To begin with author Chris Anderson is the editor of wired magazine, and he has written articles about the long tail for a long time, and he decided to compile these articles in a book.
Chris Anderson illustrates how our buying habits have been shaped by the economics of big business, creating the blockbuster culture; the selling of a narrow range of products to the biggest possible group of consumers. Anderson shows how the Internet, through companies such as eBay, Google and Amazon, radically changes that, allowing us to be more exploratory and specific about what we buy. “The theory of the Long Tail is that our culture and economy is increasingly shifting away from a focus on a relatively small number of “hits” (mainstream products and markets) at the head of the demand curve and toward a huge number of niches in the tail. Because of online delivery (digital delivery), the costs of production and distribution fall. In this new era everybody can create their own content easily, and they can deliver it online. These niches allow its owner to make more money than hit products. Anderson provides and eloquent and detailed analysis of various aspects of Internet culture and business, he illustrates how the explosion of niche markets and filtering tools will allow us to zero-in on things that interest us, potentially shattering the hold that large manufacturers and retailers have exercised since the mid 20th century. This affinity towards niches created worries over marketing people and advertisers, and nowadays they are thinking on finding new ways of advertising and marketing strategies.
Additional to that, author also focused on limited physical shelf space at the retail stores, when you go to retail stores you can only find hit products on the shelves, because of limited shelf space, however internet has no limits. You can find whatever you want; it is like a data ocean. If you want to listen 1970’s music or a specific album you are eligible to find it online but there is no way to find it at retail stores.
Although The Long Tail is a business book, it is also about culture in general and how it’s changing. Freed from the constraints of the blockbuster culture, the consumer is able to dig into niches he never knew existed and also to contribute in a way that was not previously possible. The success of social software services such as Flickr and YouTube has allowed the audience to create and share their own material generating a genuinely new, interactive media which is actually competing in some respects with mainstream broadcast media.
In conclusion, author gives example about long tail from different aspects, these examples can enhance readers’ thought, and I definitely recommend this book to everybody.
Share.
