The MVP before the MVP
So, you want to build a MVP. You have an idea and you’re ready to build – but before you do, you need to get market validation. Software projects are complex and expensive. The first win is to get market validation quickly.
Getting market buy-in is critical for MVP development success. Here’s how you get it early.
The purpose of a MVP (minimum viable product) is obtaining market validation quickly and with minimal expense. We recommend taking a smaller step before coding. Our MVP approach includes building the clickable prototype of the project before writing any software.
The clickable prototype with a simple website and some high-quality brand assets are all our clients need to get letters of intent and first-round investments. Eighty percent of our startup clients were able to gain funding based on this MVP approach.
Benefits of a MVP Clickable Prototype
A high resolution clickable prototype creates a functional feel of a product beyond just a simple presentation. It can be used to create product demonstrations, marketing content and is easy to modify.
Here is why we value this process:
- Building a software project for the first launch takes between 3-6 months. By working on the clickable prototype first as a MVP you will have the creative assets to sell and market your business while development is in progress.
- Walking customers through a clickable prototype allows you to collect feedback on the features and flow before making costly development investments in unwanted features.
- If you can’t get interest in a clickable prototype or some client validation, you may not be building a product people want. It’s best to know this early.
- While it’s not a substitute for a functional specification, it can provide a great reference for the engineering team to ensure they are building what you expect.
- Most people will need funding beyond initial R&D investments. A great clickable prototype will help people get sales and funding.
Using a high fidelity clickable prototype should be an early step in every product strategy. Your product strategy needs to be obsessively focused on getting feedback and endorsement from potential project sponsors.
If you have a product idea that you’re ready to take off the ground, our team can help map out your go-to-market strategy. We will implement a clickable prototype that will assist with product feedback and secure funding without spending an abundance of time and resources on development. Check out some of our recent work or shoot us a note at connect@carimus.com to chat about your next big idea!
