The benefits of creating a minimum viable product (MVP)
Instagram, Spotify and Uber are highly successful apps. They all have something in common and that is; they all have used a minimum viable product (MVP) process. They used it for product testing, product viability testing and for making top-notch functionality.
A MVP process helped these apps evolve in time gradually, and were further improved through data testing and user feedback. Eventually they became the robust and full fledged apps we recognize nowadays.
What is a minimum viable product anyway?
Experienced software development professionals from a well known mobile app development dubai company making mobile apps explain that a minimum viable product (MVP) is that version of a mobile app product which only includes feature solving the main issue. Its objective is to provide immediate value, minimize expenses for development, gathering the needed data and feedback that can help improve future features.
Let us now examine key benefits and some good things about making a minimum viable product.
Iterative development and the make-measure-learn process
When a company devices to develop a product, they first make some assumptions which include but are not limited to:
- Which users need to be targeted?
- How should the design work?
- Which marketing tactics to employ?
- Which architecture is most suitable?
- What will be the product’s most sustainable monetization tactics?
But no matter how certain a business is of their assumptions, a product cannot succeed unless and until those assumptions are validated.
Through this continuous process, the make-measure-learn process of minimum viable product development can help app developers validate or nullify (or invalidate) the assumptions without any risk.
Such development is made to identify pain points of users and determine the proper functionality for addressing such needs over time.
This is done by continuously testing assumptions against user feedback. Also, making quick product changes as new information presents itself is much better. This kind of process helps companies start testing assumptions by making a MVP.
Companies launch an app, allow users to test it and then gather feedback to direct and make decisions on future versions. Decisions like what to add, what to remove, which aspects will raise sales and investment returns, and where should the budget be allocated are some decisions which need to be thought about properly.
Examining the benefits of a minimum viable product
In a lot of cases, businesses often rely on buy-ins from either investors, shareholders or both to secure funding for their project. The key here is to create confidence in the product being pitched and its ability to either raise revenue, reduce check out times or any other key objective.
Developing a MVP is a worthwhile method of securing such a buy-in as it allows companies to test their concept before they go to them. This makes sure that they will have a solid basis for demonstrating the product’s market validity.
Testing the business concepts
One of the biggest benefits of developing a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) is that it allows companies to test their business concepts. Offering a set of core features helps them verify the product’s concept and see whether or not it resonates with the target audience. This provides an opportunity to fix the product’s direction based on findings determined.
The market demand is verified
A minimum viable product (MVP) is about testing, and observing what works and what doesn’t. In some ways, a MVP is about trying to achieve an understanding of the market demand instead of trying to sell the product straight upfront or trying to desperately acquire customers.
More than often, most companies assume that their product will automatically fulfill a specific need users have. Most of the time, this isn’t true because either the need does not exist or other solutions already exist in the market.
Creating a monetization strategy
Each product should be able to garner a good amount of profit. Mobile apps need to do just that and creating a sustainable stream of income usually involves defining a monetization tactic(s) for a mobile app.
It should be kept in mind that one strategy won’t work all the time. The best thing to do is testing assumptions with the MVP.
Testing both usability and User Experience (UX)
Making a mobile product resulting in deep user engagement isn’t easy. More than half the apps downloaded are deleted within a month of being downloaded. On the other hand 90 percent of users engage with an app for just a short time period but do keep the app around.
Retaining users through provision of continuous value is a key objective of designing a worthwhile user experience. A MVP tests the product’s potential for such via app engagement, duration and lifetime value offered.
Cost effectiveness
As mentioned earlier, robust and well performing apps are not made in an instant. They are the by-product of years of hard work and were created over a long time period with continuous precision and effort. Of course, some of the revenue generated from earlier versions is used for redeveloping and repurposing the app into something greater than ever.
Conclusion
The process of developing a MVP relies usually on testing. Here, app development companies and their clientele identify their riskiest assumptions, and find the smallest possibility of experimentation to test those assumptions. The results are used to hence guide the app development process and relevant decisions.
The key fact to understand here is that a minimum viable product (MVP) allows companies to start from a small base and work upwards continuously by adding more sure fire trusted and tried features. This will help the app become more polished, soar upwards at all positive angles and bring in the best ROI.
