Red Harbour Safe Haven for Startups

Growth accelerator for startups & scaleups

Minimum Viable Product (MVP)

The purpose of the MVP is to validate whether the product solves a problem for your customer. It is entirely targeted to gain insight into the customer's problem and the possible solutions for it. It is primarily meant for learning and it is not a first version of the product for the customer. Over time, the MVP will develop into a mature version of the product. But before that happens, many iterations have preceded it.

 

The MVP is the smallest product that makes a feedback loop possible. That is different from a minimal product that a user can do something with.

 

The MVP is meant for learning, and in such a way that you increasingly understand what the customer's problem is and which solution you can best develop for the customer. You empathize with the customer.

 

You put priority on modifications / extensions of the MVP that increase insight into the customer's problem and validate that the assumptions made are correct / incorrect. The conclusion an assumption is incorrect (falsification) is also an important insight.

 

As input for the development of the MVP you use a number of previously developed pieces:

Problem Statement

Risky Assumptions

Value Proposition

Persona Files

Customer Journey

Total Addressable Market

First Prototypes

Product Vision

Growth Model

Pricing Model

Actionable Metrics

Assumption Overview

User Experiments

 

With the MVP you conduct a number of predefined User Experiments where you validate or falsify the assumptions made. This gives you new insights. With this you adjust previously prepared documents and choose new assumptions that you want to confirm / falsify. To do this, you adjust the MVP (strictly speaking it is no longer an MVP) and determine new User Experiments. You repeat this until you know the customer's problem and have determined that the solution solves the customer's problem.

 

But how do you know this is the case?

This is never completely black and white, but the following indicators are of influence:

1. the customer uses the product for his daily activities

2. the customer is willing to pay for your product

3. the customer  recommends the product to others

 

Now we speak about product fit and solution fit.

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