Most beta programs fail. You recruit 50 "beta customers," give them early access, send a survey at the end asking "what did you think?", get generic feedback like "it's good" or "add more features," and launch anyway with minimal changes.
This isn't a beta program—it's early access marketing dressed up as product validation.
Real beta programs generate insights that materially improve the product before launch. They surface usability issues you'd never find internally. They validate (or invalidate) your core value prop with real users in real workflows.
After running beta programs for six different product launches, I've learned the difference between betas that improve products and betas that waste everyone's time.
The Purpose of Beta (It's Not Marketing)
Let's be clear about what beta is for:
Beta is for: Learning whether your product actually solves the problem you think it solves, finding bugs and usability issues, and validating messaging with real users.
Beta is not for: Generating testimonials, building hype, or giving VIPs early access to make them feel special.
If your beta criteria include "must be willing to provide a testimonial," you're running an early access program, not a beta.
The Four Phases of Effective Beta
Phase 1: Beta Design (2 weeks before launch)
Define learning objectives. Don't just say "get feedback." What specific questions do you need answered?
Good objectives:
- "Do users complete onboarding without help?"
- "Can users accomplish [core job-to-be-done] in under 10 minutes?"
- "Does our messaging accurately set expectations for what the product does?"
Bad objectives:
- "Get feedback on the product"
- "Find bugs"
- "Generate testimonials"
Set size and composition. How many beta users do you need, and what should their profile be?
For B2B SaaS:
- 15-25 users (enough for patterns, not so many you can't talk to them all)
- Mix of ICP and edge cases (80% perfect-fit customers, 20% adjacent segments to test positioning boundaries)
- Mix of sophistication (power users who'll push limits, new users who represent typical buyers)
Define engagement model. How will you interact with beta users?
- Week 1: Kickoff call (20 min) to set expectations
- Week 2-3: Active usage period with async support
- Week 4: Feedback interview (30 min)
- Throughout: Usage analytics tracking
Success criteria: Clear learning objectives documented, beta user criteria defined, engagement plan set.
Phase 2: Beta Recruitment (1 week)
Source candidates. Where do you find beta users?
- Existing customers (if expanding existing product)
- Active trial users (if new product)
- Email list of prospects who expressed interest
- Target accounts sales wants to warm up
Selection criteria. Don't just accept anyone who volunteers. Screen for:
- Fits ICP (you're testing with target buyers, not edge cases)
- Has the problem (will actually use the product)
- Can commit time (30-60 min over 4 weeks)
- Articulate (can give useful feedback, not just "it's good")
The application. Don't make it hard, but do screen. Ask:
- Describe the problem you're trying to solve
- What are you currently using to solve it?
- Can you commit to 30-60 minutes of feedback over 4 weeks?
Accept 25-30 to account for 20% drop-off.
Success criteria: 25-30 beta users accepted who fit ICP and can commit time.
Phase 3: Active Beta (3-4 weeks)
Week 1: Kickoff
Host a group kickoff call or send personalized video. Cover:
- What you're building and why
- What's in/out of scope for beta
- How to report bugs vs. give product feedback
- Timeline and what you'll ask of them
Give them a single place to ask questions (Slack channel, email, etc.).
Week 2-3: Active Usage
Let them use the product. Don't over-support—you want to see where they get stuck naturally. But do:
- Monitor usage analytics daily
- Track completion of core workflows
- Note where users drop off or get stuck
- Respond to bug reports fast (but don't proactively guide them unless they're completely blocked)
Week 4: Feedback Collection
Run 30-minute interviews with each user. Don't send surveys—talk to them. Ask:
- Walk me through your first session. Where did you get stuck?
- What did you expect the product to do that it didn't?
- What's the one thing that, if we fixed it, would make this much more valuable?
- On a scale of 1-10, how likely are you to use this after beta? Why?
Record the calls. Pull direct quotes for product and executive stakeholders.
Success criteria: 80%+ of beta users active in weeks 2-3, feedback interviews completed with 20+ users.
Phase 4: Analysis and Action (1 week post-beta)
Compile insights. Group feedback into themes:
- Blockers (users couldn't complete core workflows)
- Confusion (users misunderstood what something did)
- Missing capabilities (users expected features that don't exist)
- Delighters (things users loved)
Prioritize fixes. Not everything needs fixing before launch. Focus on:
- Must-fix: Blockers that prevent core use cases
- Should-fix: Confusion that affects >30% of users
- Nice-to-have: Feature requests from <20% of users
Make decisions fast. You have 1-2 weeks before launch (typically). Triage ruthlessly.
Success criteria: Product roadmap updated with beta insights, launch-blocking issues fixed, messaging adjusted based on user understanding.
What Good Beta Feedback Looks Like
Bad feedback: "I like it" or "Add more features"
Good feedback: "I expected this button to save my progress, but it just closed the window and I lost my work. That was frustrating."
Bad feedback: "The UI could be better"
Good feedback: "I couldn't figure out how to invite my team. I clicked around for 5 minutes before I found it in Settings. I expected it to be on the main dashboard."
Good feedback is specific, behavioral, and actionable. It describes what happened, not vague opinions.
Common Beta Program Mistakes
Too many users. 100 beta users sounds impressive, but you can't talk to them all. You'll send a survey and get generic data. Keep it small enough to interview everyone.
No structure. You give access and hope people use it. Without structure (kickoff, check-ins, feedback interviews), engagement drops fast.
Beta users who don't fit ICP. You recruit anyone who volunteers, including people who'd never buy. Their feedback misleads product.
Not fixing anything. You collect feedback, compile a report, and launch anyway. Beta users feel like their time was wasted. They won't participate again.
Using beta for marketing. You position beta as exclusive early access and recruit based on social following or company prestige. These users don't give honest feedback—they give flattering feedback.
The Uncomfortable Question
Before launching beta, ask: "Are we willing to delay launch if beta reveals major issues?"
If the answer is no, don't run a beta. You're not actually validating—you're just creating theater to check a box.
Real betas change launch plans. I've delayed launches by 4 weeks to fix issues beta surfaced. I've completely rewritten onboarding based on beta feedback. I've killed features that confused users.
If you're not willing to act on what beta teaches you, save everyone time and just launch.
The Beta Success Metric
You know beta was successful if:
- Product improved materially (you fixed bugs and usability issues you wouldn't have found internally)
- Messaging adjusted (you learned how users actually describe the product and updated positioning)
- Launch confidence increased (leadership believes the product is ready because real users validated it)
- Beta users convert (at least 60% of beta users convert to paying customers post-launch)
If those four happen, your beta drove real value. If not, you ran early access marketing disguised as product validation.
The best compliment a beta user can give you isn't "I loved it." It's "You really listened to my feedback and fixed the issues."
That's how you know you did it right.