MIS 7003 MIS Core Course The MBA Program The University of Tulsa Professor: Akhilesh Bajaj Ecommerce: Should You Invest In The Long Tail © Akhilesh Bajaj, 2007, All Rights Reserved.
Long Tail What is the Long Tail: Niche, specialty products that enjoy distributed, educated markets 30-40% of Amazon sales are with titles that would not be found in a regular bookstore. What does this tell us? What other products fit this long tail? -Music -Movies -Specialty foods -Tube amplifiers Any others? Discussion: What are the implications on this for industry? What kind of companies will benefit from this? How can IT help? Improved product scope.
Drivers of the Long Tail Supply Side: -Etailers have unlimited shelf space -Print on demand allows books to be printed economically. CNN & Fox News can cover stories across the globe more economically, leading to more diverse stories. Consumer side: -Sophisticated search capabilities allow mature tastes to develop - search featurewww.cdbaby.com -netflix search capabilities -Amazon search capabilities The role of forums and reviews in changing tastes
Long Term Effects of the Long Tail -Specialized products, mass customized -Lowering of breakeven points due to lower production costs in music, movies, books -Increased differentiation of consumer tastes -Change in the concept of fame/superstar? -Reduction in blockbuster products designed to appeal to all? -Allow distributed niche markets as opposed to geographically focused marketing Is the Long Tail here to stay? Speculation: Reduce urban centers?