What Would Google Do? by Jeff Jarvis (2009)

Bill Gary summarizes the discussion this way: “Rather than being a solution for your customers, be a platform and allow the public to build on your platform.” The focus is to help your customers use your products they way they need to. Google’s business model is not about control, but about opportunity.

The first part of the book summarizes the revolutionary operations of Google and its business model. The second part applies this model to various sectors of the US economy with the noteworthy exceptions of the fields of law and public relations.

The real value of the book is in the first section, says Gary. “Early online developers wanted to control content, whereas (Google) makes it so easy for people to link to content.” In an increasingly social world, control is a challenge. Technology isn’t the only reason for an explosion in digital media; it was driven by the economics of Google.

• Overall Response: The first half is compelling, and worth attention.

About Digital Media Book Club: In the growing field of strategic communication, social media rockstars, academics, and digital thinkers are investing time and energy to share their learning with others. In my Digital Strategic Communication class, students in the Master of Arts in Organizational and Strategic Communication program at Queens University of Charlotte are sifting through a variety of texts to discover the embedded wisdom. These are their thoughts and reactions.