4Dec/110
Understanding virality: Metcalfe’s Law
From Understanding viral content marketing infographic @ problogger.net:
Metcalfe's Law is a way to calculate the value of a network. The network effect says that the value of each potential sharer is proportional to the number, N, of other individuals he or she can connect to. [...]
The more interconnections and ways to share between people, the more easily, quickly and widely information can be shared.
Viral marketing is an attempt to get value that goes above and beyond cost. By tapping into the network effect, a marketer can gain far more value than cost. That's because while cost is still a constant, value grows exponentially based on the number of people whom the "viral" touches.
See also:
- Going Viral Visualized @ mashable.com
- Going viral: 7 best practices from the Viral Marketing Cheat Sheet @ conversity.be/blog