Comments on The Long Tail

It is really interesting to see just how much the online world has changed everything.  The story of Touching the Void's rise out of obscurity to popularity really shows the power of each individual person's ability to make things happen just by giving an opinion.  Before online comment sections on items up for sale, there really was no way to know the satisfaction level of the general public unless you happened to know someone that had experience with a particular item.  Since our own circle of family and friends can be limited, there was not always a way to get this information.  So we were much more influenced by commercials and whatever the media had to tell us.  Later, we did have access to Consumer Reports, but that requires a subscription (even though the online subscription is not expensive) and many didn't subscribe unless they were avid consumers.  And there's always Oprah for book reviews!  But the comments section provides us with immediate access to the opinions of people who don't stand to gain from what they have to say.  It's again merely a sharing of knowledge so our fellow-man doesn't make the same mistake we did, or gets to enjoy the benefits of something that actually turned out great.  Reading the comments certainly has affected my decisions to purchase, and I've even made purchases based on "readers who bought your item also loved...this!" 

Because this type of advertising is not paid for by the manufacturers or companies that stand to gain from the sale, I have much more confidence in what is said.  I think this method of getting the word out will force companies to ensure that their products are actually as good as they say they are, or they better be ready to deal with the negative comments that most surely will come. 

Conversely, those who are small-time creators will have the opportunity to be recognized based on merit, and not on the size of their marketing budget.  That's a change for the better for everyone all around in my opinion.