Book Review: The Long Tail

We marvel at the success of Amazon and Google, envious of their hockey-stick revenue growth. But perhaps their reason for success isn't what we think, as Chris Anderson explains in "The Long Tail: Why The Future Of Business Is Selling More Of Less."

Anderson, editor of Wired magazine, challenges the conventional wisdom of the 80/20 rule. He argues that the famous ratio is a by-product of an economy built around best-sellers. In "The Long Tail," businesses realize high revenue streams because they sell more of less.

Think books: The reason Amazon is successful is because of unlimited shelf space; the average book store can shelve 100,000 books, whereas Amazon lists more than 2.5 million. That unrestricted line card enables Amazon to sell many unpopular items, in addition to best-sellers.

Some could argue that the IT channel is an example of the "sell more of less" paradigm. Vendors can't field enough salespeople to reach every corner of the market, so VARs extend the vendor's sales capacity.

For those in the IT channel, "The Long Tail" provides a different perspective on where VARs may take their businesses in the future.

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