Guest View: Search Expert, Blogger Extraordinaire Posts 9 Prognostications About Your Future

6. “Push” marketing channels like e-mail will die. They’ll be killed by spam. Marketers will need to compete via “pull” marketing channels like RSS. Permission-to-market will become the direct retailer’s most valuable asset.

7. Merchandise depth will recede. General merchandise catalogs and gift catalogs will flounder, losing share to specialty retailers — merchants who understand the long tail.