The Long Tail.

I live in Jacksonville Beach, FL which is consolidated with the main city of Jacksonville, FL but remains semi-independent with it's own municiple government, although we citizens are able to vote in both city elections...and technically have two mayors, two police departments, etc. It's a strange system that no one really understands, but it works for us. 

Living and working in a beach town you have a whole different way of living and interacting with people than I've seen in a lot of cities. Maybe it's a southern thing, maybe it's just about living in a small community where everyone has something in common- the beach. 

Here I observe an almost tide pool- like examples of the Long Tail. For instance, we have so many thriving small, unique businesses here, doing very well selling their art, crafts or even food. Just out of farmers markets, and our once a month Art Walk, but doing very well. They don't sell their designs to chain stores, and yet people still know about them.

You'll hear things like, "Oh yeah, that guy who carves frames out of driftwood? We got one from him last week out at the art walk." It's more common than hearing, "Oh yes! We have that same lamp from Target!"

There's a craving here for unique, handcrafted products that I think a lot of beach towns have, since they supply the artists. The people you see thriving in this niche area of farmers markets and art walks are those who put the most unique and interesting twists to their product. They are selling more than the women with the hand mixed sand candles that seem to be so popular.

Another example would be the Moonlight Movies we hold here once a summer. There are only four every year, and they have become more and more popular since they began five years ago, causing a huge influx of people now. The reason? Well, they're always popular movies, but nothing special that anyone couldn't rent and watch from home. The uniqueness that draws people in is that they are shown from a big screen on the pavilion right by the ocean, which is unmatched anywhere in Jacksonville. We don't even have a drive-in anymore. They are reaching a huge amount of people with a unique, hard to find product.

I don't know if these examples help anyone else, but thinking about the Long Tail idea in these terms that are familiar to me has really helped. At least, if I understand it the way I think I do.

Blogging is a great, more relatable example. For instance- Perez Hilton's blog. It supplies mass doses of hard to get inside information on celebrities to the masses, and it has created this niche success that is really unreplicated.

Anyways, I found this video on Youtube that shows the Jax Beach Pier, a beautiful spot where around where you can always find the interesting, unique people (and animals) who make us the town that I love so much and am so fascinated by.