Startup: The Long Tail and the Recession

As I lay the groundwork for moving to independence in my Lotus Notes development work I've been pondering the role of the Long Tail as I work to build a customer base during this time of economic difficulty.

In theory, the Long Tail should be a great place to look for opportunities. With all the recent investment IBM has made to our platform, we all should be in great shape to offer our customers some great solutions. I'm betting that the really good businesses out there are likely taking advantage of the current turmoil and coming up with initiatives to capitalize on when things finally turn around. My sense is that these businesses are fairly small in size (Long Tail inhabitants?) or are small business units within larger organizations.

If your business sits somewhere in the Long Tail and you're looking into ways to collaborate your way to success when things stop shrinking and start growing again, I'd be very much interested in having a conversation with you.