What are MVPs in this lean startup world? I prefer to use the word "experiment" since one of the critical elements of lean startups is bringing a results-oriented scientific method approach to business and product design. Here is an overview of concepts, tactics and tips. (from my presentation to LUXr NYC Dec 2011)

1. What are MVPs?
Think Experiments
Giff Constable Dec 2011

2. fall in love with
a customer need,
not a solution
Giff Constable Dec 2011

3. Validate:
need
solution
customer & market
customer acquisition
business model
Giff Constable Dec 2011

4. Your Goal:
The fastest, simplest
path to validated
learning
Giff Constable Dec 2011

5. Prioritize experiments
experiment
here first
High Risk
Known Unknown
Low Risk
Giff Constable Dec 2011

6. Examples
pre-sales
(with LOI, discounts)
Giff Constable Dec 2011

7. Examples
“concierge”
(i.e. be the software)
Giff Constable Dec 2011

8. Examples
manual delivery
(aka “wizard of oz”)
Giff Constable Dec 2011

9. Examples
paper testing
Giff Constable Dec 2011

10. Examples
landing page
(with calls to action)
Giff Constable Dec 2011

11. Examples
video
Giff Constable Dec 2011

12. Examples
working software
Giff Constable Dec 2011

13. experiments can be
analog or digital
Giff Constable Dec 2011

14. usually many ways to
skin the cat
Giff Constable Dec 2011

15. Process
1. have a hypothesis to test
2. brainstorm a few different tests,
offline and online
3. try to break the tests into even
smaller units of work
4. choose a test and set a goal
5. run the test (try to hit the goal)
6. review results and make a decision
Giff Constable Dec 2011

16. Results
Hit goal and confirmed assumption
(for now)
OR
Missed goal
1. need to iterate the test
or
2. need to iterate the business
Giff Constable Dec 2011

17. “MVP” isn’t always about
product
It definitely isn’t
about a launch
Giff Constable Dec 2011

18. At some point, you’ll be
building something real
so remember...
Giff Constable Dec 2011

19. a minimal viable product
is not a point release
it is a rolling series of
releases that iterate and
improve based on a mix of
data and vision/judgement
Giff Constable Dec 2011

20. an MVP is not the first step in
a linear feature rollout
if you aren't setting goals,
gathering data, and iterating
what you have, then you are
piling risk on top of risk
Giff Constable Dec 2011

21. focus ruthlessly on the target
customer, and the core
function / benefit
don't get lost in add-ons,
improvements, futures, or
attempting to serve everyone
Giff Constable Dec 2011

22. a minimal viable product is for
learning, not marketing
find product optimize
promote
market fit conversion*
* for enterprise-focused startups, think of this step as “find your repeatable sales process”
Giff Constable Dec 2011

23. keep on doing simple experiments
outside of the product
development path
Giff Constable Dec 2011

24. this isn’t just for
ground-floor startups
Giff Constable Dec 2011

25. but rather, for any
product or business that
faces uncertainty
Giff Constable Dec 2011

26. now let’s create some
experiments
giff.constable@gmail.com
http://giffconstable.com
Giff Constable Dec 2011