Having an idea for a tech business is a great start. However, how do you work out if it is something that can become a real business? Simply put, you need to engage with users as quickly as possible. The best way to do this is build an MVP.
(There is a trend towards using other acronyms e.g. MLP, but there is no difference to you at this stage. You just need to get it in the hands of users. That’s all that matters.)
An MVP or Minimum Viable Product is a way in which you learn more about your concept and it allows you test it with real users without spending loads of time and money. A good MVP can help you determine if your product is a potential unicorn or a white elephant. It can help you decide if you are ready to take the jump from you secure but dull job or look to raise investment.
Importantly, it’s worth noting that it is actually much easier to raise money if you can show some real traction rather than just presenting an untested idea. Very few PowerPoint slides actually get funded in the real world.
Your first MVP doesn’t have to be a fully fledged product, don’t be afraid to do things manually or use google sheets or something free. Getting it to users is your only goal.
How do you get something up and working for users to test?
If you have the skills you can do this yourself but many Founders do not . You can try to hire people locally but this is time consuming and expensive. You may also find you actually need more skills than one person has. There are numerous roles in a product or engineering team and it’s rare that someone can do it all well.
The good news is that today you have avenues open that years ago you did not. One option to consider is finding an outsourced provider to help you, these can be in expensive places like the UK or US to more affordable options such as India and Ghana. Places in Eastern Europe tend to in the middle and have a lot of quality people. If you can get a recommendation then that is the best way but if not then there are lots of platforms like Upwork where you can find good people.
An experienced person will work with you to help you define the scope of your MVP and have a network of other professionals to help. One mistake you need to avoid is building all the features you “THINK” your users will want. What actually happens is you end up building a lot of useless or sub-par features that no one uses. A good provider will help you to cut this down.
When building an MVP one of the fundamental considerations is cost. You should want to test your ideas as quickly as possible with real users but without spending too much money.
You can get something that is low cost but be careful not to end up with something that is cheap. This happens when people don’t realise that “low” is not the same as “no cost.”
Cheap is what you get when instead of getting someone to build professionally you attempt to build it yourself, even though you have never written a line of code in your life you decide to try. So you spend 3 months learning to code in python two months learning basic CSS and HTML and finally emerge as an inexperienced developer. If you do this you will likely spend a lot of time, build a poor product and ultimately not be able to test if your product solves a problem. Don’t do this.
When looking for a developer don’t automatically sign up with the cheapest. If cost were the only consideration in building websites the internet would be a graveyard for half baked, poorly thought out, incomplete and abandoned MVPs. Take your time, ask lots of questions, look at previous work and get references. A good developer will invest time in this process.
It may be worth finding two or three people you like and spending a bit of money to see how you work together. Give them all the same brief for something simple and ask them to build it. You will get a feel for if you can work together and the quality of the output. Pick to one you like the most.
How do you determine your core features?
So you have found a fair cost option, now it’s time to determine which features are absolutely essential to your project. First of all, list all the features that are nice to have. Out of that list remove all the features that are not “core” or needed in the very first iteration.
For example you’re building a web app that allows people to send invoices to each other, the ability for people to pay for the invoices is a core function, adding on a payroll module is not. Strip the application down to its most basic form, build it fast and share, take feedback and build again. The chances are if your business takes off you may need to rebuild it again someday so don’t worry too much if it is not perfect from day 1.
Design with a purpose
Great design that delights is at the heart of a great MVP. There is a difference between good design and great design. Good design happens when you hire a designer and then flood them with your own ideas. Great design happens when you hire a designer, share your ideas, and give them the creative freedom to turn your ideas into a stunning concept. Easy enough, you would think right? Trust me for many Founders, this is something they find hard to let go of.
Great design is not simply about the aesthetics. To achieve it you need to communicate your ideas clearly to your development team and give them the space to do what they do best.
Invest in the process
While you need to empower the team to do what they do, you do need to stay involved. Regular chats, Whatsapp, slack are all good. It’s an iterative process and you will need to learn how to work together. It takes a lot of time and energy but it’s worth it.
Summary
Remember the minimum in MVP. Strip it down to only the most useful features then reduce it to only the absolutely necessary. Keep it simple but still viable. This the best way to gather feedback from your users.
Low cost does not mean no cost — a hosted web based application with good designed and some functionality will cost you £1,000 to £10,000. This will look good and be able to let you test it.
Find a great team of developers, communicate clearly, then let them get on with it. If you do this you will figure out in a few months whether your idea has legs or not. If if does then fantastic you can move to the next stage with confidence. If it doesn’t then perhaps it’s time to rethink.
Good luck.
