Nov 21 2008
Beta or Bust? Why Beta is Good (and Sometimes Bad) for You
Beta. Here’s another four-letter word for you. It’s as much a description of newness as much as an assurance. You’re functional and yet there’s work to do. It means you’ll find that certain functions don’t work as well and that clicking on a link will upload a completely different content or sometimes, not at all. In Web 2.0, beta status is akin to a badge comrades-in-arms wear online. Is this something to worry about?
Blame it on my beta
Web 2.0 beta status is a ubiquitous sign in many websites. It’s almost like having a sign that says, ‘Mastercard/Visa accepted here’ if sites were stores lined up in a street. Even Google’s big baby Gmail is in beta – still is, in fact – a status it has proudly worn for quite a few years now, reassuring the rest of us that it’s perfectly okay, almost like saying that there’s no need to worry about a beer belly because 8 men out of 10 in the United States have it.
Beta also provides some convenient excuse. Can’t connect? Blame it on beta. Landed on the wrong page? Beta did it. Failure to launch? We’re in beta, fool. What else do you think it was? It’s a technical guy’s dream come true – an excuse that sounds like a valid reason, something you can immediately provide especially when you’re on a don’t-disturb-me-or-else cigarette break. A cop-out, sometimes but a state of being that users of Web 2.0 can expect to last a while, even in the near future.
Web 2.0′s ever changing moods
The reason here, according to Blip.tv COO Dina Kaplan is that the Web is in constant repair and development and thus, in some sort of flux. This is a natural state of being for Web 2.0, which explains the inevitable beta status of many sites.
Before Web 2.0, programs and sites were launched after a long cycle. So when products or services are put out, they were basically well-functioning mechanisms, with very little in the way of flaws. These days, however, the manner with which products and technologies are released called for shorter period. It’s not uncommon to find improved versions of an application being launched repeatedly, sometimes only weeks apart.
The risk of competition
Another factor that might contribute to Web 2.0 beta status is the fact that start-ups can occur in a matter of days. Some sites need less than a week from conception to launching. You could put up a website after just 48 hours of preparation, thanks to many free and ready-to-use technologies.
This poses a challenge to Web 2.0 participants. Avoiding beta status and waiting for another week or month or year before launching an idea, concept or business is far too risky. If you do wait until your idea has been refined, polished and spruced to perfection, a similar site might emerge that sports a concept that is eerily similar to yours. And no, no one spied on you nor stole your idea. It’s just a matter of someone beating you to the finish line. So as you can see, there’s a disadvantage to ignoring beta status when you’re wheeling and dealing (or trying to) in a Web 2.0 environment.
Beta forever?
So will Web 2.0′s beta status ever go away? When your site has been running for a good two years and it’s still on beta, it can get a little tiring. And boring. But here’s the thing: being on beta status in a Web 2.0 environment can’t be all that bad. You’re still in the process of growing, changing, adapting, improving and that is a good thing. Your users will like the fact that you’re trying to be better. However, you might want to show your users you have faith in your product by dropping your beta status sometime in the future. It’s a sign of confidence, reliability and stability. Just make sure you deliver.
Here is where this lesson ends for today. We really hope you enjoyed this lesson too.
You will receive the next lesson in 7 days. Next week’s lesson will have the following title:
“The Age of Web 2.0 Social Computing”
Copyright(C) 2008 by John Delavera & Reimund Lube
