Articles

U.S. News & World Report
Making it Stick
January 21, 2007

Drawing on the work of psychologists, education researchers, and political scientists, the Heaths identify six traits they think all great ideas--from urban legends to public policy to product design--have in common. Call it The Tipping Point for the How to Win Friends and Influence People set. The Heaths' own big idea is already generating business school buzz.

Time Magazine
Are You Sticky?
Nov 6, 2006

The Heaths trumpet the notion that certain ideas are "sticky"--a term plucked from The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell's tome about how ideas and behaviors catch on in society. Gladwell, whom the Heath brothers revere, writes about "the stickiness factor" but never fully fleshes out what makes an idea sticky. That's where Chip and Dan come in. Finding insight in fields as disparate as psychology, politics, screenwriting, economics, folklore and epidemiology, they deconstruct sticky ideas--from Bill Clinton's 1992 campaign classic "It's the economy, stupid" to the way Jane Elliott taught the civil rights movement to third-graders in an all-white Iowa town (see next page). At the same time, they lay out a blueprint for engineering your own sticky ideas, whether your goal is to stop teen smoking, sell more soap or get your boss to take you seriously. Barbara Kiviat

Inc. Magazine
Marketing Made Sticky
January 1, 2007

ManageSmarter
Business Intelligence: Training That Sticks
November 28, 2006

Harvard Business Review
The Curse of Knowledge
December 2006

Reviews

The Washington Post
"..they have written a fine, "sticky" book – one that lays out the determinants of stickiness; illustrates them with vivid examples from disparate settings (e.g., business, education and effective social movements); warns us of obstacles that must be negotiated if ideas are to be sticky; and provides a set of "idea clinics," examples of good ideas presented in not so good ways, along with steps to make them better. "

Los Angeles Times
"With convincing examples, the authors take readers through these elements, illustrating along the way how the ideas work, such as how the hugely successful advertising campaign surrounding Jared Fogle, the 425-pound college student who lost weight by eating Subway sandwiches, was almost never made (the ad agency and the company didn't at first recognize its sticky factor)."

BusinessWeek
"So Made to Stick takes the existence of sticky ideas as a given, focusing instead on their mechanics: What makes an idea sticky and, more specifically, how can you, the reader, craft stickier ideas? As a result, while the book is, the authors write, inspired by Gladwell's tale, it also borrows from the more practical, how-to style of a business classic such as Stephen Covey's The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People."

The Miami Herald
"Their tone throughout is very low key and positive, but the content is pretty powerful. I've heard and read much of this stuff before, but by placing it all into this pleasant and persuasive context, a lot of the familiar ideas seem to have a bit more authority and persuasiveness. What do you know? They stick!"

Psychology Today
"If nobody listens when you're trying to share important information, this book is for you. From teachers lecturing about mitosis to CEOs announcing new company rules, people depend on others getting the message."

Christian Science Monitor
"That utility is what separates Made to Stick from the books it's indebted to - The Tipping Point and Freakonomics – books that proved the pop-crossover appeal of social psychology. Made to Stick, too, wants to unveil how people behave. Specifically, it wants to explicate what makes people care about the ideas they encounter. But then, unlike its forebears, it goes old-school. It emerges as a how-to book – very nearly a self-help book, whether for organizations or individuals – just like thousands before it, only far better. By mapping what makes others listen, it shows you how to make yourself heard."

Guy Kawasaki
"My prediction for Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die is that it will join The Tipping Point and Built to Last as a must-read for business people. The book explains why some ideas stick and some don't–and I've been on both sides of this equation. A warning though: If you read this book, you'll revamp a lot of your marketing material (as you probably should)."

Brand Autopsy
"[The Heath brothers] have written what could be the breakthrough business book of 2007 for creatives, marketers, and anyone else responsible for communicating ideas and/or messages."

Fast Company
"That rare instance of a formula biz book backed up with dozens of compulsively readable theories, studies, and surveys."

BlogCritics
"This book, which is an easy-to-absorb read and entertaining as well, is for anyone out there who has a concept that they want to share. Yes, those in publicity can benefit from Made To Stick - that's a given. But we all have ideas; scientists, teachers, businessmen, journalists and even parents want to impart their life's knowledge to their offspring. Their guidelines can help anyone achieve those goals."

Biz Book Talk
"You will find Made to Stick in the business section of your local bookstore but don't let its store location fool you. If you find yourself needing to communicate important ideas and messages - no matter what you do in life - this book will no doubt be a benefit to you. The Heath brothers claim that Made to Stick is no silver bullet for getting ideas to stick, but it's pretty damn close!"

Managing the Gray
"It's not often that a "business" book keeps me glued to my seat, but Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath certainly did that for me. What I loved about this book is that it simplifies the concepts for making your ideas stick with others to some very basic principles."

Patient Media
"Starting with the bright cover and the mock duct tape, this extraordinary little book is filled with real world examples you can use to advance your practice."

The Alpha Mind
"If you want to know how to develop ideas that fly and craft messages that stick, this book is essential reading. In fact, it just flew to the top of my list of recommended books on writing, and I just Amazoned a copy of it to my rockstar daughter who's in marketing "

Fort Worth Star-Telegram
"Don't mess with Texas" was an idea with Stickum smeared all over it. In fact, the anti-litter campaign proved to be so sticky that it saved the state of Texas $1 million right out of the chute and caused a 29 percent drop in trash-tossing on Texas highways within a year after it was launched, Chip and Dan Heath write in their stimulating new book, Made to Stick.”

Getting Attention!

Powell's Staff Pick

Eric Nehrlich, Unrepentant Generalist

Publisher's Weekly
Starred review. Unabashedly inspired by Malcolm Gladwell's bestselling The Tipping Point, the brothers Heath – Chip a professor at Stanford's business school, Dan a teacher and textbook publisher – offer an entertaining, practical guide to effective communication. Drawing extensively on psychosocial studies on memory, emotion and motivation, their study is couched in terms of "stickiness" – that is, the art of making ideas unforgettable. They start by relating the gruesome urban legend about a man who succumbs to a barroom flirtation only to wake up in a tub of ice, victim of an organ-harvesting ring. What makes such stories memorable and ensures their spread around the globe? The authors credit six key principles: simplicity, unexpectedness, concreteness, credibility, emotions and stories. (The initial letters spell out "success" – well, almost.) They illustrate these principles with a host of stories, some familiar (Kennedy's stirring call to "land a man on the moon and return him safely to the earth" within a decade) and others very funny (Nora Ephron's anecdote of how her high school journalism teacher used a simple, embarrassing trick to teach her how not to "bury the lead"). Throughout the book, sidebars show how bland messages can be made intriguing. Fun to read and solidly researched, this book deserves a wide readership.

Spare Change: Social Marketing
I've just finished reading what I predict will be the most influential marketing book of 2007. ... The Heaths' book tells us how to make our ideas sticky – in other words, how do you present an idea in a way that leaves a lasting impression? ... In fact, a large number of the examples are tailor-made for social marketers, with a health, social or environmental focus – CSPI's campaign against high-saturated fat movie popcorn, American foreign aid, the Truth campaign, oral rehydration therapy, the Nature Conservancy's campaign to save the Mt. Hamilton Wilderness... This is why all marketers – especially social marketers – must get a copy of Made to Stick when it comes out next month. The stories and case studies used to illustrate the points above make the ideas come alive and help to make the ideas in the book stick. The book is well-written, engaging and readable. In fact, I'm going to go back and reread the book with an eye toward incorporating its ideas into my own trainings.
Nedra Kline Weinreich

Steinblog
Made to Stick is similar: this is a book about the hidden reasons why some ideas connect and stay with people, and some just fall away. The writing is straightforward and concise, and the ideas are very clear and actionable.
Gary Stein

Booklist
Based on a class at Stanford taught by one of the authors, this book profiles how some ideas "stick" in our minds while the majority fall by the wayside. Urban legends, conspiracy theories, and compelling advertising make up much of the intrinsically interesting examples that the Heaths profile that qualify for "stickiness." This book explores what makes social epidemics "epidemic" and, as the Heaths cite from Malcolm Gladwell's Tipping Point (2000), defines the secret recipe that makes an idea viral. The principles of stickiness are examined – an unexpected outcome, lots of concrete details that we remember, emotion, simplicity, and credibility–all packaged in an easily told story format. Taking these five stickiness Attributes, the book offers numerous examples of how these properties make up the stories we are all familiar with – the urban legend about kidney theft and the razor blades supposedly lurking in Halloween candy. Exercises, checklists, and other tools are sprinkled throughout the book to help the reader understand and test how stickiness can be applied to their ideas, whether they are teachers, parents, or CEOs.
Gail Whitcomb

Creative Think
I'm impressed. He (and his brother) certainly have the same command of contemporary cultural stories as the writer Malcolm Gladwell. Equally important, they also have Gladwell's gift for teasing out the significance and meaning of these stories, and then weaving these meanings into a compelling story.
Roger von Oech

"This book deserves to be on the best-seller list all next year and, as an added bonus, Chip Heath is my candidate for the next Malcolm Gladwell. Of course, the future is impossible to predict, but you really owe to yourself to buy the book and to hear Chip talk about it." [more]

– Bob Sutton, Work Matters

"Have you ever had one of those books that you rapidly devour only to find that when you are through that you wish you had taken more time to savor it because now that it's over you have no other book to look forward to that even comes close to comparing to what you just read? That's what happened to me with Made to Stick."

– ICE - Improving Customer Experience