Strands of Genius: Going Viral, Social Media Patters, Ruptures in the Mediascape
Guest curated by David Berkowitz
Each year we’re aiming to highlight 50 creative thinkers that have inspired us, by giving them the opportunity to guest curate this newsletter, Strands of Genius. David is the founder of Serial Marketer, and he and Rosie used to work together at 360i.
:: A BIT MORE ABOUT GUEST CURATOR, DAVID BERKOWITZ ::
LOCATION: NYC
PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT: Serial Marketer
I'm David Berkowitz, the founder of the Serial Marketer consultancy and Serial Marketers community. I got to know Rosie when working with her at 360i, and Faris and I bonded initially through Social Media Week's advisory board. I've always appreciated that value of standing on giants' shoulders, and Rosie and Faris are two of my favorite giants to steal from.
Editor’s Note (Rosie): I have many fond memories of David Berkowitz, or Berky to many of us. Geeking out over early social media platforms, his weekly Bagels with Berky series at 360i, even meeting up halfway ‘round the world in Australia. I was a fan before I knew him, and have loved following his thinking and musings from near and far. We’re collaborating on a workshop together, which I hope you’ll join us for! Details and RSVP link below :)
Rosie and Faris mentioned that they’re co-hosting a workshop with me on March 16th at 2pm ET (Rosie and Faris are in AST, so that’s why you see the 3p in the image above) and we’d love if you would join! Check it out and RSVP on LinkedIn.
:: THE LINKS ::
WHY PEOPLE SHARE: THE PSYCHOLOGY BEHIND “GOING VIRAL”
NFX is a venture firm that provides some of the most useful resources for how to build enduring products and companies. If you're trying to reverse engineer why the new 'it app' like Clubhouse suddenly becomes ubiquitous, you can find so many of the answers here. The harder challenge, of course, is applying it all to do that yourself, but this has the playbook. (NFX)
SOCIAL MEDIA LANGUAGE PATTERNS REFLECT BREAKUP IMPACT
Do you notice someone's language becoming a lot more analytical? Are they using the word "I" more often? This analysis of Reddit posts shows how changes in one's personal relationship status can indicate changes in our thoughts and how we express them. The implications could be far-reaching. Products that prey on people going through a relationship change (e.g., dating apps, fashion brands, real estate sites) might be able to target consumers even when people don't explicitly mention a breakup. (The British Psychological Society)
RUPTURES IN THE MEDIASCAPE
Rishad Tobaccowala looks at the Seven Marketing Mongrels and how hard it is to define these tech and media giants. He adds that Walmart and Target are following suit and could join this class. It's getting harder to tell who or what is a platform, a media business, and an influencer; the same people creating the news are often the ones distributing it (see also: Elon Musk). A feature in the WSJ that could reach millions of readers could wind up having less of an impact than the right Clubhouse room attracting thousands of listeners. (Substack)
Looking for more from David Berkowitz? Those enrolled in The School of Stolen Genius will receive a deep dive from him in their inbox shortly! You can access all our expert interviews for SOSG here.
:: AND NOW… SOME FAST FAVORITES ::
:: Game :: Spelling Bee (the NY Times puzzle app)
:: City :: New York City
:: Book :: "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marques
:: Podcast :: None; I listen to audiobooks (check out "The Old Drift" by Namwali Serpell for an amazing work of fiction)
:: Album :: Billy Joel's "The Stranger"
:: RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME ::
“You’re not destined or chosen... You’re in the right place at the right time and you care enough to do what’s right. Sometimes that’s enough.” - Erin Morganstern, "The Night Circus"
Join the community, check out my book Berky's Marketing English, and follow more of my musings on LinkedIn.
David Berkowitz
david@serialmarketer.net
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It's called Genius Steals because we believe ideas are new combinations and that nothing can come from nothing. But copying is lazy. We believe the best way to innovate is to look at the best of that which came before and combine those elements into new solutions.
Co-Founders Faris & Rosie are award-winning strategists and creative directors, writers, consultants and public speakers who have been living on the road/runway since March 2013, working with companies all over the world. Our Director of Operations is nomadic like us, our accounting team is based out of Washington, our company is registered in Tennessee, and our collaborators are all over the world. Being nomadic allows us to go wherever clients need us to be, and to be inspired by the world in between.
Hit reply and let’s talk about how we might be able to work together :)