How can you use your MVP to attract investors?

Early-stage investors in Africa are always looking for teams with strong product traction. As a founder/CEO, your job is to quickly assemble the right team, prove your model, and get it to the right customers. If you can demonstrate traction and growth, investors will come. Your MVP doesn't need to be perfect, but it should solve the core needs of your customers and demonstrate that you can deliver a product that people are willing to pay for. This will show investors that your startup is worth investing in.

At this early stage, you are pitching your team, their unique insights, and the traction you have already achieved. Early traction is important because it shows investors that you can acquire customers and make money. This is the most likely way to convince more investors to back you. Use your pitch deck to highlight your team's expertise, show how you plan to solve unique insights, showcase your product and traction, and explain why now is the best time to build your startup. You may also have a special story or data that peaks the interest of investors. Rule of thumb: keep investors learning something new on each slide and keep them engaged.

Best way to validate MVP is to create a list of early adopters - usually 30-50 for enterprise / B2B products and 250-350 for consumer products. Once MVP is ready, this initial test case becomes most critical for feedback, reviews, and refinement of the product. There is nothing better than insights gained from prospective customers in evaluating your MVP.

In my experience working with startups seeking funding and trying to make their first few sales, earning customers is the top validation. Data, research, and product demonstration is important, but securing a customer base, even if small, shows that there are people willing to allocate money and time to your product. Use those customers to collect feedback and improve your product over time.

To validate your MVP, start with key unique insights and collaborate with your customers to launch it. If customers find your product valuable enough to pay for it and lovable enough to refer others, then you have successfully validated your MVP.

To demonstrate traction to investors, it is critical to understand which metrics are important for your business model. Revenue is a universal metric, but other metrics may be more important depending on your business model. For example, marketplaces can track GMV (gross merchandise value), payment channels can track transaction volume, and investment platforms can track AUM (assets under management). Before you talk to investors, identify your business model and the key metrics that demonstrate traction for that model.

When it comes to fundraising, a founder needs to know that different investors are incentivized differently to join your round. Despite that, there remain some standard variables and criteria that all investors look for: team strength, product-market fit, and traction. When a startup builds an MVP, the team proves their strength and potential in all: - Strong team that is capable of driving an idea into existence - Product-market-fit through MVP validation - Traction through initial sign-ups or revenue generation As a founder, do not underestimate the value of building your MVP. There are tons of lessons for you to learn throughout and after the build-up. Hope this helps!