The Long Tail In Action

By Cory Treffiletti

The concept of the long tail is one that I find fascinating not only because of its applications to marketing, but also because of the speed at which it is being adopted by the publishers and content creators utilizing the Web today.

One example of this is the Web site Brilliant But Cancelled. For years we've seen interesting TV shows, and not-so-interesting TV shows, come and go. Some have been resurrected by passionate fans (like "Family Guy"), while others were witty and intelligent but never received enough attention from the networks because they were too witty and intelligent for the general audience (like "Arrested Development"). In both situations it required much action from fans to generate buzz enough to either bring the show back or distributed in some other fashion.

That was the old world, now comes the new world.

Brilliant But Cancelled (BBC) is such a simple idea but one whose time has come. With broadband penetration reaching critical mass and more people watching the smaller screen for quality video content, an outlet such as BBC makes sense. The site takes shows that were cancelled and gives them an outlet for an audience. It also takes shows that were never aired and provides them with an outlet for an audience. BBC becomes a testing ground for new programs and new concepts, guaranteeing that no programming goes to waste.

I can even foresee the day when the networks (or whatever they will morph into over the next few years) will air pilots of programs online to see if there's an adequate audience before airing the show on "live" TV. Before a show goes into the regular programming schedule, air it online for a few weeks and see if there's a buzz! No pilot will go to waste--and what better focus group to tell you about a show than the actual audience?

The application of the long-tail concept is such that any program will have an audience; it's just that the audience may not be large enough to warrant the prime-time programming opportunity. Airing programs online allows you to reach the intended audience while not creating any missed opportunities for advertisers within larger-reach shows. A show like "The Jake Effect" starring Jason Bateman can reach an audience, even though the show was never aired. If the audience is passionate enough, the show can be shot for the Web and advertisers can find access to their niche audience in an environment that's inherently interactive and highly engaged. There's an audience for everything, you just need to know where to look, or let them come and find you.

The term "long tail" has been around only a short while, but the concept has been around for far longer, with an impact that will be felt for many years to come. Technology enables narrowcasting, and the long tail encourages it. I can hardly wait to see what happens next!

Source: Mediapost