Metcalfe’s Law and Marketing!

You may be familiar with the name Robert Metcalfe. He was a pioneer in creating computer networking technology. He developed a theory about the usefulness of networks that became popular and controversial during the 1990s and is still debated today.

Metcalfe’s Law states that the potential value of a communications network increases exponentially with its size.

Specifically, it proposes that for a network with ‘n’ endpoints (think of these as devices or people), the inherent utility of this network is on the order of ‘n’ times ‘n’ or n2.

Metcalfe’s Law was intended as an approximation and relative measure of value for comparing two networks or the growth of one. For example, under this Law a network with 10 ends (value = 10×10=100) is approximately 4 times more useful than a network of half the size (5 ends with value 5×5=25).

For our purposes, let’s apply Metcalfe’s Law to marketing. If you only have two methods of marketing, let’s say it’s email marketing and direct mail; then you have the power of 2X2=4 effectiveness.

But suppose you use two more methods; your website and LinkedIn. You now have four methods and, according to Metcalfe’s Law, you now have an effectiveness of r 4X4=16. This means that you do not have double the effect, but four times the effect.

If you added four other methods, instead of two, say your website, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Twitter, you would now have six methods and 6X6 = 36. You would now have nine times your original effectiveness, not just four times.

Does Metcalfe’s Law really apply to marketing? Probably not as directly as you do with networking. However, there is some correlation with marketing, and especially social media marketing.

With social media marketing, you can spread your word from one platform to another, with just a click of the mouse. So this helps you spread your message exponentially, rather than linearly. And once it’s set up, much of it becomes automatic.

How many marketing methods are you using to spread the word about your business? And of course, with social media, you don’t just reach the exact people you message, you also have the potential to reach everyone in their networks.

As an example, I am currently connected to over 9,700 people on LinkedIn. But my network extends to more than 19 million people. This is done through the three levels to which each of these people is connected.

Does that mean that every time I send a message, all 19 million people see it? Of course not, but it has the potential for it. Just this week, a connection sent one of my messages to their connections, and thousands more people were able to see my message. This happens all the time on social media, if you have something worthwhile to say.

If you don’t use social media to its fullest and don’t post at least once a week, you’re missing out on thousands of potential customers. And the more messages you post, the more your network and their network will know you, believe you, and trust you, because they see that you know what you’re talking about.