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What Would Google Do? by Jeff Jarvis - Book Summary · 7 Minute Books: Free Book Summaries

• 0:01
  Sam: Hey there, welcome back to 7 Minute Books. I'm Sam, and today we're diving into a book that's been on my mind since we started this podcast: 'What Would Google Do?' by Jeff Jarvis. Sophie, you've read this one too, so I've got to ask, what's the first thing that jumps out at you when you think about it?
• 0:19
  Sophie: Hey there Sam! Oh, it's such a trip. The first thing that jumps out is that Jarvis isn't really talking about search engines at all. He's using Google as a lens to ask this wild question, what if we ran everything, from car companies to hospitals, using Google's core principles? It's like a thought experiment that keeps snowballing.
• 0:41
  Sam: Right, and the whole premise starts with a huge shift. Jarvis calls it moving from a 'mass economy' to a 'network economy.' The old way was all about scarcity and control, but Google built its empire on abundance and participation. It's a total inversion.
• 0:59
  Sophie: Exactly. And that leads to his first big principle, which is 'your customer is your new boss.' In the old model, it was a one-way street. The company made something, marketed it, and you either bought it or you didn't. Now, a single tweet can tank a brand.
• 1:16
  Sam: He uses Dell as this perfect example. Jeff himself wrote a blog post about his terrible customer service, and it went viral. Dell tried to control the conversation at first, but they eventually had to listen and change their policies. It's like, if you don't listen to your customers, they'll find someone who will.
• 1:36
  Sophie: And that ties into the second principle, the power of the platform. Google doesn't create content, it organizes the world's content. So instead of just making a product, every business should ask, 'How can I become a platform for others to build on?'
• 1:52
  Sam: So a car company wouldn't just be a manufacturer, it would be a platform for transportation and connectivity. They'd open up their data and APIs so other people could innovate on top of it. It's about enabling others, not just doing things for them.
• 2:08
  Sophie: Right. And then there's this fantastic line about control and trust. Jarvis says there's an inverse relationship between them. The more you try to control the conversation, the less your customers trust you. Google's algorithm works because it's democratic, it lets the network decide what's important.
• 2:26
  Sam: Yeah, and that completely wrecks the old news media model. They were gatekeepers, deciding what was news. But now readers can find their own news and even contribute. The successful news org of the future is a platform for conversation, not a podium for pronouncement.
• 2:44
  Sophie: And then we get to the principle that probably makes the most people uncomfortable: 'your worst customer is your best friend.' In the old economy, you'd try to silence your critics. In the Google economy, your critics are your free R&D department.
• 3:00
  Sam: That's so counterintuitive, but it makes sense. They're the ones telling you what's wrong with your product or service. You should seek out that criticism, reward it, and use it to improve. It's a huge cultural shift from defensiveness to openness.
• 3:15
  Sophie: And then Jarvis applies all this to specific industries. For retail, he imagines a 'Google store' where the shelves are empty and the inventory is infinite. The store becomes a showroom for experiences, and the actual transaction happens on your phone.
• 3:32
  Sam: He wrote that before showrooming was even a thing, and it's wild how accurate it was. brick and mortar stores are still struggling with that exact crisis. And then for cars, he imagines a 'Google car' that's not just a vehicle, but a node on a network. It's aware of traffic, weather, and your schedule.
• 3:52
  Sophie: He even predicts the end of car ownership, with shared, on-demand vehicles. And this was years before Uber and Lyft. The car becomes a service, a platform, not a standalone product.
• 4:05
  Sam: But the most radical applications are for healthcare, education, and even government. In healthcare, he imagines a system where your medical records are yours, not your doctor's. You're the CEO of your own health, using data and algorithms to make decisions.
• 4:23
  Sophie: And the doctor becomes a consultant, not a gatekeeper. The hospital becomes a platform for health, not a factory for sick care. It's only now starting to happen with telemedicine and patient portals.
• 4:35
  Sam: In education, he says the traditional classroom is a relic. It's one-size-fits-all, and it doesn't work. Instead, education should be personalized, collaborative, and project-based. The teacher is a guide, not a lecturer. And the value of a degree gets replaced by the value of a portfolio of demonstrated skills.
• 4:57
  Sophie: And then, the most provocative part, what would a Google government look like? It would be transparent, efficient, and responsive. It would make its data open to the public so citizens can hold it accountable. It would treat citizens as customers, not subjects, and use the wisdom of the crowd to solve problems.
• 5:16
  Sam: It's a vision that challenges the very foundations of how we think about governance. But Jarvis is careful to say this isn't easy. It requires letting go of control, embracing transparency, and trusting your customers. It means being willing to fail fast and learn.
• 5:36
  Sophie: Yeah, the book isn't a step-by-step guide. It's a set of lenses for asking better questions. And the ultimate takeaway is that every company must become a network. The old hierarchical, closed, controlling model is dying.
• 5:51
  Sam: The companies that thrive will be the ones that harness the collective intelligence of the network. Their greatest asset isn't their product or factory, it's their relationship with customers. So, for me, the one thing I'm taking away is to always ask, 'What would Google do?' before making any big decision.
• 6:12
  Sophie: That's a good one. And honestly, if you want to dive deeper into these ideas, the whole library is over at 7minutebooks.com/app, with over 6,000 fiction and nonfiction titles you can read or listen to in any language. It starts at $2.99 a month, $9.99 a year, or $19.99 for lifetime access.
• 6:37
  Sophie: So, the real question isn't just what Google would do, but what you would do if you questioned everything, even yourself. That's the call to action. We'll see you in the next one.