Product validation through beta testing depends on where you test. The environment shapes the signal. Running the product in the actual environment where people will use it surfaces behavioral data about what they value and why they come back.
Garrett Lang, Founder and President of PlateRate, chose real restaurants. Over the past several months, he has run beta events where actual diners use PlateRate in actual dining environments. PlateRate is the only pickup/delivery app that credits diners for trying a restaurant’s highest-rated menu items. It won the TPMAS (The Product Management Awards) award for Visionary Product of the Year 2019, and Garrett has been building and iterating on it for over a decade.
The beta events confirmed that PlateRate solves the core problem Garrett set out to address. People could order food, manage their own checks, and handle tipping through the app. The product worked. And the feature that generated the strongest response from beta diners was the freedom of walking out.
Finish the meal, tip on the app, leave. No flagging down a server. No waiting for a credit card return. The restaurant gets notified that the diner has paid, so when someone walks out, it is expected.
Garrett describes it as freedom, and that word carries weight for anyone who has ever watched ten minutes tick by after a meal waiting for the check to arrive. Product validation through beta testing in a real environment gave Garrett signal that surveys, focus groups, and prototype demos would not have surfaced with the same clarity.
That signal tells Garrett where PlateRate’s pull actually lives. If walking out is the moment that creates the strongest positive reaction, that insight shapes how the onboarding communicates value, how the marketing positions the product, and how the development team prioritizes features.
Garrett is transparent about where PlateRate sits today. The beta is live, and the product works, but he has specific quality thresholds that need to be met before public marketing begins: user friendly, intuitive, bug free, and performant. The redesigned website is still in progress. He is building toward a product that is pixel perfect before he starts spending on acquisition.
That approach takes discipline. Validation confirms you are solving the right problem, and the temptation to market early is strong at that point. Garrett’s path is to let the beta testing continue shaping the product until the experience matches the quality bar he has set. When PlateRate goes to market publicly, the product will already have earned loyalty from the people who tested it.
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| Product Excellence: Insights from Award-Winning Leaders | Strategies for Success |
| “Product Excellence: Insights from Award-Winning Leaders | Strategies for Success” brings you behind the scenes with the top product management minds who have shaped some of the world’s most successful products. Each episode features award-winning product leaders sharing their real-world experiences, lessons learned, and the strategies that have driven their success. From building innovative digital products to navigating the complexities of stakeholder management, you’ll hear firsthand how these experts have achieved product excellence. Whether you’re an aspiring product manager or a seasoned leader, this podcast offers valuable insights, actionable takeaways, and inspiration to elevate your product management career. Tune in WEEKLY to discover the key strategies that make products—and product leaders—truly exceptional. |
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