Blogs Are the Long Tail of Media

Chris Anderson pointed to a book called Blogging Heroes: Interviews with 30 of the World's Top Bloggers by Mike Banks. This book is not more than a collection of short interviews with some famous bloggers. One of the interviews was with Chris Anderson who was talking about his "The Long Tail" blog experience. The interview is availabe here (.pdf). The author summarizes the interview as follows:

To better serve the low-demand niche markets (or just to increase the quality of your own blog), consider these points:

• There is no one “blogosphere.” There is an infinite number of blogospheres, each shaped by the tastes and experiences of individuals.
• A blog is a thinking tool, a means of collecting, composing, and amplifying your thoughts—while getting useful feedback. Ideas are enriched by the experiences of blog readers.
• A personal blog presents a better platform for communicating honestly and transparently than a company blog, where a writer is constrained by commercial considerations. However, remember that self-promotion is more effective when it includes a value-added element.
• A blog, especially one with a large community, can function as a distributed research project and become an efficient marketing platform.
• A carefully selected set of feeds can make blogs function as an information filter.
• When blogging, focus on specific interests. You don’t have to appeal to an overly diverse audience. Focused blogs are self-selecting, in that they draw readers who have a legitimate interest in the blogs’ subjects. Such readers are more likely to forgive errors and omissions, and will contribute more than someone just passing through.
• Every blog, and every blogger, can be improved. To maximize your blog’s audience, focus with laser precision on your subject.