From the excellent Hit Makers: The Science of Popularity in the Age of Distraction by Derek Thompson:
"Some people disdain distribution and marketing as pointless, boring, tawdry, or all three. But they are the subterranean roots that push beautiful things to the surface, where audiences can see them. It is not enough to study products themselves to understand their inherent appeal, because quite often the most popular things are hardly what anybody would consider the "best." They are the most popular everywhere because they are, simply, everywhere. Content might be king, but distribution is the kingdom."
From the BBC: 
