Why develop an MVP?

A minimum viable product (MVP) is, in a way, the first draft of a product, app, or software that has the minimum set of basic features needed to address the problem that it intends to solve and does not have much more than that. The objective of building an MVP is to get an app or software to market as quickly as possible in order to validate the idea and gather feedback from real users. MVP helps business ideators test the assumptions behind a product or app idea and figure out if it is viable or not. Although an MVP consists only of very limited functionalities, it is designed to possess enough value to give the users enough value and a first-hand experience of the product to gain feedback that can help assess if the product has the potential for success in the future.

The MVP approach allows companies to test their ideas and gather data on whether or not the product is viable before investing significant time and resources into its development. This helps reduce the risk of building a product that no one wants or that doesn't solve the intended problem. Moreover, the feedback received from an MVP also helps companies to determine the changes they need to make to the existing software and also determine the features and functionalities that they need to add in the future. An MVP is not a fully-fledged product but rather a prototype or an extremely minimal version of the final product. It is meant to be a starting point from which the product can be iteratively developed and improved based on user feedback.

The problem in MVP development

One of the major reasons behind the failure of startups is said to be the lack of MVP validation. However, many startups do fail despite having a positive MVP validation. Although the idea of developing an MVP is a smart move by companies where they can validate their idea and understand what changes they should make, more often than not the MVP stage ends up in failure. The result of an MVP failure can be catastrophic for a business. The failure of an MVP does not only cause huge losses of time, money, and effort but can also lead to the development of a faulty product or a product with irrelevant features which has no value and does not really solve the problem that it was designed to solve. Thus, you don't just end up losing valuable resources and time but also lose and waste a perfectly good idea due to a faulty process.

This does not mean that you should not go with MVP development. As we said earlier, developing an MVP is a smart move and can be of great benefit to your business and can really make your idea into a unicorn if you do it right. We have analyzed why businesses fail at the MVP stage and have found the common mistakes that businesses make in their MVP development process, which lead to its failure.

Common mistakes made during MVP development.

Unclear objectives

Before you begin your MVP development, It's important to have a clear understanding of who the solution is being built for and what their needs and problems are. The MVP must be developed keeping this in mind and must include the minimum essential features. Not understanding this clearly will result in a solution that does not add any value to your users or solve the problems that they are facing.

Not prioritizing features or overloading

You must have envisioned N number of features for your final product, however, there is only a limited number that you can add to your MVP. It's important to strike a balance between having enough functionality to be useful but not so much that the development process becomes overly complex. It's important to focus on the most important features first and get those working well, and get feedback before adding additional features. Overloading features, adding less important ones, or not adding crucial ones can also be detrimental to you.

No scaling plan & poor execution

You must be ready with a well-laid-out plan in place for how the product will scale once it has been deemed viable and is successful. You must have the right team in place that can take the product forward and scale it once you are at that stage. Scaling includes not only technical factors and considerations but also other considerations such as business, budget, operations, and much more. The process of building an MVP requires careful planning and execution. If the development process is not well-executed, then the final product may not be of any value to the users of the organization.

Lack of real user testing

It's important to test the MVP with real users to get feedback and identify any issues or areas for improvement. You must get valuable feedback from your target audience as they will be able to best tell how good your idea is. Testing the MVP within your organization or with another audience will render useless feedback and improper validation. Moreover, you should continue gathering data and feedback even after the MVP is released.

Unclear roadmap & business plan

Without a clear roadmap for the development of the MVP, it can be difficult to stay on track and ensure that the final product meets the needs of the target audience. This is particularly imperative as future releases must be in sync with what has already been established. Also, you must have a clear business and monetization plan for your idea. Afterall, no matter how noble or altruistic your idea might be, you will still need profits to grow and expand.

User feedback

Gathering user feedback and using it to iteratively improve the product can be time-consuming and may require additional resources. Due to this, many businesses often ignore this stage or don't give it the focus that it deserves. User feedback is invaluable and is key to making informed decisions that can make or break your idea. Who better than your target audience or the people who your solution is addressing can help you understand how you can improve your idea and product.

Limited resources

Developing an MVP requires much fewer resources than the final product. However, it still requires quite a significant bit of time, resources, and focus. Developing an MVP often demands resources, including time, money, and personnel. Many times, this can make it difficult to build a product that is fully functional and meets the needs of the target audience. Developing an MVP can be resource-intensive, and a lack of sufficient resources can lead to delays and a subpar final product.

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To Sum Up!

Around 90% of all Startups that are founded fail to make it and end up shutting down. A primary factor behind this is issues in ideation and validation. This is where MVP development helps as it helps you validate and improve your idea & offerings. However, businesses must make sure that they must do their MVP development right. We have pointed out just a few of the top mistakes that are made by businesses. In reality, there are many more major or minor mistakes that startups make, which can turn out to be fatal for them. To avoid making such mistakes consult with an expert like Zignuts. Our experts can help you assess and analyze your idea and help in validation. Reach out to us to hire additional tech experts to help with your project's development.