Diving Into Best Minimum Viable Product Example For Startup

Reading Time: 15 minutes

Quick Summary :- This article would highlight why this is important, how to make a successful MVP, and what features to focus on. In the quest of making the best user-friendly and effective software and websites, an MVP is a wonderful stepping stone. There are many merits of it, and a lot of successful websites and applications have gained an upper-ground with its use.

eSparkbiz Technologies Pvt Ltd
Harsh Kundariya (Co Founder, eSparkBiz)

When creating a new website or product, what one needs is the ability to test it out before it reaches the market. In this regard, a Minimum Viable Product Example is a wonderful technique in the development process that works as a trial run.

To specify, an MVP signifies a product version that is fitted with the basic features of the product that one wants to launch.

After doing so, developers put it out for customers to use it and give their feedback on its functions. If the feedback is favorable from the early customers, Professional Minimum Viable Product Development Services providers utilize the information to create a final product with extensive features.

MVP is one of the key supporting factor for developers in the development process, it adds value and brings in lot of functionality support. Hire Developers in India to develop effective end solutions who possess core expertise in working and implementing MVP features.

However, there are a lot of important factors that come into play here, regarding how to properly use these Minimum Viable Product Examples.

For better understanding, this article deals with related concerns and how to create and utilize an MVP in startups.

What Is An MVP?

MVP

Essentially, there are various definitions of the MVP that are shared on the internet, as stated by tech experts. The technique of this development-stage component is highly profitable but there is a lot of confusion regarding it.

This has, in part, to do with the fact that one needs to critically analyze this with relation to maximum and minimum gradation.

Regarding the definition, even the experts who created it agree with said confusion and have admitted to it themselves. But, in the question of What Is Minimum Viable Product, there is a suitable boundary.

To specify, this component is the beginning stage version of the product that creators fill with some basic features. These are enough to satisfy possible customers and developers notice how they react to it.

Consequently, on the basis of the feedback they have gathered and analyzed, developers get working on the following product version. Since a Minimum Viable Product Example is essentially a prototype, not many resources or effort is needed in the second round.

Based on the information from the initial customers, the new product is manufactured and then launched in an advanced form.

While the main concept creator was Frank Robinson, under the control of startup consultants Steve Blank and Eric Ries, its popularity increased.

Key Dimensions Of Development Process

There are some key dimensions that you should take note of before going ahead with the development process. They are:

  • The process is more relevant to MVP than the product
  • The concept needs to hold value to customers for it to sell; only then it is a suitable MVP
  • Relies on market research in the beginning
  • MVP follows the lean type of startup philosophy specifically the building-> measuring-> learning loop iterative process
  • The minimum features in an MVP Minimum Viable Product Example are actually the core ones that showcase the main product idea

Therefore, the MVP is the simplest form of the product, and there are different variations to this. This depends on the product project, and the types include a software prototype, demo video, etc.

How the developers use it also has variations, with some incorporating these for website formation and some for an app. Not only does this work as a promise for customers on what to expect but also guide the development team on how to achieve it.

Where Are MVP Examples Used?

MVP Examples
In the matter of product creation, making a hypothesis is not enough; one has to prove it to the world. For that, testing said hypothesis without exhausting a lot of time, money, and features are necessary.

Plus, in today’s world, trends are everything, and following the market situation and customer’s wishes are important for success. Owing to this, having a testing format to fall back on that is both risk-free and budget-friendly is crucial.

And because of that, a Minimum Viable Product Example is a wonderfully helpful plan, and it has many benefits.

  • Avoidance of building something people do not desire
  • Proving your hypothesis is accurate
  • Using the minimum amount of resources to test the theory
  • Possibility of checking how the market reaction to your product and tendencies are
  • Helps you understand your own product better and what it offers
  • The MVP Software helps in avoiding loss of too much revenue
  • Cooperating with potential customers directly to avoid user dissatisfaction and grow customer curiosity
  • Growing user base
  • Not wasting too much time between development and final launch due to the test run in the middle
  • Attracting early investors
  • Not wasting too much time or resources in engineering and relying on the Minimum Viable Product Template
  • Prepares the development team about the product on the go

What Makes A Successful MVP?

There are some specific factors that determine if an MVP is genuinely successful or not.

Ensuring one follows them, making your Minimum Valuable Product successful is not difficult to achieve. They are as mentioned hereafter.

Focusing on customer feedback

One of the main things that developers must focus on is the feedback they receive from the customers. It is important to note what your main goal is, which is to gain success in the markets.

So, the early adopters are the ones who would see a view on what the product is like. These people would honestly give their opinion, and through that window, you would understand how your target audience would react.

A successful MVP Minimum Viable Product Example occurs when the developers genuinely take note of the feedback and make the necessary changes.

Accurate

In order to ensure that an MVP gets an approval, it is important to notice the components within it. While it is true that you can only enter a small number of features, it is crucial to plan what those features are.

Every developer has a basic idea of the crux of the hypothesis, and the features that most highlight them should gain importance.

Indeed, it is important to fit in the notable characteristics to make up for the minimum aspect of a Minimum Viable Product Template. Volume is key, as long as it is an accurate amount.

Buyer-centric structure

When creating an MVP, it is sometimes possible to lose sight of the main goal. Thus, it is important to combat this issue and keep in mind the target buyers at all times.

Being specific about the target client’s requirements would also help you align your framework levelly.

Certainly, visualizing what the buyer’s profile is would also work to create the perfect Minimum Viable Product Example as it removes confusion.

Testing-focused

In essence, an MVP is the initial design of a product that consumers check out and give their notes on. Based on that, the final product is launched, and thus it is important not to confuse the two as similar.

Developers create an MVP model and add features on the basis of an idea, but they also expect issues. This is essential in the first few versions as the team recognizes the problem areas as building and training blocks.

Thus, a successful MVP occurs when the developers are open to learning at this stage and then use that retention, commitment, and conversions to make the main product.

Not money-focused

For a Minimum Viable Product Example to work accurately and gain success is to focus on the testing process alone. As mentioned earlier, it is best not to worry about revenue collection and profit at this stage.

Focusing on adding the features and not charging money is crucial, as more customers would feel interested to try it out. This, in itself, is a huge kick in the right direction.

It is important to mention that this testing and customer satisfaction technique is used for both website development and app development. Thus, the Minimum Viable Product Examples you would notice also range within these two formats.

Best Minimum Viable Product Examples

Product Design

In terms of design, there are variations according to the complexity of the look, and they are as follows. Each, of course, is equally important in the later stages of actual product development.

Thus, you are wasting neither time nor cost when treating them as Minimum Viable Product Examples.

Sketches

Using tools like Proto.io and Balsamiq, a free-hand sketch of the system drawing is presented to investors, or for crowdfunding. It is used to give a general idea of the webpage or main page, highlighting the core mechanics.

Mockups

Another type of Minimum Viable Product Example is the mockups which are sometimes clickable and mostly already ready.

Specifically, the UI mockups fall under this category, and the full-size colored product design is utilized for promotion, demonstration, fundraising, or evaluation.

Wireframe

The UX wireframes showcase the basic skeleton of the product, keeping with the platform guidelines.

For low-budget MVP creation, this type gives a basic view of the website through product features, screen navigation, and system element locations.

One popular example of this in the app version is Tinder, with its simple left-and-right-swipe technique.

Demo Videos

As an example of a demo video format of a Minimum Valuable Product, a Dropbox 3-minute video is a mentionable example.

This format of showing a video of its features was a great interactive format of gaining funds and user feedback.

In such MVP models, information is provided in an explanatory and visually pleasing way to showcase the features.

Specifically, for platforms like Dropbox, who’s free storage-related traits cannot get translated into a physical model, demo videos are highly useful.

Landing Page

One of the most popular and useful forms of a Minimum Viable Product Example is the landing page. Under this, a single static web page is presented with the sole purpose of marketing.

Usually, these pages are visible in the search results where viewers receive key information regarding marketed products. Matters like the offer value and the benefits and specifications are visible here, and potential customers gain interest in using them.

Based on how well the customer reaction is, the user base increases and consequently the availability of investments too. As an example of a good landing page as an MVP, you should notice that of an app named Buffer.

Crowdfunding

Another aspect of MVP software as a testing manual is in the concern of crowdfunding. To elaborate, this is a practice that is used to fund a venture or a project, through crowdsourcing.

A huge group of people who are interested in ventures donates money for the products even before it is launched. There are some Crowdfunding App Like Kickstarter and Gofundme that have gained payment and user engagement through this method.

For example, the team of Bounce wanted to produce a time-tracking mobile application that would tell users when they are getting late.

Due to its beneficial uses, many customers paid early for its development, and thus, this Minimum Viable Product Example is worth considering.

Piecemeal

Like the name vaguely suggests, this type of MVP is not a new product but born of parts of other products. To clarify, there are many useful services and tools that are already available in the market.

Those using Piecemeal as a Minimum Viable Product Template take said components and pick-and-choose which they find most valuable.

Given that, they piece together the chosen ones and create something original with new functionality.

However, there are certain issues that can arise in an MVP development process. For the piecemeal MVP type, it may come from other service partners or collaborators.

Concierge

In terms of What Is Minimum Viable Product, the answer you get is not always concerning digital format. There are some in which you have to involve service delivery in real-time to grow product awareness.

Indeed, Concierge is one such MVP type where you need to give the service you promise to the customers manually.

If the reaction is good, that would grow the audience base. Not to mention, it also gives the developers an idea about the viability of this product.

One good example of a Concierge MVP done right is a grocery and food-related application originated by Manuel Rosso, named Food on the Table.

Wizard of Oz

Some of the best apps and other such products rely on humans manually handling the process. As such, the concept of Wizard of Oz as a Minimum Viable Product Example is an interesting and valuable version.

Like the story the name is derived from, this test product visually appears functional and the operation is handled by humans. Given its old-school vibe, other names for this are Flintstone MVPs or Manual-first MVPs.

Two notable examples of success stories that used this testing tactic as an MVP are Zappos (shoe-selling website) and Aardvark (Q&A forum).

Software Prototype

Another notable Minimum Viable Product Example is software prototype which is a condensed form of an in-development software. This is generally presented in an incomplete manner and is an actual developing app in its beginning stage.

Out of the many MV options available to try out, this one is the most prominent one. This is because it is essentially already constructed with the base features and is shown to the potential customer as such.

If they like the prototype, the developers would then adopt the points from the feedback that they need to work on. However, there are specifications you must meet to be eligible to use it. This includes if you have a budget and audience already.

Facebook

A global networking giant that started its bedrock as a Minimum Viable Product Example for an idea is Facebook.

This ultra-popular website was started in a college room by students as Facebook in a way to boost class performance and student connectivity. Students could link with other students and post messages online for them.

While the idea was not original, the simple interface and easier usage grew its popularity around the world. Currently, it is a multi-billion dollar company with its reach in most countries and billions of users.

Groupon

In older times, a popular thing that many women and men held onto during their shopping practices were deals and vouchers.

With the advent of the digital age, this use was translated as an MVP Minimum Viable Product Example through Groupons.

Using basic interface frameworks like PDFs and WordPress, the site provided early subscribers with such deals and vouchers for online shopping.

Due to the money-saving possibility, many people found this type of voucher system of great value.

Adwords Express

In terms of what the product is, Adwords Express is a smaller version of the Adwords website and is essentially one Minimum Viable Product Example.

The purpose of this was simple; giving the customers an ad copy of the specific nature. The reason this version is referred to as an MVP and Adworks is not is because of the way it was during creation.

Specifically, it follows the Wizard Oz MVP approach, where the back-end was handled by a select number of students.

They manually typed down the ads and then sent it to customers, both at a fast pace. Currently, this application is much bigger and thus the system of operation is completely automated as well.

Zalando

Originally created during 2008 by David Schneider and Robert Gentz, this site was actually under the name Ifansho.

It is a German brand that focused on selling shoes to customers online in the beginning. Taking inspiration from another site Zappos, they started this particular site to sell shoes using pictures of good items from shoe stores.

Why it is called a Minimum Viable Product Example is because of the manual labor that was involved at the time of inception.

When an order came in, as an employee you would personally go to the store, package and then ship the shoes. It started with practically no e-commerce element involved and a one-man logistics team but has grown since.

Airbnb

One of the best applications that gained momentum as a Minimum Valuable Product is Airbnb. This application is one of the biggest revenue collecting apps today and is a big alternative to the hotel industry.

And the way it started was as a small but useful app that connected travelers to homeowners who are okay with sharing their extra rooms.

With the easy-to-use interface, cost-saving idea, and helpful features, this soon grew in popularity. Now, developers have made many suitable and advanced changes and have expanded in a regional manner too.

Zynga

Zynga did not start out as a product but with the right platform, it grew in size. Indeed, both this and the platform it gained success from, Facebook, are Minimum Viable Product Examples.

In the case of Zynga, it was a poker game at first that people with a Facebook account could play.

With the reach it enjoyed on this platform, the revenue and feedback started growing and the product started expanding.

Consequently, it gave rise to Farmville, which is notably a majorly popular game in current times.

Pebble

In the question of e-commerce and online shopping, there are many valuable product ranges that are popular. In terms of the smart-watch industry, Pebble is a Minimum Viable Product Example that is contributing to its growing revenue bank.

When it came out as an MVP under Kickstarter, the service was well-liked and this e-paper template racked up $10 million investment.

While it is not visible in the market currently, it was a notable website at the time with loyal fan-following. In fact, the Pebble Time version also earned over $20 million of profit in 2015.

Amazon

Currently, Amazon is one of the biggest e-commerce giants with a reach on a global scale. There are many uses of this website that people take help from, including selling and buying products, streaming services, and much more.

Originally though, it was an online bookselling website and thus is a good Minimum Viable Product Example.

Its main ideology was to sell books at a discounted rate. But with time and success, developers reached out into other fields noticing the market need. Thus, this is a good example of an MVP success story.

Zappos

The reason why Zappos is one of the most noteworthy mentions among the Minimum Viable Product Examples is the success the idea got. In the field of shoe-retail, founder Nick Swinmurn found the idea to start a site selling shoes without having any stock.

What he did was he took pictures of the good-looking shoes he saw in a store and posted them on the site.

Interested customers flocked to this online platform, and mentioned the ones they wanted. Subsequently, he bought it himself and then sent the product to the client.

His idea was to see if people would purchase something they have not tried on physically. Of course, he got a positive reception to it and now Zappos is one notably successful retail website.

Esty

Etsy is a thriving website that gained fame among the craftsmen and is a good Minimum Viable Product Example gone right.

Taking inspiration from eBay, this platform focuses on growing small-scale crafts-store popularity. Under this, those looking to sell their products provided the picture and important information.

Customers found this service useful and the site rose from a Minimum Valuable Product to an actual product.

Dropbox

In the sense of file synchronization, Dropbox is an upper-league storage service that syncs with most devices. It is a cloud-based application that allows users to store different types of files of different sizes, in a secure manner.

However, in terms of gaining investment, creator Drew Houston along with his team needed to present an idea.

Thus, they used MVP software of the demo video to show the expected features and the synchronization process in 3 minutes. The gamble paid off and customer interest grew, leading to the beginning of the development process.

Buffer

 

As an example of a stable and successful landing page, Buffer’s easy and simple version is very popular.

It started with the idea that creator Joel Gascoigne got while using Twitter one day. What if one could schedule tweets and other such social media posts ahead of time?

To showcase his idea for Buffer, he created a two-page landing page informing visitors of its feature, pricing, and software.

The idea was original and investors showed interest, and Buffer finally started development. Thus, it is a highly mentionable Minimum Viable Product Example.

Twitter

Twitter is a highly popular social media site now, but it started as an attempt to turn Odeo, a podcasting company profitable. Software developers Biz Stone, Evan Williams, Jack Dorsey, and Noah Glass decided to combine SMS service with up-to-date statuses.

This led to the inception of Twttr, present-day Twitter, and was originally planned for internal employee use at Odeo.

When that did not work out, this Minimum Viable Product Example reached the bigger market in the form of a web interface. Currently, it is an estimated billion-dollar company.

Foursquare

In the market of online use, location sensing software is a game changer that many individuals find the need for.

Thus, developers mention a name among the best Minimum Viable Product Examples of its time. And that is Foursquare, a social media platform, with location-based tech in a single-feature MVP format.

This platform is the brainchild of creators Naveen Selvadurai and David Crowley, who has previous experience of creating such an app.

They got together and created a Foursquare MVP and they used minimal features in the beginning.

Users could check in at more than one location and they received badges too. After the popularity grew, the creators added more innovations and now it is a useful city guide.

Spotify

Music is another majorly popular consumer need and creators Martin Lorentzon and Daniel started their own MVP creation for it.

This Minimum Viable Product Example was aiming for users to get songs legally and with only a small fee. Their Spotify MVP was simple and performed the to-the-point function of streaming music.

The creators started their customer feedback small, just their friends and family. With growing interest, they started going big; from cities to other countries.

Currently, this service is present in 79 countries, with paid subscribers and different streaming modes besides songs.

Uber

You might not be aware, but Uber was not always this popular, nor was its valuation in millions. Initially, the Uber’s MVP was named as the UberCab.

It was launched in 2009 but was limited to iPhone owners and people living in San Francisco and that too with an invite from the CEO.

However, the one thing that attributed to the success it has today was that it linked people wanting to hire a car to drivers and displayed the location.

It enabled Travis to grasp the demand for hired car services in the market. Next, the idea was pitched to other car drivers. Few agreed, and now it is a successful and noteworthy Minimum Viable Product Example.

iPhone

Now the inclusion of the iPhone to the list might give you a momentary shock. Steve Jobs might be a genius, but he too understood the implications of testing the market before adding more features to a new product.

The first-ever iPhone was launched in 2007, and it lacked the most basic features.

However, the attributes that the phone had were excellent. Would you believe that the original iPhone lacked the most simple find option? Or that it didn’t have the option of copying anything? Sounds unbelievable, right?

But, the team did not want to include features that were not fully developed or working at the time. Despite the lack of basic features, the product was well-received, and now the iPhone is a technological benchmark.

Want To Access World-Class MVP Development Services?
We will craft an MVP for your app/product that helps you to save a lot of money.

How To Build Minimum Viable Product?

Minimum Valuable Products can define the success or failure of your startup. If done correctly, it will give you the push needed to get an idea of the trending market.

Here’s how you can build an MVP.

Research on the market

Conduct a thorough study of the market before launching an MVP.

It is vital to know if the product you want to release is in demand and what the competitors are putting out.

You must be different from them to gain the attention of the consumers.

The design process and user flow

The design of the product must be attractive to captivate the users.

It also must be user-friendly. The user flow of the product must be smooth with little to no glitches.

The more easily the customer can use your product, the more favorable will it be for you.

List the features

It is vital that you identify the features that must be a priority for the product.

Take a look at the MVPs before yours to gain insight. If you are not releasing something unique, you will have to do better than the previous ones.

Build, Measure, and Learn

The ultimate goal for releasing the Minimum Valuable Product is to ensure the success of a business.

In that case, it is vital to act upon the feedback received and improve the product so that it meets the requirements of the users.

After its development, repeated testing must be done for quality assurance.

Conclusion

In order to test the market demands of a relatively new product, MVP is utterly vital. It aids the companies to make action plans from the feedback and also assists them in understanding the needs of the consumers.

The tales and examples of the various MVPs mentioned above prove its importance and how using it correctly could lead to the establishment of a successful firm.

However, it is also important to know how to build it and be critical of the reviews received. It’s no wonder that several of the largest corporations had once started their journey from an MVP.

We hope you had a great time reading this article and it will prove helpful when you’re dealing with MVP Development. Thank You.!

Harsh Kundariya

Co Founder, eSparkBiz

Passionate about everything happening in the field of SaaS & Cloud Apps. The Co-Founder of eSparkBiz@SaaS Application Development Company. Interested in exploring various aspects related to SaaS technology. Curious about knowing each everything that happens in the world of HubSpot Marketing. It has landed him to be among the top-notch Entrepreneurs with 14+ years of experience in India and the USA.
Frequently Asked Questions
  1. How To Create A Minimum Viable Product?

    There are some steps that you need to follow in order to create a minimum viable product. They are as follows:

    Step 1: Market Research
    Step 2: Express Your Idea
    Step 3: Consider the Design Process & User Flow
    Step 4: List the MVP Features
    Step 5: Build Your MVP
    Step 6: Build, Measure, and Learn

  2. What Does Minimum Viable Product Mean?

    Minimum Viable Product or MVP is a development technique where new products are introduced with basic features to get customers’ attention.

  3. What Are The Key Characteristics Of Minimum Viable Product?

    The key characteristics of a minimum viable product are listed below:

    • It has a value that people can buy it
    • It demonstrates the future benefit
    • It provides feedback for improvement
  4. What Are The Successful Minimum Viable Product Examples?

    Facebook, Adwords Express, Airbnb, Pebble, Amazon, etc.

  5. What Makes A Successful MVP?

    The traits of a successful MVP are listed as follows:

    • Built for one person
    • Listen to many people
    • Little focus on doing less
    • Focus on testing
    • Small launch
  6. What Is Minimum Viable Service?

    Minimum Viable Service is required to get customers onboard and productive with the solution.

  7. What Is Minimum Usable Product?

    Minimum Usable Product (MUP) is the minimum features that are needed to build a product for the purpose it got to serve.

Expert Insights For Digital Product Development

We at eSparkBiz are passionate about discussing recent technologies and applications. We constantly write blogs and articles associated with the field of technology. So, don't miss our detailed and insightful write-ups. You'll find all our latest blogs and blog updates here.

How Much Does It Cost to Build An MVP? (A Complete Guide)

eSparkbiz Technologies Pvt Ltd
Chintan Gor CTO, eSparkBiz

Did you know why most of the start-ups fail? According to the CNBC report, the reason is due to bad financial planning and the wrong…

MVP vs POC vs Prototype: Comparing Different Aspect Of App Development

eSparkbiz Technologies Pvt Ltd
Harikrishna Kundariya CEO, eSparkBiz

Imagine you just got a million-dollar idea, should you directly jump to coding? The answer is NO. It is very important to follow a set…