The one-sentence summary

Do the opposite of everyone else and you will be more distinctive.

Want to buy the book? CLICK HERE

WHAT THE BOOK SAYS

  • There is absolutely no point in being just like everybody else. The most successful businesses stand out because they do something different.
  • A Purple Cow is remarkably different from any other product.
  • The old ways of marketing are dead, and being safe is now too risky.
  • An Ideavirus is one that spreads vigorously, similar to the point made by Malcolm Gladwell in The Tipping Point.
  • Sneezers are the spreading agents – experts who tell everyone about new products on which they are a perceived authority.
  • Otaku is a Japanese word for something that is more than a hobby but less than an obsession. This causes people to pursue remarkable products to a level that is beyond the reason of most normal people.
  • Compromise is the boring slot in any market, and all of them are filled.
  • Old-fashioned mass TV-based marketing doesn’t work any more.

WHAT’S GOOD ABOUT IT

  • The book is short and pithy – you can dip in easily.
  • There are hundreds of examples.
  • It goads the reader into looking for remarkable products in their industry and beyond. These are the places where decent, original ideas will come from.

WHAT YOU HAVE TO WATCH

  • Many of the things he proposes are probably easier said than done.
  • All the examples are American, so have less resonance in the UK.