continuity -- "Conversational Capital demands continuity. Because it is about creating consistent brand stories, it works best when there is no disconnect between how a product is designed, marketed, and perceived. The best brands are the result of a united, cohesive strategy, and they walk the talk." (pg. 131)
Prose:
------
The book was clearly written quickly with marginally editting. The book is a fast read where the text is concept light. So, it is good for getting some key marketing vocabulary with supporting real-world high-level examples.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
It's a starting place, not a recipe book
12 Nov 2009
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
It's a small book (under 200 pages with a glossary and index), and a quick read. As quickly as the book can be read, it's worth taking it in small chunks so you can think through the concepts and give time to considering how you might apply them to your own business.
The book is divided into three parts, defining conversational capital to begin with- what it is, what it isn't, how it works, why it's important. Businesses used as examples here include Cirque Du Soleil, Ikeo, and Schwartz's.
The second section expands on each of the eight engines of Coversational Capital:
Rituals, Initiation, Exclusive product offering (EPO), Over-delivery, Myths, Relevant Sensory Oddity (RSO), Icons, Tribalism, Endorsement and Continuity
The third, and shortest section, is implementation- here they discuss getting started, designing a solution, implementation, and a chapter called `and two more questions.' This is the weakest section of the book, but then, they can't be too specific, as only the people involved in a particular business are really qualified to think through whether or not there is some element of that business that could legitimately be developed into one of those eight engines listed above.
This is because none of those engines work if they are only facades, they have to be genuine. Businesses most successful at creating this impassioned level of customer connection succeed in one or more of those eight engines not just through marketing and hot air, but through honesty, sincerity, and integrity.
The book is divided into three parts, defining conversational capital to begin with- what it is, what it isn't, how it works, why it's important. Businesses used as examples here include Cirque Du Soleil, Ikeo, and Schwartz's.
The second section expands on each of the eight engines of Coversational Capital:
Rituals, Initiation, Exclusive product offering (EPO), Over-delivery, Myths, Relevant Sensory Oddity (RSO), Icons, Tribalism, Endorsement and Continuity
The third, and shortest section, is implementation- here they discuss getting started, designing a solution, implementation, and a chapter called `and two more questions.' This is the weakest section of the book, but then, they can't be too specific, as only the people involved in a particular business are really qualified to think through whether or not there is some element of that business that could legitimately be developed into one of those eight engines listed above.
This is because none of those engines work if they are only facades, they have to be genuine. Businesses most successful at creating this impassioned level of customer connection succeed in one or more of those eight engines not just through marketing and hot air, but through honesty, sincerity, and integrity.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Got my creative juices flowing
6 Dec 2008
Format:Hardcover
Conversational Capital got me thinking like few business/branding books do (and I read quite a few). I enjoyed the content of the book, but even more importantly, it revved up my own creative thought process. The ideas in Conversational Capital are simple but point you toward profound exploration. You could spend your whole life honing your skills in creating experiences that are intense, enduring, and meaningful--and wouldn't that be a wonderful career! I highly recommend reading Conversational Capital in an applied rather than theoretical way. Think about a specific project that you need to create, and read Conversational Capital with a highlighter, pen and notebook in hand. The ideas and questions you generate about your own work will be the payoff. I am using these principles as I launch a new edition of my own book, Mojo Mom: Nurturing Your Self While Raising a Family, so if you end up hearing about my work, Conversational Captial will have played a role in its success.
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