How to create successful products or the most common error related to the MVP that even experienced managers fall into?

The main problem is that many people have heard about MVP and mistakenly believe that if the MVP works, the product will be successful. Therefore, I want to add more information on the topic of MVP, as even experienced managers do not always understand why an MVP should be done, and when they do, they misunderstand what they are doing it for.

The MVP is surrounded by many assumptions, from where to start to winning an investment round. That is generally true, but not entirely.

Let's take two steps back and understand that the MVP is part of the experiment.

The experiment can be a one-time event or an ongoing cycle. Create, evaluate, learn. It’s probably obvious, but I want to draw your attention to this. The experiment is not just to find out if something works or not, but also to extract knowledge from that experience for the future.

The experiment is conducted to verify hypotheses. We make hypotheses to create a product and test them through experiments to do what users need and create a commercially successful product. On average, depending on the novelty and uniqueness of the product, 7-9 out of every 10 hypotheses are incorrect, and that is a problem. The problem of losing money and time because for an entrepreneur, a hypothesis is their solution, which they love and consider great, but it may not be necessary for users.

Therefore, we test hypotheses to fall in love not with our solution, but with the user's problem. The MVP is a way to test hypotheses, but the problem is that many stop at it.

Why shouldn't we stop at the MVP?

The MVP is to verify if the product can work from a commercial point of view. We must find out if users will like it and if we can distribute it effectively. MVP verification can be compared to the mass market and can be illustrated in this diagram.

And this sometimes or almost always is not bad. It is true that you can create a mass product and target a broad market. Sometimes it works, sometimes it works poorly, and sometimes it doesn't work at all. Because even a mass product must have value.

In theory, you can create a game that many like, but people lose interest quickly. Or you created a free game for a broad audience and everyone uses it, but they are not willing to pay for premium features.

Another example is a wedding planning app. There were needs in the target audience and a potentially large market, and the MVP demonstrated the existence of distribution channels. However, the CAC exceeded the LTV, in other words, attracting users was very expensive and retention was impossible because after the wedding, everyone forgot about it. Its potential value was low.

Therefore, along with the MVP, you must also test the MDP, how valuable your product is.

MDP in the example of the KANO model

Conclusion

Test two types of hypotheses.

1. Growth Hypothesis - For how many people is our product designed? It is important to understand how many people have a problem that our product solves.

The growth hypothesis determines the magnitude of the problem and the number of people who need a solution to this problem.

2. Value Hypothesis - Is there any value in solving our problem?

The value hypothesis determines the solution to the problem: "fall in love with the problem of your target audience". If there is no problem or it is insignificant, there is no value in this solution.

The problem and the solution are a simple and basic connection, but in the modern world, many people already have a solution for their problems.

Therefore, it is important to obtain ideas (from analysis, research, illumination - intuitive - quick processing by unconscious parts of the brain). An idea is needed for faster convergence in the economy.

"Problem Idea": it is the problem, conscious or unconscious, that is not solved due to habit, and here we fight for the CAC indicator.

"Solution Idea": it is the understanding that leads to solving the problem and increases the LTV indicator.

Example: Uber, when they realized that people had a problem with long waits and communication with the operator to order a car: the solution was an app where the user did not have to communicate with the operator multiple times and ask where the car is, but could see it in the app.

And for dessert, they say that the most successful and innovative products are found here.