From its birth in 1984 to its current incarnation, TED Talks has come a long way. During its more than three decades journey, if there’s one singular thing that the TED Talks have retained, it’s the passion of the speakers and that the attendees to learn, share and bask in the glory of knowledge and wisdom that shape human existence.
While TED Talks draw together a slew of inspiring people from diverse domains, today, in this blog post, I intend to talk about 5 digital marketing TED Talks that have touched a chord in me and left me with a deep imprint.
Although I’ve compiled this TED Talks list specifically for the benefit of digital marketers, anybody with a penchant for knowledge can peruse these talks for their benefit.
I hope these digital marketing TED Talks will move you the way they moved me.
Why did I like it so much?
In this TED Talk, Dan Ariely—the James B. Duke Professor of Psychology and Behavioral Economics at Duke University—delves into the irrational human behavior that guides human decision-making and thereby, purchasing behavior. In an engrossing 17-odd-minute talk, Dan makes some simple yet profound observations and provides insight into how simple tweaks can achieve extraordinary results.
“Our intuition is fooling us in a repeatable, predictable, consistent way. And there is almost nothing we can do about it…”
Why did I like it so much?
Author, motivational speaker, and marketing consultant Simon Sinek tells you why certain leaders and organizations succeed in inspiring while others don’t. And in the process, he reveals his golden circle—which, in Simon’s own words, is ‘probably the world’s simplest idea’.
To prove and justify his points, Simon goes beyond real-life examples and instead brings biology into the picture. Watch this video to learn what drives people to associate with you and your brand. You can also gain valuable tips on building your audiences’ trust from this video.
Hint: It has got a lot to do with ‘believe what you believe.’
“People don’t buy what you do; people buy why you do it.”
Why did I like it so much?
One of the most influential self-improvement coaches, Tony, explains the 6 invisible forces that shape every thought, behavior, and action in this TED talk.
He delves deeper into these 6 human needs – certainty, surprise, variety, love/connection, growth, and contribution and how each of these needs influences our thoughts, behavior, feelings, and actions. Every single person in this world has these same needs. However, every one of us values it differently. Each of us has varied beliefs on what it takes to satisfy these needs. And this becomes the driving force behind everything we do, thereby determining the direction of our lives and beyond.
“If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.”
Why did I like it so much?
Kevin Allocca is Head of Culture and Trends at YouTube, where he has spent more than seven years tracking and explaining trending phenomena. He is one of the world’s leading experts on viral videos, and in this TED talk, he explains how videos go viral and why that even matters.
Over 48 hours of videos are uploaded on YouTube every minute, and only a tiny fraction of these videos ever go viral and get thousands and millions of views. And how does it happen? Tastemakers, communities of participation and unexpectedness.
Tastemakers: They take a point of view and then share the same with a larger audience, accelerating the video going viral.
Communities of participation: A community comprises people who share the video with others, start talking about it, and do things with it – creating rip-offs, memes, parodies, etc. This community participation is how people become a part of the phenomenon.
Unexpectedness: With so much content and junk out there, the viral videos must be something out of the box.
Why did I like it so much?
An American entrepreneur, Derek Sivers is best known for being CD Baby’s founder and former president, an online CD store for independent musicians.
In this TED talk, he shows a video of a single shirtless dance and how a crowd forms around him. For a while, the shirtless dancer dances alone. Then he is joined by someone else. They dance together for a while and enjoy the moment. Thereafter, a few others join the show and slowly, a big crowd is seen dancing around. So, what do we learn from this?
Being the leader, encourage the first few people who follow you. Treat them as equals and treat them well. Remember, the shirtless guy was normal until the first follower joined him. It was he who made the shirtless guy the leader.
Once a group is formed, people will start coming in naturally – they don’t see their involvement as a threat, risk, or something weird. And it’s for this particular reason an early follower is a special kind of leader. So, whenever you come across a single person with a great idea, try to be that first follower.
Why did I like it so much?
An author of 18 bestsellers, Seth Godin writes about the post-industrial revolution, the way ideas spread, marketing, quitting, leadership, and changing everything. He was also recently inducted into the Direct Marketing Hall of Fame.
His TED talk focuses on creating bizarre, out-of-the-box ideas in a world with so many options and little time. To depict things clearly, he talks about sliced bread, purple cows, and how Arby spent $85 million making a national advertisement featuring Tom Arnold.
His talk comes down to some really simple points:
Come up with something remarkable and market it to a group that cares. Mass media won’t work these days.
Being very good is boring. You need ideas that are truly unique in nature. Focus on what your consumers want and how you will give them that.
Sell to people who listen. Find out opinion leaders and innovators in your community and put all your efforts into marketing to them.
Also Read: The Role Of Digital Marketing In The Digital Landscape