Video
"Beta"
20-Jan-2010In the digital age, when marketing is a constant conversation between product makers and consumers, a new approach to product development has taken shape. Those in the software industry are familiar with this concept: the beta version, the work-in-progress that does a basic task but calls upon its users to suggest improvements, fixes and new directions. A beta version is a signal and a call to action for those who encounter it.
Jeff Jarvis most recently wrote a book called "What Would Google Do" in which he looked at the company's business methods and found a way forward for many other industries. Building on the work in his book, Jeff lectured in January 2010 (as part of the Berlin School EMBA program's USA module) on the subject of Beta. There are principles in the permanent-beta philosophy that can help any business get better at what it does, moving away from finished products to more open, collaborative methods.
As Jeff noted during the lecture, his editor and agent were in the crowd. There's another book idea in here somewhere, and this was Jeff's first public attempt to articulate his main thesis. In other words, if this becomes a book, you heard it hear first. As a beta version.
Jeff is a member of the Berlin School's Board of Governors, and shortly before this public lecture he sat down for a tent talk with the school.
He also writes a well-known blog, Buzzmachine about changing media in the digital age.
The lecture was delivered at the Art Directors' Club in New York City.
Please note, we had some technical problems with the video feed for the last minutes of the lecture. But Jeff's lecture was so good that we hope you can bear with us and enjoy just the audio stream for the last part.
