what is the oprah effect 
the oprah effect refers to the boost in sales that followed an endorsement on the oprah winfrey show which aired on tv for 25 years a recommendation from oprah the queen of talk shows turned many fashion and lifestyle products into multimillion dollar companies understanding the oprah effectmany businesses and people who were lucky enough to appeal to oprah winfrey found overnight success after being promoted on her groundbreaking show which ran from 1986 to 2011 and was the highest rated daytime talk show in american tv history the oprah effect was especially powerful because of her authenticity oprah chose products she was genuinely interested in rather than being paid to promote them and unlike typical celebrity endorsements she supported independent family businesses thanks to oprah tv personalities like psychologist dr phil health expert dr oz and tv cook rachael ray have all become household names with their own tv shows she also had a huge impact on publishing oprah s book club promoted reading and turned books into immediate best sellers today oprah is a billionaire and a media mogul she launched own the oprah winfrey network in 2011 1 and while her 10 investment in ww international inc ww commonly known as weight watchers in 2015 has proved that not everything she touches turns to gold instantly the dieting company faces stiff competition from mobile apps and fitness trackers she still has millions of loyal fans and high approval ratings 2oprah effect exampleswhile his interior design firm had been around since 1995 nate berkus received a major boost to his career after appearing on oprah in 2002 thereafter he appeared regularly on her show and his design firm has thrived on the publicity oprah s production company harpo also co produced berkus s daytime show 3the oprah effect was most pronounced for the publishing industry according to available statistics 59 books chosen by oprah for her book club appeared on usa today s top 10 list and 22 reached the no 1 position nobel laureate toni morrison s books are supposed to have received a bigger boost in sales from oprah s recommendations than from winning the prize itself 4