Hollo, RoseAnna Capstone 2014 Online MBA
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Transcript of Hollo, RoseAnna Capstone 2014 Online MBA
Running Head: TIPPING POINTS
Social Media Tipping Points in Complementary Health and Wellness
RoseAnna L. Hollo
New England College
December 11, 2014
MG6970
Professor Joe Abrego
TIPPING POINTS 2
Abstract
Social Media Tipping Points in Complementary Health and Wellness
Beneficial viral social media phenomenon was examined in the complimentary health and
wellness marketing field, and scrutinized for evidence of Gladwell’s Tipping Points markers to
demonstrate that viral campaigns can be intentionally implemented. Gladwell’s Tipping Points
are three distinct areas in which a big change can be made by something small. Prior social
media marketing research was examined to determine where knowledge is lacking or commonly
refuted when it comes to a successful social media marketing campaign. These ideas,
assimilated, showed that it is possible to implement a viral social media strategy using
Gladwell’s Tipping Points: The Law of the Few, The Stickiness Factor, and The Power of
Context. The proposed study is to implement the three Tipping Points in a Complementary
Health and Wellness Business’s Facebook page and to measure the results to determine whether
this is a good strategy and worthy of further study.
Keywords: viral, social media, complimentary health, wellness, marketing, tipping points,
Malcolm Gladwell, internet, Facebook, strategy
TIPPING POINTS 3
Table of Contents
Abstract………………………………………………………………………………………..2
Table of Contents……………………………………………………………………………...3
List of Figures and Tables……………………………………………………………………..5
Chapter One - Introduction……………….……………………………………………………6
Background…………………………………………………………………………….7
The Problem……………………………………………………………………………8
Methodology…………………………………………………………………………...9
Specifics………………………………………………………………………………..9
Limitations……………………………………………………………………………..9
Professional Significance……………………………………………………………..10
Chapter Two – Literature Review…………………………………………………………….11
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………...11
Tipping Points: A Central, Traditional Theory………………………………………12
The Law of the Few…………………………………………………………………...12
The Stickiness Factor…………………………………………………………………14
The Power of Context………………………………………………………………...14
Gaps in Healthcare Marketing………………………………………………………..15
Viral Marketing Theory………………………………………………………………16
Studies in Viral Social Media in the Health Communication Sector………………...18
Summary……………………………………………………………………………...21
Chapter Three – Methods……………………………………………………………………..22
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………...22
Stakeholders…………………………………………………………………………..22
Approach and Methodology…………………………………………………………..24
TIPPING POINTS 4
Research Design………………………………………………………………………24
Ethics………………………………………………………………………………….25
Data Collection………………………………………………………………………..25
Implications…………………………………………………………………………...26
Limitations…………………………………………………………………………….27
Summary………………………………………………………………………………27
Chapter Four – Strategic Plan…………………………………………………………………28
Problem Statement…………………………………………………………………….28
Goals…………………………………………………………………………………..29
Timeline……………………………………………………………………………….29
Financial Plan…………………………………………………………………………30
Long-Term Plan………………………………………………………………………31
Contingency Plan……………………………………………………………………..31
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………32
Annotated Bibliography……………………………………………………………...33
Appendix A…………………………………………………………………………..38
Appendix B…………………………………………………………………………..43
TIPPING POINTS 5
List of Figures and Tables
Table A1 Facebook Insights, Age Demographics of Fans who Like Page…………………..38
Table A2 Facebook Insights, Age Demographics of People Reached……………………….39
Table A3 Facebook Insights, Age Demographic of People Engaging with Page……………40
Table A4 Facebook Insights, Page Post Type Reach and Engagement……………………...41
Table A5 Facebook Insights, When Fans are Online………………………………………...42
Figure B1 DRW Facebook Guidelines for Business Owner…………………………………43
Figure B2 Policy on Research Involving Participation of Others……………………………45
Figure B3 Business Owner Exit Interview…………………………………………………...47
TIPPING POINTS 6
Chapter 1: Introduction
This capstone project serves to bridge a gap that exists in current research of viral social
media content marketing for the complimentary health and wellness field. Viral social media
phenomenon refers to an instance of information that is circulated widely and quickly from
person-to-person on the internet. Complimentary health and wellness refers to a non-mainstream
prevention strategy or approach that is offered in addition to a mainstream medical approach.
According to ZakAiRan, (2014), an internationally renowned wellness guru, it’s commonly
understood that the complimentary health and wellness field is supported by do-gooders and
those interested in living an abundant life, but that alone is not enough to keep an organization’s
coffers in the black these days. A person or organization focused on helping and healing others
is more susceptible to ignoring the importance of financial health of the business, due to fear of
appearing greedy. Without financial stability, that person or organization is unable to help
others. Both giver and receiver must value the service to fully benefit. Marketing to those who
can pay for products or services is a must, and taking the message to them is half the battle.
These days, social media marketing is an area that is often misunderstood and ineffectively
utilized in the complimentary health field, despite the fact that the people who support wellness
efforts are congregating there.
According to Albee (2014) of Content Marketing Institute, “understanding (social media)
content’s value proposition and knowing what’s needed to capitalize on it” is a key area where
marketers lack knowledge (para. 2.). There are many strategies out there but the suggestions are
diverse and controversial. A need for an easy-to-understand approach has emerged. Marketers
don’t have time to learn about and test every marketing tool out there. A quick search on the
TIPPING POINTS 7
internet quickly reveals an overabundance of tools, products, services, and advice for marketers.
Employees in this field need a simple, clear, effective method that raises above all the offerings.
Background
Successful complimentary health and wellness businesses have long had success offline
in their marketing efforts due to understanding and utilizing educated methods. From World
Health Organization, to La Leche League, to The American Cancer Society, to the local
Chiropractor; previous generations have grown to respect and solicit the products and services of
many wellness organizations through popular campaigns spread through Gladwell’s traditional
Tipping Points, before social media became a standard practice. Good marketers understand
how messages spread and grow via traditional means. But these days Millennials and their
parents are fixing a great deal of attention on social media, and complementary health businesses
are losing out on a great opportunity despite efforts to keep up with the trend, due to a lack of
understanding of how to take old marketing tools and translate them for use on the internet
(Smith, 2014, para. 2).
A majority of industries these days have recognized the importance of digital marketing,
which is demonstrated by the fact that any business can be Googled. Most have Facebook pages.
Brands hire or promote marketing team members specifically to manage their online presence.
Unfortunately, many hires are not well educated in social media marketing. Marketers have been
told that content is important, but don’t understand how to effectively use that content to engage
audiences. This jeopardizes brand loyalty and potential sales. Marketers often admire and
wonder about the virility of social media campaigns, such as the recent ALS Ice Bucket
Challenge phenomenon in the summer of 2014, which raised millions of unexpected dollars for
TIPPING POINTS 8
the organization. Current popular opinion is that a social epidemic has more to do with luck and
less to do with planning, as posed by Bachman (2013, para. 4.). The ALS Association’s (2014)
officials claim to be surprised by the results of the supporter-initiated challenge. Fortunately, it
demonstrated the value of Gladwell’s Tipping Points in social media, or, how a successful and
even viral social media campaign can be implemented by someone who understands that
epidemics spread through influential people spreading emotion-tapping messages that make a
strong impression. It is important to note that Gladwell’s last edition of Tipping Points was
published two years before the launch of social media giant Facebook and that social media
marketing was not mentioned in his book.
The Problem
This study aims to demonstrate that valuable complimentary health and wellness social
media content is spread quickly to a large audience by using Tipping Points. Tipping Points is a
concept that “ideas and products and messages and behaviors spread just like viruses do,”
(Gladwell, 2002, p. 7). Elsewhere, Gladwell posits that tipping points are “moments of great
sensitivity. Changes made right at the Tipping Point can have enormous consequences,” (p.
282). There are three major factors to Gladwell’s Tipping Points including The Law of the Few,
The Stickiness Factor, and The Power of Context. These three factors, which have previously
been observed and implemented in powerful real-world scenarios can be applied deliberately and
successfully to social media to enhance customer loyalty and sales in the complimentary health
sector.
Methodology
TIPPING POINTS 9
A mixed-methods approach is offered in this thesis. Both qualitative and quantitative
methods will be used when examining the current research available while actively examining
complimentary health brands and organizations that are currently benefiting from viral marketing
theories reflected in the current research (post-2004, Facebook’s launch year), and by Gladwell’s
Tipping Points.
Further, an experiment is proposed to test the theory of Tipping Points on a
complementary health and wellness business’s Facebook page. Facebook Insights and a survey
are suggested for evaluation of the new marketing method.
Specifics
Three areas of significance examined will be Gladwell’s The Law of the Few, The
Stickiness Factor, and The Power of Context. These three theories will be assimilated with
current marketing research and applied to social media strategies while examining if and how
complimentary brands and organizations are already benefiting from these theories in social
media marketing.
Based on these three factors and Facebook Insights, the researcher has planned a
marketing strategy to be implemented on a complementary health and wellness business’s
Facebook page. The owner of the page will design and post messages on the page based on
guidelines provided to him (See Figure 1). Before, during, and after the experiment, insights will
be collected and measured. After the experiment, a survey will be provided to the business
owner.
Limitations
TIPPING POINTS 10
There is little research when it comes to using Gladwell’s theories and virility in social
media marketing. Though some theories resemble portions of Tipping Points, no one has
proposed the direct application of them for social media marketing in the complimentary health
sector. According to Romaniuk:
“Early knowledge is patchy in substance, research findings are often reduced to sound
[bites] that get passed on without any regard to the underpinning research. Case studies—
particularly ‘successes’ – are taken as gospel instead of being treated more appropriately as
single plot points in a larger story,” (Romaniuk, 2012, p. 397).
A major problem is that translation of these tools for use in social media is applied by the
researcher, and could be translated differently by someone else. Additionally, many
complimentary health and wellness organizations are not intentionally using these tools but they
may be benefiting from them via unintentional accidents, as in the aforementioned ALS’s Ice
Bucket Challenge. In the future, more research examining wellness brands and organizations
who have intentionally applied Gladwell’s Tipping Points in social media strategy will be
necessary to support the thesis presented in this project.
Professional Significance
At this time, complimentary health and wellness organizations are using ready-made
social media services leveraged by ever-changing technological devices for complimentary
health and wellness marketing while drawing on new studies of the Health Information field and
mixed advice from the social media marketing field. Health Information combines the
traditional fields of medicine and marketing to deliver health services, products, and information
to the public. Just as a real virus can spread from person-to-person, a trending message on social
TIPPING POINTS 11
media can increase the popularity of a product, decrease a crime rate, or start a new fashion
trend, as Gladwell (2003) suggested. Social media marketing goals may be accomplished by
implementing Gladwell’s three Tipping Points, which will be further explored in this study.
Chapter 2: Literature Review
Introduction
Social media marketing is a field that has quickly developed over the past decade, taking
a firmer root after the release of the popular social media site Facebook in 2004 and growing
exponentially to the present. The most relevant studies have been conducted in the past couple
of years. Complementary health and wellness businesses compete in a market of heavy
information overload by attempting to grab and hold the attention of their target consumer
groups. Educating the public and selling products and services is increasingly important, but the
means to this end has rapidly changed due to the insurgence of prospects looking to the internet
for information. The ability and method of spreading a message virally is widely contested. It’s
even doubted by those employed in the industry. Researchers have widely avoided the topic in
the complementary health and wellness field. Study of the field has been largely limited to
traditional advertising theories, basic social media marketing theories, and effects of social media
campaigns on complementary health and wellness goals of various organizations and brands.
However, all of these studies have Tipping Points in common. They show an underlying theme
of the need for the involvement of influential people, the memorability of a message, and the
circumstances surrounding an idea. Some of the studies also demonstrate how complementary
health and wellness organizations have had success using viral messages to change health
behavior.
TIPPING POINTS 12
Central works containing instances of these aforementioned ideas are Gladwell’s book
Tipping Points (2002), Duncan Watts’ book Six Degrees (2002), Ann M. Roger’s streamlining
strategies (2014), Jenni Romaniuk’s “Next Big Thing,” (2012), and Daniel et al. study of how
social media marketing and health communication can improve the public’s health (2012),
Kalpaklioglu and Toros’s findings on viral marketing techniques (2011), Ip et al. study of viral
marketing to promote smoking cessation (2014), Shu-Chuan Chu’s findings on viral advertising
in Facebook groups (2011), and Zanuddin et al. findings on value creation for a well-women’s
service using social media (2013).
Tipping Points: A Central, Traditional Theory
Gladwell’s The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference (2002), first
introduced the idea of viral messages before they were called thus. The book is sold in the
business genre and its popular concepts have been used in traditional advertising campaigns.
Tipping points have to do with a moment in time when a message crosses an unseen threshold
and “spreads like wildfire,” (Gladwell, Jacket, 2011). Most people are familiar with the biology
of a viral infection and how it can spread quickly and multiply from person-to-person.
Gladwell’s idea applies the viral phenomenon to the world of ideas, trends, and messages. He
divides the components of The Tipping Point into three categories: The Law of the Few, The
Stickiness Factor, and The Power of Context. Gladwell examines these three properties and how
they historically contributed to the success of children’s television shows, fashion trends, crime
rates, and more. Case studies are offered at the end of the book to illustrate the application of
these theories in motion.
The Law of the Few
TIPPING POINTS 13
The Law of the Few refers to the importance of people of influence. Gladwell calls these
influencers connectors, mavens, and salesmen (Gladwell, 2002, p. 31). Connectors are people
characterized by having many friends in many different social circles, economic classes, and
professional fields. They tend to be people who introduce others to one-another, breaking down
social barriers to unite people who otherwise would not be able to relate. A real-world example
would be a farmer and a clothing designer meeting because a fiber salesperson introduces them.
He knows them both because he works with both, but they would not have otherwise met due to
very different life circumstances.
A 2003 study by a physicist named Duncan Watts at Columbia University cast doubt on
Gladwell’s theory that influential people are a crucial channel through which messages must
travel to targets. Watts sent 61,000 people an email message that had to reach one of 18 targets
by being passed from person-to-person. While the email messages took an average of
Gladwell’s predicted six links, only 5% of the messages passed through a person who would be
considered a true connector. Watts posed that if connectors were the one determining factor of
success in a marketing campaign, then using them would harbor much better results than were
reported at that time. However, Gladwell’s theory adds to the influencer aspect by stating that
his few don’t always have to be connectors. They can also be mavens or salesmen, which could
explain why other types of people were able to connect the message with the intended target
recipient.
As previously mentioned, Gladwell’s second type of influencer is a maven. A maven is
an expert on the marketplace’s products and services. Combined with great social skills and an
almost unhealthy desire to help others, mavens make word-of-mouth recommendations that are
TIPPING POINTS 14
often repeated by the recipients of that information. Mavens love to give advice, but they also
love to receive it (Gladwell, 2002, p. 60).
Gladwell adds another influencer to the mix. A salesman is a term used by Gladwell for
anyone who has a persuasive personality and uses his powerful verbal and nonverbal traits to get
people to agree or do as they desire. Salesmen change peoples’ minds and get them to take action
(p. 70).
The Stickiness Factor
The second element of Gladwell’s Tipping Points is The Stickiness Factor. The
Stickiness Factor has to do with a message having a big impact on the receiver, and its ability to
be remembered due to its content. This big impact has the ability to inspire action and change in
an individual.
The Power of Context
The Power of Context is the third main element of Gladwell’s Tipping Points. It’s widely
believed that a person’s behavior is widely influenced by his or her surrounding environment.
“Epidemics are sensitive to the times and places in which they occur,” (Gladwell, 2002, p. 139).
Elements in the environment or context of a situation can be very subtle, but powerful initiators
of change.
In summary, Gladwell’s work proposes that while messages and change can be difficult
to initiate, there is hope. By employing the three factors of the Tipping Point in intelligent and
well-organized pushes, intelligent action may be all that is needed. The world seems immovable,
TIPPING POINTS 15
but with just the right balance of elements, it’s very easily manipulated. However, the key
factors are widely misunderstood by today’s marketers.
Gaps in Health Care Marketing
Ann Rogers, a former employee of the healthcare marketing sector and digital marketing
business entrepreneur, suggests that the biggest stumbling block is lack of time to investigate
theories and develop strategic plans. Another challenge is the workload. “It’s common for
people to start posting and engaging immediately but then slow down when things get busy.
When that happens, your organization drops off the radar,” (Rogers, 2014, p. 17). Key gaps
include the “sales funnel breakdown, lack of digital content, one-way social media street; and
messages that are not benefit oriented,” (p. 16). Strategy is an important way to get the attention
of top influencers, which helps to spread a message. Zanuddin, Previte, and Russell-Bennett
claim the value of social media marketing has been largely ignored in research. They ask why
it’s even important in the first place (2013, p. 363).
Rogers (2014) claims that sticking to a few very well developed and managed social
media platforms and presenting a united front of information increases visibility and makes the
brand more recognizable. An organization will make the messages more memorable by telling
people how they will benefit from that service, action, or product. Capturing attention while not
being too “salesy,” ip (Rogers, 2014, p. 17), is a worthwhile consideration.
Another of Rogers’ points is that marketers forget that consumers look for information in
various ways, and streamlining the process of accessing that information is a must. For example,
print ads must point to a specific URL, while blog posts, tweets, status updates, etc. must all
TIPPING POINTS 16
point to the same URL. It must be incredibly easy for the seeker to find the information. It’s
easiest to find information that’s directly placed in one’s lap (Rogers, 2014, p. 17).
Viral Marketing Theory
Chu (2011) defines viral advertising as “unpaid, peer-to-peer communication of
provocative content originating from an identified sponsor using the Internet to persuade or
influence an audience to pass along the content to others,” (p. 31). Evidence of Gladwell’s three
Tipping Points can be found in research about viral marketing.
Romaniuk posits that knowing the audience of any given social media channel can help
an advertiser determine whether influencers are available to help spread a message there. Using
this knowledge to overcome obstacles will help to push the message forward (Romaniuk, 2013,
p. 397).
Chu (2011, p.p. 30-33) agrees with the importance of The Law of the Few, and
understanding who the most influential people are in a given platform. For example, his study
found that college-aged users were more likely to spread messages on Facebook specifically.
Using this knowledge is one step in the right direction for targeted campaigns who wish to use
Facebook. Adding to this, he found college-aged students seek a community of trust which is
provided to them on Facebook. Friends were more likely to get interested and purchase a
product when they saw their friends doing it (p. 31).
Kalpaklioglu & Toros (2011) also found that consumers rely on friends’ decisions and
advice to assist in purchasing decisions. “Researches show that 78% of consumers trust
TIPPING POINTS 17
recommendations from other consumers,” (p. 4113). He also found a nine-times-stronger
likelihood of behavior induced through friends influence than through television, magazine, or
newspaper ads (p. 4113). Behavior is traditionally believed to be strongly influenced by word-
of-mouth, and viral messages on the internet are much like word-of-mouth phenomena in the real
world. The trust effect, as described by Kalpaklioglu & Toros (pp. 4128-4129), is the
phenomenon that affects purchase decisions and product performance. Recommendations are a
huge factor for bringing new products into the awareness of consumers. In the form of viral
marketing, persuasion is even stronger.
Educational, entertainment, emotional, and memorable content is another important
aspect of viral marketing. Chu posits that his college-aged Facebook users enjoyed groups
where they were able to share videos, photos, and other personalized content that elicited
emotions in the participants. He goes on to say that his studies also showed a correlation
between emotion and viral advertising with the most important element being that of surprise.
Further, positive emotions garnered a better response than negative emotions (2011, pp. 30-33).
Students also desired to pass along information that helped to spread of message about
who they are as individuals. They joined groups mainly for socializing, gathering information,
and entertainment (2011, pp. 30-33).
Kalpaklioglu & Toros found that having fun was a major factor in attracting people to
become engaged and share content. Gaming, through mobile phones, websites, social
applications, and more was a heavy contender in perpetuating viral messages. Advertising
placed within a game, or even a brand-based game was sticky enough to be remembered and
recommended by players of these games (2011, p. 4126).
TIPPING POINTS 18
Finally, context was a measure in each of the studies. Romaniuk suggests that less work
for the consumer provides a higher payoff for the advertiser, but not every consumer is willing to
do the same amount of work. It depends on how invested and loyal the consumer is to the brand.
Marketers need to make interaction with a brand as effortless as possible (Romaniuk, 2013, p.
398).
Chu gives this example: Putting a message directly in front of a consumer, such as
through direct messaging or email is easier to notice and read than something buried amongst
many other messages (Chu, 2011, p. 31). Kalpaklioglu & Toros agree with this position, saying
that ease of communication is what draws people to electronic mediums in the first place.
However, being bombarded by advertising causes a prospective customer to change their minds
about a product (Kalpaglioglu & Toros, 2011, p. 4113).
When it comes to word-of-mouth, consumers seem to prefer this due to a feeling that the
information is more trustworthy, and marketers benefit from this because it’s a low-cost and
high-payoff strategy (Kalpaglioglu & Toros, p. 4113). This “Environment of trust is created
when people sharing their opinions about the product or the service do not have connection with
products’ producer or provider of service,” (Kalpaklioglu & Toros, 2011, p. 4116). Marketers
must beware of the possibility of negative evaluations as well, which are more likely to go viral
than positive messages (p. 4115).
Studies in Viral Social Media in the Health Communication Sector
There is a great lack of research in the field of Health Communication, and an even
greater absence of studies in the narrower field of Complementary Health and Wellness, while
there is only one study in the value of free information in the field. The wellness paradigm or
TIPPING POINTS 19
preventative health services are more reactive than proactive in social media marketing
approaches at this time (Zanuddin, Previte & Russell-Bennet, 2013, pps. 361-362).
Understanding value in free services provided via online means is a major challenge for
marketers. So far, progress has been made in “reducing the burden of chronic disease currently
caused by obesity, tobacco, and the excessive consumption of alcohol” (Zanuddin, Previte, &
Russell-Bennet, 2013, p. 362).
Some of the women in this study describe themselves as individuals who influence others
to take a desired action. These people were strongly influenced and benefited by the study and
therefore wanted to encourage others to do what they had learned to be helpful (Zanudding,
Previte, & Russell-Bennet, 2013, p. 373). Daniel, Bernhardt & Eroglu (2009), agree, posing that
the audience is an important aspect of getting a message to spread. They assert that the
phenomena of relationships between the audience members and that with other systems are an
important consideration (pp. 2121-2122).
Ip, et al. (2014), join the theory of influence in reporting their findings of an anti-smoking
campaign experiment. They found that, after inviting students to share experiences, that age is a
powerful factor in influencing friends’ smoking patterns, and encouraging them to quit. “Within
the short study period of 22 days, there was an almost sevenfold increase in registered users with
6 referral levels,” (Ip et al., 2014, p. 7). The researchers found that the referrals and shared
information “requires a high degree of trust” (Ip et al., 2014, p. 7).
What attracts people to health and wellness information and makes them remember or
even become loyal to an organization or idea? The user has to value the information, according
to Zanuddin, Previte, and Russell-Bennett, (2013, p.p. 363-366). This team goes on to say that
TIPPING POINTS 20
people value free content that meets their needs. There are three kinds of value found to be of
importance, including functional, emotional, social, and altruistic. Peace of mind was also found
to be of importance in the instance where recipients of information took action in
recommendations made by social media messages. Positive emotions and relief played a part in
the payoff for those who took action (p. 372). Additionally, the messages received in social
media served as reminders to do things that many already believed to be valuable, such as having
annual breast screens (p. 373). Action can be better influenced by marketers understanding these
reasons for action, and providing more messages such as these for the audience (p. 376). Adding
to the stickiness of these messages, the marketer may incorporate drama and storytelling into the
call for action, increasing the emotional response in the reader (Daniel, Bernhardt, Eroglu, 2009,
p. 2121).
Eliciting emotion was also found to be of value. Competition and a desire to win seemed
to have an influence on participants completing the challenge of a marketing campaign for
smoke-free lifestyles, (Ip et al., 2014, p. 2).
Contextual factors were prevalent in these studies. Daniel, Bernhardt, & Eroglu (2009)
found that while the intent of viral marketing in healthcare is to spread a positive message, it’s
even easier for negative messages to be consequential. People have to change their behavior and
the challenges of doing so can be detrimental to the success of a campaign. The cultural and
social environment plays a large part in whether people will implement change. For example, if
healthy foods are unaffordable, people will not purchase and consume them, and will complain
that the message to do so is insensitive. Therefore, going beyond the message and providing
resources to implement the changes (such as coupons for healthy food) must be included to make
the message successful. Additionally, addressing the busy lives of followers by providing
TIPPING POINTS 21
helpful and timely information and resources was appreciated by participants. Too much
information of little value was found to be detrimental, (pp. 2120-2122).
The Daniel, Burkhart, & Eroglu (2009) study focused on women’s wellness. Review of
this study was chosen because it fell into the complementary health category. It was proposed
that treatment as opposed to prevention would be a factor in taking action or recommending
action, and they found this to be true. Breast screenings were carried out, after suggestion, by
women who had lumps or pain, menopause, heart issues, and a hysterectomy. Those with no
history of health issues were not as likely to have a breast exam (p. 369). Having a breast exam
gave these women “a sense of control,” (Daniel, Burkhart & Eroglu, 2009, p. 371). It was then
that they recommended exams to friends or family whom they knew to be avoiding exams (p.
371).
Environmental factors were little recognized in Ip et al.’s (2014) Smoke-Free campaign.
They note simply that demographic similarity in the participants played the largest role in
sharing of information (p. 7).
Summary
As suspected, the gaps in healthcare marketing reflect a need for assimilation of research
with effective strategy for executing a viral social media campaign. This is not easy due to the
lack of research available in this subject area. Therefore, taking existing research in the areas of
viral marketing theory, examinations of viral instances in social media in the healthcare sector,
and traditional healthcare marketing strategies had to be collected and scoured for traces of
similar themes. Fortunately, a pattern exists that demonstrates a basic and fundamental
underlying trend that was first posed by Gladwell’s Tipping Points. Each article examined
TIPPING POINTS 22
mentioned and applied instances of The Law of the Few, The Stickiness Factor, and The Power
of Context. While each application of these factors was implemented in different ways, the same
three themes appeared time and again in these studies, even though different terms were used.
Chapter 3: Methods
Introduction
Gladwell’s Tipping Points (2002), through a review of literature, have been identified as
key factors in successful social media marketing campaigns. The previous studies did not term
these Tipping Points as such, but the criteria were similar enough to distinguish the three
markers. Some of the campaigns reviewed have gone viral and most have been considered
beneficial. There are a lot of conflicting theories about why messages go viral on social media.
Although the complementary health and wellness field is very competitive, there is little
information available about how to successfully market this niche using social media. There are
no studies showing that the three Tipping Points factors can be used as a method of intentionally
pushing a viral social media campaign. This study aims to show that Gladwell’s Tipping Points
can easily be implemented to increase the virility of a social media marketing campaign on a
real-life Complementary Health and Wellness business’s Facebook page.
Stakeholders
Participants in this study are many. The first is a business we are calling “DRW.” The
owner of the business will implement the marketing strategy. He is 36 years old with a Master’s
Degree in Community Agency Counseling. He has no prior marketing training and minimal
TIPPING POINTS 23
experience in social media marketing. This business owner has stated he has a personal interest
in testing a simple marketing plan on his page because he has nothing to lose, due to prior sales
from social media being only 3% of his business. Other participants include people who like the
DRW Facebook page, their friends, friends-of-friends, and so-on. About 3% of page likers, or
fans, are previous DRW clients while the rest have never purchased the services of the business.
According to Facebook’s Insights feature, as of November 10, 2014, the demographics of the
page likers are as follows, (See Table 1): The majority of Fans (numbering 2929) are from
Turkey. We are choosing to ignore this majority due to these fans being illegitimate due to paid
likes. The second largest group of fans (510) is from the United States and is seemingly all
organic or legitimate fans. The largest majority of fans, at 21%, are men aged 18-24, followed
by men aged 25-34. DRW’s most-reached demographic (See Table 2) is also men aged 18-24 at
39%, followed by women in the same age bracket at 20%. The most engaged users (See Table
3) of the DRW page are men in the 18-24 year old bracket at 29%, followed by an equal split of
women in the 25-34 years age bracket (14%), and women in the 35-44 years age bracket (14%).
Engagement is an important note, as this plays a large factor in virility on Facebook. It is
important to note that not all of the people reached and engaged are fans of the DRW page. The
language preference of a large majority of fans is English. The types of posts (See Table 4)
reaching the most fans are photos, followed by status updates, and links; while status updates get
the most engagement. Socioeconomic, disability, sexual orientation, and other demographic
information are not available via Facebook’s Insights application.
According to Facebook Insights on November 11, 2014, most of the DRW Facebook fans
are online at approximately these times each day: 857 at 1:00 pm, 855 at Noon, 812 at 11:00 am,
TIPPING POINTS 24
followed by 807 at 2:00 pm (See Table 5). Therefore, these posting times will be suggested on
the guidelines provided to the business owner as an attempt to reach the widest audience.
Due to the unlimited possibility of reach or participation in this study, unforeseen
stakeholders may exist. This will not be known until the study is underway. The POLICY ON
RESEARCH INVOLVING PARTICIPATION OF OTHERS (New England College, August
2003) will be consulted and the experiment will be adjust or stopped if anyone’s welfare is
questioned at any time.
Approach and Methodology
This is a mixed-methods approach that uses qualitative and quantitative views. The study
began with a literature review and will continue with a social media marketing experiment on
Facebook. The experimental part of this study will take place during the fourth calendar year of
business for DRW, and the fourth year of managing a Facebook page, namely January 5, 2015
through February 1, 2015. The DRW Facebook page has not yet experienced a successful viral
marketing campaign. A pre-designed campaign strategy using specific types of posts based on
Tipping Points factors will be implemented by the owner of the business. Facebook’s Insights
Application will be used to measure the Reach, Likes, and Engagement of posts made over the
four week period. Each post will be scrutinized for virility. The test will rely heavily upon the
owner’s ability to make decisions based on the guidelines provided and continued participation.
The impetus for participation is anticipation of increased reach and sales for the business. A
survey of the owner’s opinions about the method will be taken upon quitting or completion of the
project.
Research Design
TIPPING POINTS 25
The campaign will take place over the course of four weeks on the DRW Facebook page.
On Monday of each week, the business owner will design and schedule 28 posts (4 per day)
based on criteria provided by the researcher (See Item 1). He will be the only person posting on
the DRW Facebook page during the experimental period. The owner will be made aware that the
goal is to design messages to reach the widest audience possible in the shortest amount of time.
The criteria will give suggestions for types of posts based on Tipping Points criteria, previous
Facebook DRW page Insights, and demographic information of DRW Facebook page fans. Each
post will include at least one Tipping Points element, and each of the three Tipping Points
criteria will be present in the design or implementation of four posts per day. The researcher
will place messages on the DRW Facebook page, alerting fans to the fact that a study is taking
place from January 5, 2015 through February 2, 2015. Activity of the page will be examined to
reveal any adverse results there were a consequence of posts made during the study phase. An
exit survey will be taken by the business owner when his portion of work has been completed.
Ethics
The incentive for participation by the business owner is the anticipation of an increased
awareness of his business and more sales. Although it is not anticipated, the results of this
experiment may result in no change or a decrease in reach or sales for DRW. The business
owner will be notified of this possibility. Access to the DRW Facebook Page will be revoked to
the researcher by February 14, 2015. The POLICY ON RESEARCH INVOLVING
PARTICIPATION OF OTHERS (New England College, August 2003, n.p.) will be provided to
the business owner and adhered to by the researcher. (See Item 2).
Data Collection
TIPPING POINTS 26
Results of the study will be reported based on the following: On Monday, December 29,
2014, all DRW Facebook page Activity and Insights will be collected and recorded for the
previous 4 weeks. On the second, third, and fourth Mondays, Facebook Insights measurements
for the previous seven days will be recorded by the researcher. On Monday, February 1, 2015,
final Activity and Insights data will be gathered for the experimental period and interpreted by
the researcher. Evidence of Tipping Points factors will be noted and measured in all posts and
compared to the virility of those posts, comparing the pre-study month and the study month. The
business owner’s log will also be examined to determine if he followed the posting guidelines.
Intention of the business owner and causal effects of individual posts will be closely examined
and reported. Unexpected results will be noted and analyzed. The exit survey will be scrutinized
for ease-of-use and the business owner’s opinion of the project.
Implications
This groundbreaking study is the first of its kind to implement Tipping Point factors in
social media marketing. It’s especially unique in the fact that it’s applied to a Complementary
Health and Wellness business. In this highly saturated and ever-increasingly competitive market,
a need for straightforward advice for reaching the widest audience at the fastest rate possible is
not only desired, but necessary. If this study shows a causal effect of Tipping Points factors in
the virility of Facebook posts, then even the most unexperienced marketers in this segment may
finally have some insight into how posts become viral. However, no one study can provide a
solid basis across the large playing field of social media. More study is needed not only in the
field of complementary health and wellness marketing, but on Facebook and other social media
sites. When this is done, more credence may be given to the discoveries presented in this
experiment.
TIPPING POINTS 27
Limitations
As previously discussed in Chapter 1, little research exists on Gladwell’s theories in
regard to viral marketing, especially when it comes to social media. While many viral social
media studies suggest methods resembling Tipping Points, no one has yet come to name them as
such, or directly apply them in the complimentary health and wellness niche. While a problem
may be that some translation is needed to bridge a gap between various theories and naming
those as Tipping Points factors, the research has easily demonstrated that this is possible due to
using different terminology with the similar or same definitions and/or descriptions.
Due to the large assortment of social media sites, it would be impossible to test them all
in one study. Facebook was chosen because it currently has the largest membership of all the
social media hubs in the world and has the largest reach potential. Not all social media platforms
work the same way. It’s impracticable to assume that a method used on one social media site will
work the same on another site.
Another hindrance to this study is the business owner’s own concept of ideal social media
posts based on the guidelines given. Due to a creativity component, no two people will design
the same posts, and therefore, results may differ.
Summary
Gladwell’s Tipping Points (2002) may be the key factor in social media virility. This
study takes aim at being the first to investigate the phenomenon using a real-life complementary
health and wellness business’s Facebook page. A month’s worth of posts will be designed by the
TIPPING POINTS 28
business owner via guidelines provided by the study. The business owner is motivated by the
hope that his efforts will increase visibility and sales for his business.
Data will be collected before, during, and after the study to help measure and determine
the effects of daily posts on virility. Special care will be taken to follow ethical guidelines set
forth by New England College.
Results will be gathered, assimilated, and reported at the end of the study. While the
results may or may not show a correlation between Tipping Points and post virility, it’s an
important first step in understanding if and how this theory works. Due to the individual nature
of the business owner’s posts and the wide variety of social media sites currently available, much
more study of this theory will be needed in the future to give credence to these predictions.
Chapter 4: Strategic Plan
Problem Statement
There is a gap that exists between social media marketing research in the Complementary
Health and Wellness Field. Lack of a simple, unified method of implementation leaves marketers
feeling unsure about how to spread messages about their products and services. Adding to this
intimidation, many healers do not to attempt capitalizing on work due to personal hang-ups.
With two strikes against them, business owners give up marketing before they begin (Rogers,
2014; ZaKaiRan, 2014).
The hope of this study is to remove one of the implied obstacles for those employed in
the healing trade. Additionally, the aim is to evaluate an easy-to use social media marketing
TIPPING POINTS 29
approach which will reach the largest audience over the least amount of time. If this approach
works, it will result in better brand recognition and higher sales numbers. Specifically, the focus
of this study is to show that Gladwell’s (2003) Tipping Points can be easily used in a Facebook
campaign to increase virility of a complimentary health and wellness business’s posts.
Goals
Primarily, this study is positioned to be a first step in the research, understanding, and
application of Gladwell’s Tipping Points in social media marketing. In the very least, the
investigation will show whether more study is worth undertaking. This trial is hoped to be the
first to help simplify social media marketing methods for those employed in the complementary
health and wellness market, while removing some of the intimidation and excuse from
implementing a marketing strategy due to its simplicity. The applied experiment aims to show
that even an unexperienced marketer with little social media marketing experience may quickly
become educated on a simple technique and execute it with a positive, worthwhile, and
measurable result in a matter of four working days with a quick turn-around time of four weeks.
TimeLine
The experiment will take place over a 28 day, or four week period, from January 5, 2015
through February 1, 2015. It will have two phases. First, recording of preliminary Insights data
will be made on Monday, December 29, 2914, including all available activity data for the
previous four week period.
Second, Facebook Insights data will be collected on the second, third, and fourth
Mondays. Final data for the week and for the entire four weeks will be gathered and collected in
February 1, 2015.
TIPPING POINTS 30
Tipping Points factors, and evidence thereof, will be examined and recorded. From there,
all data recorded pre-, during, and post-study will be compared to the virility of posts made by
the business owner. An owner’s log will be kept during the study, which will be scrutinized for
evidence of compliance with the guidelines and understanding of the Tipping Points method.
Various data will be carefully collected and compared. Evidence of virility beyond the
DRW Facebook page will be followed and recorded as far as possible to attempt an
understanding of through whom and which channels the most viral posts were shared, as this
information could be valuable for future research. All unexpected, conflicting, or undesired
results occurring from the business owner’s attempts to follow posting guidelines will be noted
and analyzed. A final measurement presented in chart form will be compounded to show the
increase, decrease, or no change in the virility of posts made during the experimental period.
An exit survey will be completed by the business owner to assess his opinion about ease-
of-use, understanding, time, and whether he would continue to use this method in the future.
For Posting Guideline and Exit Survey, see Appendix, Figures 1, 3.
Financial Plan
This study will be of no cost to the researcher or the business owner because the DRW
Facebook page is a free service provided to the business. Paid advertising is available, but none
will be implemented in this study. The researcher and business owner already pay for internet
access, so there is no additional cost to implement the plan. There is little financial risk to the
business owner, as he has stated that only 3% of his sales have come from social media. If he
were to lose this 3%, it would be of no consequence to the survival of the business. Only an
increase in sales would result in a change in business, which would be considered a positive
TIPPING POINTS 31
outcome. The business owner understands that there is a time investment involved with the
design and implementation of social media posts for the experiment. The time needed to
implement the strategy will consist of eight hours of work for him, (2 hours each Monday),
which the owner is already using for scheduling social media posts. He will simply be adopting
the experimental strategy during this time instead of going about things in the usual manner. The
amount of work for the researcher will also consist of about eight hours of work, and will be
done in her free time.
Long-Term Plan
This study is hoped to be just the first of many sister studies of the same type done on
other complementary health and wellness Facebook pages. Comparison of a wide array of
businesses and owners’ unique application of posting guidelines in this niche will provide a
much better picture of whether the Tipping Points approach is applicable to many, or if the
success or failure of one attempt was an isolated event. Once a standard understanding has been
settled, the same experiment may be adapted for evaluation on other social media sites.
Contingency Plan
This test requires the participation of the DRW business owner over a period of
approximately a month. There is a possibility that he will not follow through on the posting
guidelines, or will not follow the guidelines. In this case, the study is still valuable, as the reason
for non-participation or non-compliance will provide valuable information about the assumed
ease and simplicity of following Tipping Points guidelines. In the case that the study cannot be
implemented at all, a new business will be recruited to participate, and posting guidelines will be
tweaked to complement their Insights data, as we did for DRW.
TIPPING POINTS 32
In the case of abandonment by the business owner, we will record as much data as
possible up until the quitting. The exit interview will be made with the business owner to
question why he quit and if the Tipping Points method was too complicated to follow or
implement (See Figure 3). Since this is the first study of its kind, any information collected can
be a valuable tool for evaluation of the efficacy of Tipping Points in social media.
Conclusion
No financial burden, limited risk, but moderate time investments are placed upon the
business owner during participation in this study. The incentive of boosting reach and sales is a
motivator. Easy-to-understand guidelines will be provided and ethics of the study will be closely
guarded. We do not expect a problem with participation or compliance of the business owner.
However, if the business owner fails to follow through with the experiment, a different business
will be recruited, and/or all available metrics will be gathered and analyzed. Additionally, the
DRW business owner will be interviewed in order to better understand why he chose not to
further participate.
Because this is the first time an experiment of this nature has been conducted, it’s
difficult to guarantee it will work. However, based on review of past research, the attempt is
deemed worthy and the researcher is optimistic. Through deep examination of Facebook
Insights before, during, and after the study, combined with the participation of the DRW
business owner, we hope to discover a positive boost of viral messages originating from the
DRW Facebook page. Even if the opposite is discovered, the study retains importance. Any
understanding of if and how Tipping Points can be used in influencing virility in social media is
more information than was previously available.
TIPPING POINTS 33
Annotated Bibliography
Albee, A. (2014, October 29). Why marketers need more information to push content publishing
forward [Web log post]. Retrieved from
http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/category/research/
Albee’s article discusses the research and statistics that are both available and missing in
the content marketing field. Albee’s premise is that there has been much scrutiny over
what marketers are doing, but not about what actually works and how to implement
successful marketing strategies. She points to a lack of focus in education in the
marketing field about content marketing specifics, and poses that taking the time to
research and learn new strategies is well worth a student or marketer’s time due to the
consequential increased success rate of a well-planned campaign in a quickly changing
social media environment.
ALS Association (2014). ALS ice bucket challenge FAQ. ALS Association: Create a World
without ALS. Retrieved from http://www.alsa.org/about-us/ice-bucket-challenge-faq.html
This is simply an informational, frequently-asked-questions web page about the ALS
Association’s Ice Bucket Challenge, which took off in the summer of 2014. Under the
“Other” subcategory, the nature of the challenge is described as one that has been
previously used in sports, but sufferers of the ALS disease were the initiators and those
who get credit for making the challenge go viral in mid-July 2014, inspiration a nation of
do-gooders and raising over $100,000 by August 29, 2014, a little over the course of one
month.
Bachman, J. (2013, October 29). How to go viral, every time [Web log post]. Retrieved from
http://blog.visual.ly/how-to-go-viral-every-time/
Bachman’s article discusses how a person can follow preset rules of virility, but argues
that luck is the vetoing factor of all efforts. This is a short, concise article that provides
his opinions based on years of work in the social media marketing field.
TIPPING POINTS 34
Chu, S. C. (2011, Fall). Viral advertising in social media: Participation in Facebook groups and
responses among college-aged users. Journal of Interactive Advertising,(12)1, 30- 43.
This study examines a focused group of college-aged Facebook users and their
participation in viral advertising behaviors. The study demonstrates that this age group is
a highly participatory crowd of users on this particular platform, and how they interact
both on the social media platform, and with peers who are not members of the channel.
Three particular sets of questions are posed and studied. The questions ask about
differences in members and nonmembers when it comes to self-disclosure, differences in
attitudes toward advertising on and off Facebook, and differences between viral behavior
in Facebook and Non-Facebook users. Sets of statistical data with explanations are
offered in the results. The study found that while more study is necessary, that marketers
must develop a strong sense of the psychological characteristics of Facebook users and
design marketing campaigns that do not cause concerns with privacy.
Daniel, K.L., Bernhardt, J.M., & Eroglu, D (2009, December). Social Marketing and health
communication: From people to places. American Journal of Public Health, (99), 12.
2120-2122.
This scholarly journal article was written by three researchers from the Center for
Disease Control and is an assimilation and study of former works on health messages and
social consequences of those messages, both positive and negative. These writers found
that a wide array of marketing techniques can be used to positively influence consumer
behaviors and pose that marketers should use the ideas presented in their literature review
for battling persevering health problems such as the obesity epidemic. The researchers
pose that health epidemics are social problems, and social solutions are the key to
changing stubborn behaviors if marketers take approaches that have been found
successful in past attempts at change. The article is short, but written in a formal style
with the use of avant-garde terminology that may be difficult for a lay marketer to
decipher.
Gladwell, M. (2002). The tipping point. How little things can make a big difference. New York,
NY: Hatchett Book Group.
Gladwell’s book offers an in-depth explanation of what he calls Tipping Points, or social
epidemics, and his theory of the three key factors for spreading changes quickly and
profoundly. Using his great storytelling ability mixed with reporting facts on historical
TIPPING POINTS 35
social events and sometimes unintentional marketing campaigns, this seasoned and well-
respected journalist uses anecdotal and circumstantial examples of how, when, where,
and why new ideas spread like wildfire, and who is key in this phenomenon.
Gladwell’s book is written in a way that helps the reader see commonplace events from a
different perspective, offering the idea that with just the right mix of people, context, and
stickiness, that a little thing can become a very big thing in a short amount of time.
Essentially, it is a new way of thinking about the social world. He supports his case
studies and theories with eleven pages of quality resources in his endnotes.
Ip, P., Lam, T.H., Chan, S.S.C., et al. (2014, June). Use of internet viral marketing to promote
smoke-free lifestyles among Chinese adolescents. The Journal of Pediatrics and
Adolescent Medicine, 9 (6), 1- 8.
This groundbreaking study was conducted by eight Chinese researchers from universities
and government health organizations to study the effectiveness of viral electronic
marketing to promote a positive health outcome. Chinese adolescents aged 10-24 took
part in a game in the form of a multiple-choice quiz which provided education about
tobacco use. The researchers found that negative attitudes toward smoking increased
from 57% to 73%, demonstrating that successful viral marketing techniques can be
implemented in a cost-effective and practical way.
Kapaglioglu, N. & Toros, N. (2011). Viral marketing techniques within online social network.
Journal of Yasar University, 24(6, 4112- 4129.
This is a multi-faceted and multi-dimensional study due to its many factors combining
the type of platforms used and the types of advertising. This study provides a look at
results garnered from viral marketing placed within and around electronic gaming
environments, email, and videos, mobile phones, blogging, and consumer-generated
content. Types of advertising used in the study were below-the-line, above-the-line, and
through-the-line. The seventeen pages of information offer one of the most extensive
studies offered on broad-scope social media viral marketing techniques to date, offering
that viral techniques can be intentionally directed through a solid understanding of what
they are and how they work. Some English and grammatical errors are noted in this
study.
Rogers, A. (2014, Summer). Managing the gaps in health care digital marketing. Marketing
Health Services, 16-17.
TIPPING POINTS 36
This magazine article was written by a well-seasoned expert in the health
communications and social media field. Her main argument is that health care marketers
are overwhelmed by the challenges of today’s marketing efforts. Simplification and
clarity offer a means by which advertisers can plan and implement a strong social media
marketing campaign. Her experience is offered in the form of three main subject areas:
audience targeting, engagement, and providing what the consumer really needs.
Combining these tree elements helps to reach marketing goals with ease and success.
Romaniuk, J. (2012, December). Are you ready for the next big thing? New media is dead!
Long live new media! Journal of Advertising Research, 397- 399. doi: 10.2501/jar-52-
4-397-399
This article is written by an author of multiple journal articles in the field of marketing.
She is an associate professor and associate director at Ehernberg-Bass Institute for
Marketing Science. She is considered an expert in word-of-mouth advertising. This
article provides advice for stages of adopting and implementing new social media
platforms for advertising, along with how to make smart decisions when it’s time to use
the adopted channels. Items to consider before adoption include curiosity, worship,
justification, and acceptance. Smart decisions revolve around the ideas of defining
audiences, increasing ease of use, conducting experiments, and testing efforts. These
efforts can be fun and provide great learning experiences. She warns, however, that
novelty doesn’t necessarily mean the channel is made for the business in question. This
is a short, easy-to-read piece.
Smith, C. (2014, July 23). By the numbers: 170 amazing Facebook user demographics and
statistics. Digital Marketing Ramblings. [Web log post]. Retrieved from
http://expandedramblings.com/index.php/by-the-numbers-17-amazing-facebook-stats/
Smith’s blog article builds on a previously written statistics review on Facebook, adding
many new pieces of information such as mobile, advertising, page, and user facts. It is
broken into those four categories for easy navigation.
Watts, D. (2003). Six degrees: The science of a connected age. New York, NY: W.W. Norton.
This book was one of the first to study the theory of the Six Degrees of Separation, as
made popular by the Kevin Bacon game. Duncan Watts is known for his pioneering
TIPPING POINTS 37
efforts in theories of networking and sociology. Trained as a physicist, Watts sets out to
systematically and curiously explore how chains of connected people bring about societal
change, just as a viral epidemic is spread from person-to-person. The complexity of this
book is not as easily read or understood as Gladwell’s Tipping Points, but it brings to
light some of the nuances of social epidemics that are not so closely examined in Tipping
Points.
Zainuddin, N., Previte, J., & Russell-Bennett, R. (2013). A social marketing approach to value
creation in a well-women’s health service. Journal of Marketing Management. (27), 361-
385.
This article focuses on the importance of understanding how consumers value
information and how that value drives demand for free and preventative health care
services available via social media outlets. This approach employs a focus on wellness
rather than treating disease. Detailed interviews were used to identify six themes and four
dimensions of value when utilizing social media to deliver content. This comprehensive
study is unique in the field of wellness marketing.
ZaKaiRan (2014, October 26). Receiving money for your healing services. Retrieved from
http://www.zakairan.com/ZaKaiRansArticlesBooks/Articles/RecievingMoneyHealingSer
vices.htm#.VFJrBvl4pcQ
This website serves as a hub of information for individuals working in the healing and
wellness field, as well as a monetized store front from health and wellness guru
ZaKaiRan’s services and products. The author discusses why healers should receive
money for services, and why recipients should pay. ZaKaiRan is well-respected in his
field and has many years of hands-on experience working in the complementary health
sector.
TIPPING POINTS 38
Appendix A
Table A1
Facebook Insights, Age Demographics of Fans who Like the DRW Page
This screen shot of DRW’s Facebook page Insights shows women’s (top, light blue) and men’s
(bottom, dark blue) ages as percentage of users who Like the DRW Facebook page, as compared
to overall Facebook users.
TIPPING POINTS 39
Table A2
Facebook Insights, Age Demographics of People Reached
This screen shot of DRW’s Facebook page Insights shows women’s (top, light blue) and men’s
(bottom, dark blue) ages as percentage of users who see DRW posts on their personal Newsfeed.
TIPPING POINTS 40
Table A3
Facebook Insights, Age Demographics of People on Facebook Engaging with Page
This screen shot of DRW’s Facebook page Insights shows women’s (top, light blue) and men’s
(bottom, dark blue) ages as percentage of users interacting with the page (Liking comments,
posting comments, clicking links or graphics, and sharing content).
TIPPING POINTS 41
Table A4
Facebook Insights, Page Post Type Reach and Engagement
This screen shot of DRW’s Facebook Page Insights shows how many people see posts on their
Newsfeeds, the type of posts they see, and average interaction (engagement) with those posts.
TIPPING POINTS 42
Table A5
Facebook Insights, When Fans are Online
This screenshot of DRW’s Facebook Page Insights shows when DRW Likers are online in a one-
week period.
TIPPING POINTS 43
Appendix B
Figure B1
DRW Facebook Posting Guidelines for Business Owner:
The goal of this experiment is to push DRW Facebook messages to as wide an audience as
possible in the shortest amount of time.
You will be provided with a definition of Tipping Points and an explanation of each of the three
factors, as seen in Chapter 2 of the Proposal for this experiment. Please read them before
January 5, 2015.
IMPORTANT: On December 31, 2014, messages will be placed by the researcher on the DRW
Facebook page stating this: “From the period of January 5, 2015 through February 1, 2015, the
DRW Facebook page will be participating in a marketing study facilitated by a researcher at
New England College. This study is being conducted to advance understanding in specific
marketing methods in the Complementary Health and Wellness field. No one’s identity will be
recorded or revealed at any time before, during, or after the study. Specific details of this study
will not be disclosed due to a concern with skewing results based on participants’ behavior
changing as a result of knowledge of the aim of the study. Ethics guidelines for this study are
available upon request by privately messaging the administrator of this page. Those wishing to
not participate in this study should unlike this page now.” This post will be pinned to the top of
the DRW Facebook page during this time, and will also be placed in the “About” area of the
DRW Facebook page for the entirety of the study. Do not remove or change these messages
during the study period.
You will design and schedule four posts per day, (28 per week), on each Monday of the
experimental period: January 5, 2015 – February 1, 2015 using the guidelines given below.
Posts will be written in simple English.
All posts must include one Tipping Point criteria: The Law of the Few, The Stickiness Factor, or
the Power of Context. One, two or three of the criteria may be combined in one post.
Keep a log of the date, time, and criteria used for each post.
Here are some examples of how you may use Tipping Point criteria in your posts:
The Law of the Few rule may be accomplished by tagging a person or Facebook page in a post.
The Stickiness Factor rule may be accomplished by posting educational or emotional material.
This may also be accomplished by posting material that you feel is memorable in some way.
This may also be accomplished by using hashtags that are trending.
TIPPING POINTS 44
The Power of Context rule may be accomplished by posting at times of the day when most of
DRW’s fans are online. This may also be accomplished by placing yourself in demographics’
shoes and considering what sorts of posts they would like to see.
Try to use all three Tipping Points criteria at least once a day, and be as creative with your posts
as you wish.
Posts do not have to talk about DRW business. Posts can talk about anything you feel your
audience may enjoy.
Based on previous DRW Facebook Insights:
Most posts should be scheduled to occur approximately around or between the hours of 11:00 am
and 2:00 pm in order to reach the largest amount of DRW Facebook fans when they are typically
online. The peak online time is between noon and 1:00 pm.
Two posts per day should be plain status updates.
One post per day should be a photo with a status update.
One post per day should be a link with a status update.
At least one post per day should be targeted to men aged 18-24.
At least one post per day should be targeted to women aged 18-24.
At least one post per day should be targeted to women aged 25-34.
You should check the DRW Facebook page daily and reply to or like all comments made on
posts.
Additional posts each day may be made at your discretion, including business- or sale-related
information. This should be in addition to the four suggested posts per day.
Do not allow anyone else make posts, comments, or likes on behalf of DRW during the
experimental month. If anyone else posts as an administrator, please bring this to the attention of
the researcher, along with the post details, date, and time of the interaction.
TIPPING POINTS 45
Figure B2
Policy on Research Involving Participation of Others
(Source: New England College, “Academic Manual,” August 2003)
1. Responsibilities to Participants - The researcher's responsibility is primarily to those he or she
studies; when there is a conflict of interest, these individuals must come first. Individual's
interests are safeguarded by assurance that:
a. The aims and at least the general sponsorship of the investigation are communicated as well
as possible to the participants;
b. When the methodological requirements of a study necessitate concealment or deception, the
researcher is required to ensure, as soon as possible, the participant's understanding of the
reasons for this action and to present to the participant a sufficient justification for the procedures
employed;
c. Participants have the right to remain anonymous;
d. The participant's rights to welfare, dignity and privacy remain intact;
e. Information obtained about the individual research participants during the course of research
remain confidential unless otherwise agreed to in advance;
f. If the participant changes his or her mind about prior waiver of confidentiality, the
participant's wishes take precedence over the researcher's interest.
g. Participants understand the capacities of research devices in use, including tape recorders,
cameras and notes taken from face to face interviews;
h. If a risk of physical and mental discomfort, harm or danger to a participant exists, the
researcher is required to inform the participant of that fact, secure consent before proceeding and
take all possible measures to minimize distress. A research procedure must not be used if it is
likely to cause serious or lasting harm to a participant;
i. When research procedures may result in undesirable consequences for the participant, the
researcher has the responsibility to detect and remove or correct these consequences, including,
where relevant, long-term after-effects.
j. Participants know the consequences of the research and have access to research results that
have been made public;
k. The researcher accepts the obligation to honor all promises and commitments made to the
participant;
TIPPING POINTS 46
l. The participant has the freedom to decline to participate in or to withdraw from research;
m. Fair return or compensation be given for all services.
2. Responsibilities to Personal Integrity - Researchers owe a commitment to candor and to truth
in the dissemination of their research results and in the statement of their opinions. They should
not knowingly falsify or color their findings. They should be honest about their qualifications,
capabilities and goals.
3. Responsibilities to the Institution and to the Discipline -
The researcher should attempt to maintain a level of integrity and rapport in the field such that
by his or her behavior and example the researcher will not jeopardize future research there. In
relations with students, researchers should be candid, fair, non-exploitative, and committed to the
welfare and academic progress of all concerned.
TIPPING POINTS 47
Figure B3
Business Owner Exit Interview
Thank you for participating in our research. We’d like to ask your opinion about how the
experiment worked for you.
Please answer the questions below, giving as much detail as possible.
1. Did you understand the basics of the three Tipping Points before you started the project?
2. Where the Posting Guidelines easy to understand and implement? Why or why not?
3. Do you feel the project was easy, difficult, or somewhere in between? Please give us
some details about the most difficult and easiest aspects.
4. Did the project take up more time than was anticipated? Please explain.
5. Do you feel the experiment was worth your time and effort? Why or why not?
6. Did you decide to abandon the project before completion? If so, why?
7. Is this strategy something you will continue to use on your Facebook page in the future?
Why or why not?