Everyone (or I should say all "techies", anyway) loves being part of betas - as a "tester" of a new or upgraded product, you feel like your opinion matters, especially when further upgrades are made which reflect suggestions and improvements which you might have thought about and which were made by you or other users like you. It also implies that the creators of the software/web program/whatever consider YOUR input to be an INTEGRAL part of the process of creating something new and better. They make you feel special, by requesting your participation and input. That special feeling is like being part of a members-only club, or VIP room...and people will happily pay for that, although not too much - being invited is better!
I wonder if the model of the innovative association (Associations 2.0, I like to call it) is actually something like that - a special club where our members' participation as beta-testers could drive any number of new projects.
This still necessitates a certain structure, a staff, an implementation/marketing/promotional structure, a communications plan, a Board with fiduciary responsibility, but the strategic thinking is done by the members and is enabled through every level of the association, not limited to the top tier.
Just a thought!
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/DiaryOfAReluctantBl...