Building an MVP: All the Basics for Startups

1. BUILDING AN MVP: ALL THE BASICS FOR STARTUPS

2. A Brief Introduction to MVPs All the big-name products have one thing in common: they started out with a good idea. But delivering a full-fledged product is far down the road. So, to stay on the safe side, most entrepreneurs decide to test the waters before making large-scale investments and commitments. This is exactly why it makes sense to build a minimum viable product (MVP). What Is an MVP? A minimum viable product: is a product’s pilot or test version shown to real users; is a functioning solution (not a prototype); includes only core functionality and must-have features. An MVP is used to: test-run the product; learn about its strengths and soft spots; prove its viability; analyze how it's received by the target audience. What Are the Benefits of Building an MVP? It makes sense to start the product development lifecycle by building an MVP. This way, you'll ensure the project is worth it and learn how to proceed with it effectively. MVP Development Benefits ? minimizing risks? ? checking marketability? ? cutting costs? ? reaching the market faster? ? getting first real users? ? collecting feedback? ? obtaining user-generated data? ? finding the solution's flaws? ? enhanced feature prioritization? ? monetization and first profit 2

3. ARE POC, PROTOTYPE, AND AN MVP THE SAME? As a matter of fact, there are multiple ways to validate your product idea and prepare for full- scale project development. Proof of concept, prototyping, and MVP creation are three feasibility strategies that can be carried out consequently. Proof of Concept (POC) Before initiating a project, you have to be sure that the idea is worth your money and time. Proof of concept (POC) is used for idea validation and involves conducting research, studying the market, and running tests. Together with the team, you answer questions like: Can this project be built technically? Will people want to use/buy it? Do we have the budget and resources? Prototyping A prototype is a simulation or model of the future product. Be it a wireframe, mockup, or clickable prototype, it is used to: visualize the solution; check its usability; show how its functionality can work; and hint at the UI design. Minimum Viable Product A minimum viable product (or MVP) is generally the first functioning version of the product. Commonly called the "pilot version", it embodies the product's backbone. The MVP is fitted with a minimal feature set, and users can interact with it. Comparing POC vs Prototype vs MVP Proof ofConcept Prototype MVP Validate the idea, including the technical side Build a product model, visualize and test its features Create a product's working pilot version shown to real users Aim Verify the project's feasibility Test the product's usability Test the first version and get feedback Allows to Not aimed at bringing profit Not aimed at bringing profit May bring you first profit Revenue 3

4. How Are MVPs Built? The process of developing an MVP can be broken down into several milestones. Conduct market research - analyze the audience’s needs, product demand, Step 1 customer behavior, major market trends, price level, and return rate. Narrow down the target audience - define the age, gender, paying capacity, Step 2 preferred gadgets, and what problem your MVP will be solving to get a portrait of your average product consumer. Define the project vision - decide how your product will stand out, what makes it Step 3 unique, and how it'll bring value to your users. This will allow for prioritizing features. Study your competitors - browse existing similar solutions to evaluate how your Step 4 product can outperform them. Look at your rivals' websites, social media, and other online activity. Shortlist the MVP features - choose a few main features that'll serve as your Step 5 minimum viable product's backbone. Put together a list of must-have functionality and prioritize it. Map out the user flow - using a map or diagram, demonstrate how a user will Step 6 interact with your solution. Create wireframes, mockups, and clickable prototypes to ensure impeccable usability. This will also help you test the MVP's core feature set. Develop and test the MVP - now it's time to move on to actual development work. Step 7 Set up sprints and make sure to test the created features thoroughly to avoid glitches. Continue improving the MVP - once the MVP is launched, analyze the early Step 8 adopters' feedback. Keep an eye on your analytics, make tweaks, and work on other features. 4

5. How Much Can an MVP Really Cost You? Building a decent MVP with a minimal feature set will require less investment than if you'd develop a full-scale feature-rich solution. Yet, unless you'll be using a low-code builder, your contribution will be sizable. So how much does MVP development cost? We can give a very rough estimate: 50,000-75,000USD What Does the MVP Price Depend On? Although this price estimate may seem surprisingly large, a lot of things can affect the total: the type of product you're creating (e.g., marketplace vs fintech app); how quickly you want the MVP to be launched; development complexity; the design scope and complexity; the number of features and how technology-based the solution is; the chosen tech stack and the number of third-party integrations; whether you count in the project discovery phase; how many developers you need and the hiring model. HowLong WillIt Take? Frankly, giving an exact MVP creation estimate isn't easy. Yet the median usually lies somewhere between 50k -75k USD. The duration is generally 2 to 6 months. Let's Collaborate get a quote Need a price estimate for your MVP project? MVP Development Timeline UX/UI 
 Design & Prototyping MVP MVP Launch Development & Testing Project Post - Launch
 Works Discovery Phase MVP Development Phase 2+weeks 2-6months 2+months 5

6. What Happens after MVP Launch? MVP Testing Once you've launched an MVP, it's time to evaluate it and make sure that it lives up to your audience's needs. MVP testing heavily relies on data analysis and client feedback. This allows for improving the product, minimizing risks, saving resources, and making the most of your post- launch work. At this point, you're trying to find out whether: the hypotheses you made were right you're moving in the needed direction your customers like your product it makes sense to develop the project further Common MVP Testing Methods creating a landing page waitlists and pre-sales starting a blog hallway testing email campaigns surveys and interviews Tracking Metrics and KPIs Monitoring a selected set of analytics is another way to measure MVP performance. Product metrics and KPIs can help you see the changes, trends, user behavior, and your MVP's strengths. It's also a great way to find weak areas, avoid unneeded risks, enhance your strategy, and make data-backed decisions on boosting your product. Comparing Metrics and KPIs Metrics Examples: Used to measure performance, providing data on the progress, status, or effect of specific business processes or activities. These measurements are more activity- centric. ? Conversion ? Active Users ? Engagement ? Retention ? Activation ? Net Promoter Score KPIs Examples: Measure performance based on the long-term goals you set for your business. KPIs track essential initiatives according to your priorities. They’re usually determined by you. ? Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) KPIs ? Customer Retention Rate (CRR) ? Monthly Active Users (MAU) ? Return on Investment (ROI) ? Customer Churn Rate (CCR) 6

7. Why Do Many MVPs Fail? Sadly, not every MVP is successful. There are multiple things that can lead to MVP failure as, at times, even some tiny things can put the whole project at risk. are the 2 main reasons for MVP failure (38% and 35%), Shortage offunds & lack ofmarket need according to recent statistics Top reasons for failure include: ? Not enough funds ? No product-market fit ? Low quality of the MVP ? Poor analysis & no feedback ? Tough competition ? Poor pricing policies ? Bad timing Too much competition Lack of product-market fit 20% 35% Issues with pricing 15% 8% Poor product quality 38% Running out of money As you can see, multiple things can go wrong with minimum viable products. That's why it is vital not to neglect the project discovery phase and do thorough research. Many things matter, including preparatory work, feature prioritization, testing, and analytics. Plus, having a strong and experienced web development team to bring the product to life is a large part of the project's success. Looking for a team? Upsilon has ample experience in MVP development projects. So if you need a reliable partner to help you transform your product idea into a scalable MVP, we know how to avoid the common pitfalls and can get your product up and running in no time. Book a consultation 7

8. Major Takeaways Minimum viable product development is a wise undertaking. It can safeguard your business from spending resources on creating something no one needs and gives you the chance to scale the product gradually. Be it a startup or an established enterprise willing to build something new, building an MVP may bring many benefits if developed using the best practices. An MVP is not the full-scale product version; it has a minimal feature set. A minimum viable product shouldn't be confused with prototyping and POC. Feature prioritization and usability testing are crucial for an MVP's success. The cost of MVP development may vary greatly based on a number of factors. It is vital to proceed with testing and studying analytics after the MVP launch. Let's Talk If you have any questions regarding the MVP development process, feel free to get in touch with Upsilon's team of professionals. We'll happily provide you with our expertise during a consultation and discuss your business needs. Email Website hi@upsilonit.com upsilonit.com 8