The Long Tail

Before I address the issue of the Long Tail and libraries, let me first say that I found the Chris Anderson article extremely interesting and illuminating. (Though I'm still glad we didn't have to read the book for class! I think I got the point quite nicely through the article.) I think he made a particularly interesting point in noting how we, as consumers, don't always know what we want and often equate popularity with quality but are now able, through companies like Netflix and Amazon, able to discover new things. I liked the idea of the Long Tail as something that facilitates discovery.

Which is an excellent segue to libraries, for what are they if not places that facilitate discovery? Perhaps my library is unique, but I already see the Long Tail at work in libraries every day. Similar to the Rhapsody/Britney Spears example in Anderson's article, readers advisory librarians are often leading patrons from a popular item they've enjoyed to a lesser known or less popular item that is similar. For example, you liked Twilight? Maybe you'll also enjoy the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris. If you enjoy those, maybe you'll enjoy a slightly different take on vampires in Interview with a Vampire by Anne Rice. Still interested? Well, why not try the granddaddy of all vampire books, Bram Stoker's Dracula?

I also see my library as a repository for Long Tail items not available at Borders or Barnes & Noble. We carry issues of the local high school's yearbook back to the sixties. We also collect broadly in the area of documentary DVDs mentioned by Anderson because they fit two aspects of the library's mission statement in that they provide both entertainment and educational value. We have a large immigrant population in our area so we also collect more foreign films that you can find at the local Blockbuster. Both the documentaries and foreign films have high circulation rates (the yearbooks are non-circulating items).