Captivology: The Science of Capturing People’s Attention

Why are we captivated by sites like Facebook and Instagram, but couldn’t care less about MySpace? Why do some musicians grow as popular as Beyonce, while others never make the charts? Why do some nonprofits, such as Charity: Water, succeed in getting our donations, while other charities are ineffective?

Whether you’re an artist or a salesperson, a teacher or an engineer, a marketer or a parent – putting the spotlight on your ideas, insights, projects and products requires a deep understanding of the science of attention. Ben Parr explains how and why the mind pays attention to some events or people – and not others – and presents seven captivation triggers – techniques guaranteed to help you capture and retain the attention of friends, colleagues, customers, and strangers. He combines the latest research on attention with interviews with more than fifty scientists and visionaries – Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg, film director Steven Soderbergh, LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner, magician Jon Armstrong, New York Times bestselling author Susan Cain, Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto, and more – who have successfully brought their ideas, projects, companies, and products to the forefront of cultural consciousness. The result is an insightful and practical book that will change how you assign jobs to your staff or your kids, craft a multi-million dollar ad campaign, deliver your next presentation, attract users to your product, or convince the world to support your cause.

Speaker Details

Ben Parr is an award-winning journalist, entrepreneur, investor, and expert on attention. He is the Co-founder and Managing Partner of DominateFund, a strategic venture capital firm that invests in and accelerates the growth of early-stage companies through its expertise in attention, branding, press, marketing, customer and user acquisition, virality, and celebrity partnerships. He is also a columnist for Inc. and a regular contributor at CNBC and Entertainment Tonight.

Previously, He was a columnist and commentator for CNET and, before that, was Co-Editor and Editor-at-Large of Mashable, where he wrote more than 2,400 articles on social media and technology and helped manage Mashable’s growing editorial team. Forbes named him one of their “30 Under 30”, and his work has been featured in a variety of media, including CNN, Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, and The New York Times.

Date:
Speakers:
Ben Parr
Affiliation:
DominateFund

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