- Launch a product to the market quickly.
- Test an idea with real users before committing substantial resources to full-scale development.
- Understand what resonates with the target market and what doesn’t.
Dima Akhmetov, CEO at imaga
Joseph Boston, VP of product at Eat App
"The first thing you should do before working on an MVP is break down what it essentially is. It's a Minimum Viable Product and it should serve that purpose."
- Minimum: Keep your MVP minimal. Focus on building only the essential features needed to solve the most critical jobs for early adopters. Avoid initially targeting too wide an audience.
- Viable: Validate the product idea quickly and cost-effectively. The goal is to validate before investing too much time and resources.
- Product: Ensure the MVP is a tangible solution to a problem. It must offer a functional user experience, not just a theoretical or experimental validation.
- Misaligned worldviews: Joseph shared his experience building a framework for sending messages across 35 countries but failed to align it with the end users' worldview. This resulted in a product that didn’t effectively meet user needs. So what’s the lesson here? Don’t build features based on your worldview. Instead, listen carefully to your users and solve their problems.
- Client vs. end-user focus: It's crucial to differentiate between the client's and end user's needs. The product should be designed to solve the end users’ problems, not just satisfy the client's vision.
Viktoria Bashkite, Product Partnerships Manager at Unifonic
"Based on my experience, I've observed three distinct approaches to developing MVPs (Minimum Viable Products). The personal insight approach, pre-market validation approach, and internal understanding approach."
- Personal insight approach: This method involves building a product based on personal insights and presenting it to customers once it is fully developed. While this allows for a polished initial presentation, gaining market fit may require more early user feedback.
- Pre-market validation approach: An unconventional strategy wh ere potential customers are told the product exists, even if it doesn’t, to gauge interest and gather feedback. This helps align the product closely with market demands without initial development, ensuring time and resources are spent on what customers truly need.
- Internal understanding approach: This involves developing the MVP strictly based on the team's or developer's understanding of customer needs without direct early customer involvement, speeding up the development process but risking misalignment with market expectations.
Polina Oparina, Head of Product at Talent Inc.
- Identify priorities before building
Before diving into creating a full-fledged product, it's essential to pinpoint the core elements. Tools like customer interviews, market research, and data analysis can help in this regard. Customer interviews offer valuable insights into identifying pain points within your target audience. Market research aids in understanding market dynamics and existing competition, which influences your MVP approach. Remember, entering a mature market with a simple MVP might not be feasible due to intense competition. - Utilize prototypes for validation
Prototypes are invaluable for validating solutions early in the development process. They allow you to test ideas without investing significant resources upfront. Whether it's design prototypes created in tools like Figma or data prototypes to test algorithmic approaches, prototypes provide actionable insights before committing to full development. - Consider partnerships or acquisitions
Partnering with or acquiring an early-stage startup can be a viable MVP strategy. This approach allows you to leverage existing solutions and infrastructure, gaining insights and feedback from real users while minimizing development costs. Engage engineers and designers early in the process to ensure alignment between product vision and technical implementation. - Leverage technology for speed and scale
In today's digital landscape, technology is pivotal in enabling business innovation and scalability. Utilize available technologies, such as open-source libraries and AI services, to accelerate product development and launch. Collaborate closely with engineers and designers to harness the full potential of these technologies and explore innovative solutions. - Establish a feedback loop
Feedback is crucial for continuous improvement and iteration. Implement tools like Hotjar to collect user feedback, conduct surveys, and analyze user behavior. Establishing a feedback loop allows you to gather actionable insights, iterate on your MVP, and deliver a product that meets user needs effectively. - Prioritize learning and customer insights
Allocate time for learning and understanding how real customers interact with your product. Engage in customer research activities, such as user interviews and observational studies, to gain valuable insights into user behavior and preferences. Continuously refine your product based on customer feedback and iterate to deliver a superior user experience.
“The biggest challenge is expecting instant success. You put in all this work, launch it, and hope for exponential growth, but in my experience, that rarely happens.”