Minimum marketable product – further steps after MVP
For software to be successful on the market, it must meet the needs of users and give them satisfaction while using the application. This can only happen when we conduct a multi-stage process during which we examine these needs and adapt the product to them. MVP and then MMP versions are part of the process,.
What is MVP?
The stages of each development include creating a UX prototype ( lo-fi), and then high fidelity (hi-fi), created by UI specialists. It is used in research such as laboratory, remote, telephone and guerrilla tests. They are carried out with or without moderation and allow you to optimize the shape of the application.
MVP (Minimum Viable Product) is going a step further in product testing. It is a version with only minimal functions to meet the needs of the target. At the same time, it is at an early stage of development. Thanks to MVP, we get feedback from users faster and at the same time from a large research sample (of course, if we manage to encourage users to install it).
The minimum viable product is an important part of the process when we use Agile methodology. It is based on iterations and enables a return to earlier stages of development if the effect is not satisfactory. And whether it is satisfactory, will be determined by user research. Therefore, by receiving feedback from many people who installed MVP, we will be able to improve the product before the release of the consumer version.
What if users massively criticize our software and it turns out that it is not even worth improving? Thanks to this, we will learn that we have incorrectly assessed the target's needs and that the product was incorrectly designed from the very beginning. We will then save in the further stages of development by resigning from software development. So we will also benefit by minimizing losses.
What is MMP?
Supposing we've been able to improve the software based on user feedback and it's worth further work. The next stage will be the launch of MMP (Minimum Marketable Product}, also known as MSP (Minimum Sellable Product).
This is a product version containing a basic set of functionalities that meet the immediate needs of the user. In other words, it has the minimum of features required for customer satisfaction. At the same time, it already gives the company an opportunity to have first profits.
Therefore, the MMP differs from the MVP in this marketaspect. Both contain basic functions, so what else differs them? MVP is for learning from the market and the target. Thanks to this kind of knowledge, we can improve the product enough to be almost sure it will work. We want to introduce it to the market, but at the same time we do not want to wait until we finish implementing all planned functionalities.
This is where the MMP comes in, which is aimed at providing user satisfaction. We know from earlier steps that they will almost certainly need our software. We plan to expand it with new functionalities, but those that are already in the MMP version are enough to make it work on the market. We will implement the rest in future versions and updates.
MVP vs MMP
Further than MMP
MMP is a natural stage of development - not yet complete, as it lacks the target functionalities, but is ready to be launched on the market. However, it cannot exist without the MVP, which in turn should be based on reliable testing with prototypes.
The next version of the product may be MLP, or Minimum Lovable Product. It includes functionalities that are to make the software not only useful, but also so you can say "you will love it". MLP focuses on users' emotions when using the application, but it is still a minimal version of the product.
It is worth being aware of how multi-stage software development is. However, by implementing MVP and MMP (and possibly MLP), we are already nearing the end. Hopefully this will result in measurable value, marketability and user love!
