Minimum viable product

Minimum viable product (MVP) is a version of a new product with sufficient features to satisfy early adopters and provide validated learning about customers with the least development effort, enabling teams to test business hypotheses before committing to full-scale development (Ries E. 2011, p.93)^[1]. Build the simplest thing that could possibly work. Get it in front of real customers. Watch what they do. Learn. Then decide what to build next. That's the MVP philosophy—replacing speculation with experimentation.

Frank Robinson coined the term in 2001, but Eric Ries popularized it through the Lean Startup movement. The concept challenged traditional product development, where teams spent months or years building comprehensive products before seeking customer feedback. Dropbox famously validated its concept with a three-minute video before writing a single line of file-synchronization code. Airbnb's founders tested their idea by renting air mattresses in their own apartment. Zappos started by photographing shoes in local stores and buying them retail after receiving orders—a completely unscalable approach that proved customers would buy shoes online.

Core principles

MVP embodies fundamental assumptions:

Validated learning

Learning over building. The goal isn't to build a product—it's to learn whether customers want it and will pay for it. The MVP is an experiment, not a launch^[2].

Hypothesis testing. Every MVP should test specific hypotheses: Will customers use this feature? Will they pay this price? Can we acquire them through this channel?

Build-measure-learn

Feedback loop. Build the minimum product, measure customer response, learn from the data, then decide whether to persevere, pivot, or stop. Speed through this loop creates competitive advantage^[3].

Iterative development. Rather than one big launch, MVPs enable continuous cycles of learning and improvement.

Common forms

MVPs take various shapes:

Landing page MVP

Testing demand. Before building anything, create a landing page describing the product and measuring sign-up interest. Conversion rates indicate demand.

Examples. Buffer tested its social media scheduling tool with a landing page before coding the actual application^[4].

Wizard of Oz MVP

Manual backend. Present an automated interface while humans perform the work behind the scenes. This tests the customer-facing experience without building automation.

Examples. Zappos manually fulfilled orders to test whether people would buy shoes online before building inventory systems.

Concierge MVP

High-touch service. Deliver the value proposition manually to a small number of customers, learning their needs through direct interaction^[5].

Examples. Food on the Table started by personally helping one customer plan meals and shop before building software.

Single-feature MVP

Core functionality only. Build one feature that delivers the core value proposition, ignoring everything else.

Examples. Foursquare launched with only check-ins and gamification badges—no recommendations, no social features, nothing else.

Common misconceptions

MVP is frequently misunderstood:

Minimum does not mean broken

Viable matters. The product must actually work for its intended purpose. Customers should be able to accomplish their goal, even if the experience is basic^[6].

Quality baseline. MVP doesn't excuse bugs, crashes, or fundamental usability problems that prevent learning.

MVP is not version 1.0

Learning tool, not product launch. An MVP is an experiment to learn, not a product to sell. The learning may reveal that the initial direction is wrong.

Feature minimization is not the goal

Learning maximization. The objective is maximum learning with minimum effort, not minimum features. Sometimes more features are needed to test the hypothesis^[7].

Implementation challenges

MVP adoption faces obstacles:

Quality concerns

Brand risk. Established companies worry that rough products will damage their reputation. Startups can launch MVPs that would embarrass large corporations.

Internal resistance

Perfectionism. Engineers want to build complete solutions. Designers want polished experiences. Shipping something minimal feels wrong.

Fear of copying. Companies worry competitors will steal ideas before full development is complete.

Measurement difficulty

What to measure. Determining the right metrics to evaluate MVP success requires clarity about hypotheses being tested^[8].

Statistical significance. Small sample sizes make it hard to draw reliable conclusions.

When MVP applies

MVP is most valuable when:

Uncertainty is high. When you don't know if customers want the product or how they'll use it, MVPs reduce risk.

Cost of failure is manageable. MVP enables failing fast and cheap before committing major resources.

Speed matters. In fast-moving markets, learning quickly creates competitive advantage.

Minimum viable product — recommended articles

Lean startup — Product development — Entrepreneurship — Agile methodology

References

• Ries E. (2011), The Lean Startup, Crown Business.
• Blank S. (2013), The Four Steps to the Epiphany, K&S Ranch.
• Maurya A. (2012), Running Lean, O'Reilly Media.
• Croll A., Yoskovitz B. (2013), Lean Analytics, O'Reilly Media.

Footnotes

1. ↑ Ries E. (2011), The Lean Startup, p.93
2. ↑ Blank S. (2013), Four Steps to the Epiphany, pp.45-62
3. ↑ Maurya A. (2012), Running Lean, pp.34-48
4. ↑ Croll A., Yoskovitz B. (2013), Lean Analytics, pp.89-102
5. ↑ Ries E. (2011), The Lean Startup, pp.112-128
6. ↑ Blank S. (2013), Four Steps to the Epiphany, pp.98-112
7. ↑ Maurya A. (2012), Running Lean, pp.67-82
8. ↑ Croll A., Yoskovitz B. (2013), Lean Analytics, pp.134-148

Author: Sławomir Wawak