The Long Tail (continued)

The long tail theory was not developed with the sales person in mind.  But there is an important lesson to be learned by the salesperson. Inside every customer demand (hit), are a lot of latent requirements (niches) that a good salesperson understands.
You go into a auto dealership to buy a car (the hit).  A good car salesperson pitches the navigation system, the satellite radio, the moon roof (niches).  These are the high profit items for the dealership.  An air compressor salesperson pitches the air compressor to the interested customer (the hit) but also pitches the receiver tank, the dryer, and all the fittings and regulators (the niches).
The manager or owner of a store or sales agency or distributorship realizes that the long tail theory means that adding products to the salesperson’s offerings works to everyone’s benefit as long as the products will be purchased by the same person, or same company. The expense of the call has been covered with the “hit”, the money can be made with the “niches”—everything else that the salesperson can sell during the same call.
Amazon got people to go their website by selling books.  Now, while someone is buying a book, he can buy anything else he can think of—almost unlimited.  While someone is going to iTunes to buy an Adele album, he can buy another other piece of music he may think he wants even if no one else is interested—almost unlimited--because the additional of additional songs adds insignificant cost to Apple.
Their secret is now our secret.  Make the tail long and make the sale profitable.