"Wouldn't it be better if I get to see some real-life examples of MVP?" Ok, I get you. That's why, today, I will show how some of the most successful businesses you know started their journey with an MVP. And then, we will move on to what to do once you have developed an MVP. But first…
What is an MVP?
An MVP or Minimum Viable Product is the most basic for your product in action, just enough to solve the core problem you want to solve - nothing more, nothing less. I have covered this in detail in the blog post "What is MVP?"
When starting a business or launching a new product, you may get overwhelmed with demands that you "feel" you need to fulfill, but they are nothing but distractions (at least, as of now). An MVP helps you to focus on absolute essentials and remove the fluff.
But there is more to MVP. Let's see.
What's the purpose of an MVP?
Building an MVP is a proven step in launching a successful product as it provides you with the following benefits: -
- Speed up the process of establishing your product.
- Check the feasibility of the idea and validate it.
- Test your product in action.
- Gather feedback from your target audience.
- Learn about the market and its needs.
- Develop a business and marketing strategy.
- Get testimonials from your initial customers to gather social proof.
- Save time and money by working only on things that matter.
- Attract investors by showing the response of your target audience to your idea.
- Develop an early relationship with your customers.
Now can you see the potential of an MVP? Many industry giants we see today had humble beginnings with an MVP. Let's see if some of them make the picture clearer.
MVP examples
- Dropbox
Drew Houston smartly validated his idea first with an MVP instead of dumping money and just praying for his vision to take off. He co-founded Dropbox, which is billions today. But initially, he started by launching just a video explaining the technology in a couple of minutes. That video got people lined up for the service, and he knew that he was into something special.
- Buffer
Buffer helps you schedule your posts and grow on social media. However, Joel Gascoigne, one of its founders, decided to test the idea using a simple landing page that collected emails from interested people. Joel stayed in touch with them to further sculpt the idea. He then added pricing plans to check whether people would be willing to pay for this service. One audience showed a green signal. They knew it was good to go.
- Amazon
You can buy anything from Amazon today. But when it was started in 1994, it focused only on selling books. You probably know that, but there is more to the story. Jeff Bezos initially used to buy books from distributors as the purchase order arrived. He didn't focus on building a warehouse until Amazon got big enough.
- Zappos
Nick Swinmurn got the idea of selling shoes online when he couldn't find the shoes he was looking for. But instead of going all in, he first tested the idea online. He took photos of shoes he saw in stores and started selling them online to check if customers buy. They did, and thus Zappos was born.
- Uber
Uber came into existence in 2009. At first, it was a service that was limited to San Francisco. And it was accessible only by iPhone app or SMS. It turned out that people wanted an affordable cab service. Today its service runs in around 80 countries.
What comes after MVP?
Building an MVP is the beginning. But it rarely turns out to be a perfect product on the first attempt. It is a continuous process of refining it to perfection. For it, you need to deploy it to your target audience and observe their experiences.
Their negative feedbacks are your biggest reward early on as it saves you from embarrassment later on.
FAQs
Will developing an MVP guarantee its success upon launching?
No. Companies develop an MVP to test the need for their idea and reduce their risk. But it does not guarantee the success of your idea. Why? Because there are so many factors that come into play for startup success. And the need for the product is one of them.
However, MVP can significantly influence your startup's success with its benefits. To know more about startup success factors, check out our blog on Why is an MVP important?
Which is the best technology to build an MVP?
The technology you choose for MVP development makes a lot of difference in cost, development time, and quality. Keeping this in mind, I recommend you to go with Laravel, Python, or NodeJS.
Can I develop an MVP on my own?
Yes, you can! However, it is better left to professionals than working on your own because even though it is an MVP, it needs to be of high quality to serve its true purpose. MVP development companies like us have experience developing it and, thus, provide more acceptable precision.
On top of that, we can also save you a lot of time and money in the long run. You can check out the cost of your MVP development with our MVP Cost Calculator.
How can I save money on MVP development without compromising on its quality?
Hiring remote developers is the best way to develop your MVP cost-effectively without making any compromise on its quality because: -
- Remote developers are more reliable than freelancers. They are managed by a team of professionals to deliver your project on time while maintaining high quality.
- Remote developers can save up to 60% of the cost of hiring in-house developers as you won't have to pay for any overhead costs.
- You can assemble your team of remote developers instantly without wasting your time and cost on finding them.
Fortunately, you are at the right place to hire remote developers. Contact us to assemble your team and start working on your MVP.
How can I prepare for MVP development?
Please check my guide on How to plan your MVP. It will guide you step by step for the ideal preparation of your MVP development.
Conclusion
Did you see that big ventures have humble beginnings with an MVP? They made the smart move of first testing their idea and gradually moving towards big. Thus, if you, too, are looking to develop your MVP, you are at the right place.
We are an MVP development company with 15 years of experience working with clients worldwide. Contact us now to get started.