Likeonomics: The Unexpected Truth Behind Earning Trust, Influencing Behavior, and Inspiring Action

Likeonomics: The Unexpected Truth Behind Earning Trust, Influencing Behavior, and Inspiring Action

Released May 2012
Publisher(s): Wiley
ISBN: 9781118238820

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Book description

How to become a trusted resource for consumers in a society of constant manipulation

People decide who to trust, what advice to heed, and which individuals to forge personal or transactional relationships with based on a simple metric of believability. Success, in turn, comes from understanding one basic principle: how to be more trusted. Likeonomics offers a new vision of a world beyond Facebook where personal relationships, likeability, brutal honesty, extreme simplicity, and basic humanity are behind everything from multi-million dollar mergers to record-breaking product sales. There is a real ROI to likeability, and exactly how big it is will amaze you.

Likeonomics provides real-world case studies of brands and individuals that have used these principles to become wildly successful, including:

  • An iconic technology brand that awakened a revolution among their employees by standing for something bigger than their products

  • A Portuguese singer who used YouTube to rack up more than 30 million views and launch her professional career. A regional team of financial advisors that went from being last in the nation among 176 branches to first, and stayed there for 13 of the next 15 years

  • A tiny professional sports talent agent who achieved the impossible by landing the #1 drafted player in the NFL draft as a client through the power of relationships

  • Author Rohit Bhargava is a founding member of the world's largest group of social media strategists at Ogilvy, where he has led marketing strategy for clients including Intel, Pepsi, Lenovo, Seiko, Unilever, and dozens of other large companies

With Likeonomics as a guide, readers will get unconventional advice on how to stand out in a good way, avoid the hype and strategic traps of social media, and appeal to customers in a way that secures your company as a trusted and believable resource.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Praise for Likeonomics
  3. Title Page
  4. Copyright
  5. Dedication
  6. Epigraph
  7. Warning: Unexpected Honesty…
    1. This Book Is Not about the Like Button!
  8. Prologue: How a Lard Salesman, an NFL Agent, and a YouTube Star Explain Likeonomics
  9. Introduction: Likeability, Rogue Economists, and the Lovable Fool
    1. Why People Believe in Likeability (and Why They Don't)
    2. The Nonboring Economics of Likeonomics
    3. The Psychology of Likeonomics
    4. The Jobs Paradox
    5. Do We Need to Be Liked?
    6. The Hidden Appeal of the Likeable Fool
    7. Inside Part I: The Crisis and the Solution
    8. Inside Part II: The Principles
    9. Inside Part III: The StoryBook (Likeonomics in Action)
  10. Author's Note
  11. Part I: The Crisis and the Solution
    1. Chapter 1: Inside the Modern Believability Crisis: How Rockefeller's Dimes, War Propaganda, and the Marlboro Man Ruined the World
      1. The Birth of Modern PR
      2. #occupywallstreet
      3. The Propaganda of Revolutions
      4. When Advertising Ruled the World
      5. The Mass Perception Principle
      6. Marketing as the Bad Guy
      7. Living in the Society of Distrust
      8. What Is the Believability Crisis?
      9. Solving the Believability Crisis
    2. Chapter 2: Navigating the Likeability Gap: What Rwanda, Golf Courses, and Ocean's Eleven Can Teach Us about the Decisions We Make
      1. The Movie Man
      2. What Business Are You In?
      3. The Engagement Problem
      4. The Reinvention of Rwanda
      5. Humility Wanted
      6. The Likeability Gap
      7. The Toilet Business
      8. Understanding Weak Ties
      9. Golf and the Likeability Gap
      10. Why Relationships Are Not about Networking
      11. Getting Julia Roberts
      12. The Age of Equivalence
      13. How Originality Died—and How We Can Get It Back
      14. The Differentiation Ideal
      15. The Likeability Gap and the World
    3. Chapter 3: The ROI of  Likeability: Why Spreadsheets Need to Die, Websites Stink, and Likeable Politicians Always Win
      1. The New Stupid
      2. The Sexiness of Analytics
      3. Data Overload, Insight Underload
      4. Four Ways Data Becomes Meaningless
      5. Rethinking ROI
      6. The Flip Side of Data
      7. Why Context Matters (and Your “Sticky” Website Actually Stinks)
      8. The Real Reason Likeable Politicians Always Win
      9. Why Results Matter More than Data
      10. The Five Principles of Likeonomics
  12. Part II: The Five Principles of Likeonomics
    1. Chapter 4: Truth
      1. Oprah's Secret
      2. Are You Building on a Sinkhole?
      3. The Lie Doctor and the Dalai Lama
      4. Empowerment versus the Anti-Truth Policy
      5. Embracing Your Inconvenient Truth
      6. Selling Cardboard
      7. Why Being Truthful Is So Hard
      8. The Three Elements of Truth
    2. Chapter 5: Relevance
      1. The Relevance Challenge
      2. Canada's Favorite Storyteller
      3. Handshakes in Kazakhstan
      4. The Renaissance Banker
      5. Making the Bank Relevant Again
      6. Everyone Who Matters Knows You
      7. Why Is Relevance So Hard?
      8. The Three Elements of Relevance
    3. Chapter 6: Unselfishness
      1. Creating an Ideal World
      2. The Ethical Warehouse
      3. What about the Selfish Gene?
      4. Wikinomics and the Rise of Collaboration
      5. Finding the Altruism Gene
      6. Do Doctors Need to Be Competent and Kind?
      7. Why People Don't Sue Likeable Doctors
      8. How the Unselfish and Compassionate Will Rule the World
      9. How Japanese Citizens Responded to Disaster with Unselfishness
      10. The Customer Service Revolution Will Be Twitterized
      11. Why We Are Selfish
      12. The Three Elements of Unselfishness
    4. Chapter 7: Simplicity
      1. Desperately Seeking Simplicity
      2. The Plain Language Movement
      3. The Myth of Good Complexity
      4. Gadget Confusion
      5. Flipping the Video Camera Market
      6. Winning on Simplicity
      7. How Simplicity Inspires Trust
      8. How Orange Got People Saving Again
      9. Hypnotizing Chickens
      10. How Napkins Can Explain Health Care
      11. Why Simplicity Gets So Complicated
      12. The Three Elements of Simplicity
    5. Chapter 8: Timing
      1. The Most Creative Lunch in History
      2. Timing Is Everything
      3. How Sweetening Changed Television History
      4. Our Time-Shifted Culture
      5. Gilt and Luxury with an Expiration
      6. The Rise of Shopper Marketing
      7. Google ZMOT
      8. Why Timing Is So Tough
      9. The Three Elements of Timing
    6. Conclusion
      1. Living in the Era of Likeonomics
      2. Likeonomics on Mulberry Street
  13. Part III: The StoryBook
    1. Introduction: How the StoryBook Works
    2. Bhutan—The Real Happiest Place on Earth: Industry
      1. The Story
      2. Why Is It an Example of Likeonomics?
    3. Green Bay Packers—Why Cheeseheads Rule the NFL: Industry
      1. The Story
      2. Why Is It an Example of Likeonomics?
    4. Khan Academy—Flipping the Rules of Education: Industry
      1. The Story
      2. Why Is It an Example of Likeonomics?
    5. Maverick Adventures—Kitesurfing with Richard Branson: Industry
      1. The Story
      2. Why Is It an Example of Likeonomics?
    6. Anupy Singla—The Fast Rise of Slow Cooking: Industry
      1. The Story
      2. Why Is It an Example of Likeonomics?
  14. The Backstory—The Making of Likeonomics
  15. Special Thanks
  16. Notes
    1. Prologue
    2. Introduction
    3. Chapter 1
    4. Chapter 2
    5. Chapter 3
    6. Chapter 4
    7. Chapter 5
    8. Chapter 6
    9. Chapter 7
    10. Chapter 8
  17. About the Author
  18. Index

Product information

  • Title: Likeonomics: The Unexpected Truth Behind Earning Trust, Influencing Behavior, and Inspiring Action
  • Author(s):
  • Release date: May 2012
  • Publisher(s): Wiley
  • ISBN: 9781118238820