why is 50 shades of grey so popular and why some other books aren't

By M.Farouk Radwan, MSc.

Why do some books become popular?

Why do some books become mysteriously popular?
Why did so many people buy 50 shades of grey?
and why do some books that have real good content aren't as popular as this book?

When i was a little kid i used to believe that good things become popular and that bad things don't. Then one day i asked myself;why are drugs so popular even though they kill so many people. At this point i realized that popularity had nothing to do with the usefulness of the product but rather with the important need it helps people satisfy.

Many people want to escape, feel better, forget about their pain and fix their brain chemicals without doing much effort and that's why drugs are widely used, Simply because they help people satisfy an important unmet need.

So the first conclusion you should come up with is that a product that helps a wide range of people satisfy an important unmet need will always become popular even if it was as deadly as drugs. (see also Overcoming bad habits)

Lots of people want to succeed by doing nothing and without making any sacrifices. Those people were always disappointed when they were told that they have to exert some effort then one day someone told them than they can succeed by doing nothing! And that's why the book The secret became so popular.

Simply it targeted an important need that millions of lazy people had.

why is 50 shades of grey so popular and why some other books aren't

There are two theories that can explain why 50 shades of grey, a book that revolves around sex, became so popular.

  • 1) Repressed sexual desires: The first theory is the repressed sexual desires many women have. This book contains a lot of erotic content but its being sold under the category of romantic novels. Many of the women who bought the book are actually reading an erotic novel that is disguised into a romantic book. Women can now freely read this book in public without being accused of reading a porn book. In other words, because women have more repressed sexual desires than men this book gave them the chance to breath out in public without being blamed
  • 2) The impossible love: In my previous post why women love twilight i explained how women long for the impossible love. We humans love to get what we can't take and what can be more impossible than a love story between a woman and a vampire that feeds on humans? 50 shades of grey is a bit similar to twilight because its main character Mr grey usually moves from a relationship to another without falling in love with anyone and that's why its so tempting for a woman to try to get him. In other words, the idea of the impossible love is another reason why 50 shades of grey was so popular (see also The secret to attracting love)

How to make a book or a product popular

Most people do the mistake of writing their book or novel first then market it forgetting that unless there is a powerful need that this product can satisfy no one will care about buying it.

That's why you first need to begin by assessing the needs people have then work on delivering them a product that satisfies these needs.

The most important thing is to do this in an ethical way. If you targeted the first need you found just because it had the potential to bring you some money then you will achieve cheap success.

Real success happens when you manage to reach what you want while keeping your ethics intact. You can sell drugs because people need them but that would be a cheap success compared to a person who sells something that can really benefit humans.

50 shades of grey was a big success, but a cheap one of course.

I have managed to become a self made millionaire at the age of 28. This didn't happen by chance because i already wrote that goal down five years before i accomplished it. Becoming rich is not about luck, starting big or being intelligent but its all about having certain beliefs about money and life.

In The Ultimate guide to becoming rich i will teach you everything that you need to know in order to become rich.

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