Recommended Reading
If, like us, you've become interested in Innovation Diffusion, Word of Mouth and Opinion Leadership, you'll want to find out more.
A place to start is at Matt Rowley's (a founding partner of Central) blog, the Future of Pharmaceutical Marketing.
Below we've also reviewed some of the important texts in the area to help you decide where to start.
The reviews are our own opinions, so if you've got any feedback or reviews of your own, please send them to us: info@thecentralgroup.com
Title: Connected Marketing
Authors: Justin Kirby & Paul Marsden
ISBN 978-0-7506-6634-3
What's it about?
It very neatly explains why the old mass marketing model is dead and provides a rich source of references to support its points. The introduction and summary, written by Paul Marsden, captures the arguments really well and lays out why word-of mouth, or peer to peer, recommendation is actually what drives product adoption
Relevance to WoM?
High. It dedicates a number of chapters specifically to WoM as well as explaining related, but subtly different, concepts. For example, the differences between viral marketing, word of mouth, buzz marketing and connected marketing
Interesting read?
Absolutely. It's well referenced and uses interesting, fun case studies to illustrate the points. Healthcare is not specifically addressed, or used in the case studies, but with a small amount of brain power the applicability to the medical area soon becomes apparent
Rating: 
The sort of book you could read on a ‘plane. Interesting enough to keep you turning the pages, whilst providing enough ideas to keep you thinking once you’ve put it down. Keep a notebook handy, as you’ll want to write down some of the key points.
Title: Diffusion of Innovation - 5th Edition
Author: Everett M. Rogers
ISBN 0-7432-2209-1
What's it about?
This book is written by one of the founding Fathers of the Word of Mouth concept. It is comprehensive in its detailed explanation and analysis of the mechanism of Word of Mouth with clear and relevant examples.
Relevance to WoM?
Highly relevant and explains the latest thinking in the area.
Interesting read?
Yes, but hard work to read from cover to cover. My advice would be to read the first chapter and then treat it like a reference book and dip into it for more facts in a specific area.
Rating:
Thought provoking with important lessons for anyone wanting to introduce a new idea to a company or customer.
Title: Buzz - harness the power of influence and create demand
Author: Marian Salzman, Ira Matathia, Ann O'Reilly
ISBN 0-471-27345-7
What's it about?
Buzz is actually about Word of Mouth, even though it never actually admits it. It is a superficial explanation of what a powerful Word of Mouth campaign can do for a brand. However, it doesn't explain why this may occur, how to harness it, or how to apply the learning elsewhere. If I had never heard about Word of Mouth this would have been a mildly interesting read. In reality it was a thinly disguised advert for EURO RSCG.
Relevance to WoM?
Little relevance and frustrating in its lack of depth or explanation.
Interesting read?
No. If you're going to read a 237 page book on Word of Mouth there are much more informative ones than this.
Rating:
Title: The Secrets of Word-of-Mouth Marketing
Author: George Silverman
ISBN 0-8144-7072-6
What's the book about?
Silverman begins by putting forth his theory that the best way to dominate a market is to shorten the customer decision process. He then shows why Word of Mouth marketing is the best strategy for shortens the customer decision process. The bulk of the book is a step-by-step plan for generating various types of Word of Mouth. The information is well organized and clearly presented and, unlike many business books, is not just a promotion of his consulting service, but rather a handbook of everything that he has learned.
Relevance to WoM & Healthcare
His easy to read book offers numerous recommendations on using WoM and one can implement it to healthcare marketing and strategies.
Interesting read?
I find it an excellent complement to more theory-oriented book like the "tipping point". You will not be disappointed as it isn't just another repetition of the same old thing repackaged between two shiny looking covers. No fluff, no padding, just relevant information.
Rating:
I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in taking his or her marketing knowledge to the next level.
Title: The Selfish Meme
Author: Kate Distin
ISBN 0521606276
What's it about?
The hypothesis that this book is based on is that cultural evolution follows the same pattern as genetic evolution (as defined by Charles Darwin). In Darwin’s theory, it is the genes that evolve to drive the physical change. Meme’s are the cultural substitute for genes and this book explains how they “evolve” and therefore influence cultural change.
Relevance to WoM?
A good academic thesis, but not terribly relevant to the practical application of WoM.
Interesting read?
A well-written and interesting book that clearly explains the thesis. Worth reading as a book to build background knowledge