What is a MVP?

Written by Amr Lotfy

Amr Lotfy has a bachelor’s in Computer Engineering and is currently a Senior Projects Development Associate at KUWAITNET.


Minimum Viable Product (MVP) is the most straightforward core feature set of any product that allows it to be deployed and absolutely nothing more. However, the most popular definition is; “The smallest thing that you can build that delivers customer value (and as a bonus captures some of the value back).”

In the initial stages, there will be two classifications of clients. One is the early adopters who will be more forgiving about the shortcomings of the product and will eventually become loyal users, while the others are the ones who will use the mature product and will be used for feedback on the MVP and help in setting the strategy.

What are the Benefits of Using an MVP process for design?

MVP process doesn't only benefit the design team only, large companies can benefit as well.

  • It helps determine the demand for the product without actually spending revenue on it. 

  • You can accelerate the team’s learning regarding what the customer wants/needs while using rapid iteration to deliver that.

  • You can minimize the number of wasted hours spent by your development team by focusing on a minimal number of features for launch.

  • Go to market rate is faster and thus, theoretically, start to raise sales revenues faster than if you develop the fully-featured final product for launch.

  • You can gain a competitive advantage if other companies are contemplating entering the market you are focusing on.

The easiest mantra to follow in order to benefit from the MVP is that you are looking to construct the easiest product that you can test to see if the product should have been constructed in the first place. The objective of testing is to determine whether or not development should move forward or be abandoned.

Minimum Viable Product – Testing Approaches

Websites and Applications

One of the easiest ways to test a product's demand is to build a website for it. The website is not fully featured, but a mockup that explains what's going to be accessible and invites clients to click for more data. The number of clicks is compared to visitor numbers to determine the amount of interest in the product.

Services

The best way to test services is not to build a service delivery product but instead let someone try the service and decide how much they willing to pay for it. 

New Features

Instead of investing in the development of the new features, it is advisable to advertise the new features on an existing website with a link to more details. Measure the clicks to visitors will give a reasonable understanding of whether  should be made in the new features or should it be discarded. 

The Take-Away

The MVP strategy is an optimal design approach for start-ups, although it is also often used in models that can be deemed high-risk from investment or capital points of view within established corporations. 

It is intended to market as quickly as possible a straightforward fundamental product and then examine the feasibility of the product and determine the features to be added in the next iteration.

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