Most apps fail within the first year of launch. In fact, numbers say that about 90% of apps fail don’t even get noticed. It can mean many things, such as:

The apps don’t get enough downloads
Users delete the app within a short span of time
The app can’t generate revenue

This is where an MVP becomes valuable. Also known as a minimum viable product, it is an app’s first version that builds on user feedback. Instead of building the complete app at once, you build a basic version that turns into the final app with user feedback and iteration.

An MVP can save you from wasting resources and time on useless features. In this guide, learn how you can launch a successful app with a basic version.

What is a Minimum Viable Product?

A minimum viable product, also known as an MVP, is your product’s first version with its core features and minimum development. It could be a landing page or functional software prototype, depending on your business idea.

The key goal of an MVP is to validate a product idea early in the development stages. With minimum features, it allows startups to get user feedback and iterate quickly. Hence, leading to a final product that solves real user problems.

Why are MVPs Crucial for Startups?

MVPs aren’t crucial just for product idea validation. They also hold many potential benefits that can help startups grow faster in a competitive market. Here are five benefits of MVPs:

De-risk the Idea: MVPs can save high costs associated with complete product development on an unvalidated idea. Thus, it also allows for quick pivots in early stages.
Market Demand: User feedback on MVPs can determine whether there is any market demand for the product. It ensures that you spend resources and time on the right idea.
Early Launch: If your product has a positive demand, you can launch early and gain a competitive edge with strong brand positioning.
Strategic Product: MVPs have an iterative process based on user feedback. This leads to a more market-fit final product.
Attract Investors: MVPs demonstrate proof of concept, user data, and market validation, which makes investors more likely to invest in them.

In simple words, an MVP can save costs, attract investors, and get startups real user traction. These factors make it more sustainable than launching a final product.

Key Principles of MVP Development

An MVP relies on the “Build-Measure-Learn” loop. It is the first principle of building a minimum viable product.

In this principle, Build means to create the MVP. Measure is about tracking user feedback. Lastly, Learn means to analyze user data to plan the next steps such as pivoting or iteration. It’s a loop because the process repeats until the final product is ready.

The second principle is to focus on one core problem. This leads us to the third principle, which is, to identify your users and build on their feedback.

How to Build an MVP in 7 Steps?

Whether you’re code or not, yoqu can launch a functional MVP quickly using AI. You can build the basic version of your mobile app using Natively and iterate as you get user feedback.

Here’s how you can build an MVP in 7 steps:

1. Idea validation

Identify the specific problem that your product idea aims to solve. It’s a foundational step as it defines whether your product is worth building or not.

Once you’ve defined the problem, find out who is actually facing this problem. User interviews are an excellent way to understand your ideal customers and build user personas. It will help you understand what exactly your audience wants.

2. Prioritize features

An MVP should have only the core features. To avoid adding unnecessary features to your product’s first version, you can use the MoSCoW method.

The MoSCoW method is a technique that can help you prioritize the features in order. It has four categories: Must-Have, Should-Have, Could-Have, and Won’t Have. This is a simple explanation for all:

Must-Have are the core features that are necessary.
Should-Have are the features that the product needs but not in the immediate version.
Could-Have are the features that could be added but aren’t necessary.
Won’t-Have are the least valuable features.

Your MVP’s first version should focus on the Must-Have features.

3. Analyze your competitors

Competitor analysis can help you identify gaps in the market that your MVP can fill. You can perform a SWOT analysis to evaluate your competition’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Before development, this step can help you strengthen your features.

4. Build your MVP

If you’re planning to build a native app, you can use an AI app builder such as Natively. It can help you launch, test, and iterate quickly. Once you’ve validated your idea, you can build your app in a few steps:

Describe your MVP’s features and design in Natively’s prompt box.
Let the AI build your app’s first version.
If you want to make any changes, try iterative prompts.
Connect your project with Supabase and add integrations.
Once your app’s frontend and backend is ready, deploy and launch.

You can always make changes and add more features to your app using prompts. That’s the best part — you don’t need to code.

5. Make it live

Once your product is live, it’s time to test it out. You can make it live within your community or on popular platforms such as Product Hunt. At this point, your goal is to make customers try the product and give feedback.

6. Iterate and refine

Numbers and analytics are the core focus here. Track user engagement and seek qualitative feedback through surveys and user interviews to measure the MVP’s effectiveness. This will help you plan the necessary improvements.

Based on validated learning, refine your product repeatedly with enhanced features in future versions. You will have to iterate until you build the final product, approved by user feedback.

Common Mistakes to Avoid When Developing an MVP

MVPs seem easy to build with their feedback-and-iterate loops. However, here are three common mistakes most people make while developing one:

Feature creep: Avoid adding unnecessary features to the V1 of your app. Stick to the core feature of your app and ignore the rest.
Ignoring user feedback: User feedback is what takes your MVP to a successful final product. Give your users the center stage because their feedback is valuable.
Bad user experience: Even in the first version, a poor interface and planning will affect user feedback. Make sure that your app is easy to use.

An MVP should be functional and user-friendly, even if it’s in early development stages. Such mistakes can cost you honest user feedback.

Conclusion

An MVP allows you to validate an idea without having to put your resources at risk. In fact, about 81.6% small business owners believe that an MVP can help test if a business idea is worth build or not.

With AI app builders, it’s much cost-effective and efficient to build apps nowadays for anyone. Platforms like Natively allow you to build and launch mobile apps within minutes, regardless of your technical knowledge. Thus, giving an advantage to your ideas.