Along the Road of Whats NOT an MVP!
Mohan Simham
Founder, Head of Product @ Edupult | New Business Development, Product Leadership
Along the Road of Whats NOT an MVP
In the fast-paced world of product development, there’s a term that gets tossed around like a hot potato at a tech startup’s Christmas party: MVP, or Minimum Viable Product. For the uninitiated, an MVP is supposed to be the simplest, leanest version of your product that still solves a problem for the user. It’s like the culinary equivalent of a peanut butter sandwich: basic, but it gets the job done.
But not everything that gets labeled as an MVP actually qualifies. Let’s take a look at what definitely doesn’t count as an MVP in the world of product development. If you’ve ever found yourself in any of the following situations, congratulations—you’ve created a Non-Viable Product!
1. The “Glorified PowerPoint Deck” MVP
You’ve got an idea. It’s brilliant. Revolutionary, even. So naturally, your first instinct is to create... a PowerPoint deck? You slap together a few slides, add some stock photos, and maybe a buzzword or two like “synergy” or “disruptive innovation.” And there you have it—a glorified PowerPoint that does absolutely nothing except look impressive in a pitch meeting. Sorry, but unless your product is a new form of slideshow software, this doesn’t count as an MVP.
Theranos valued a Decacorn [USD 10 Billion] didn’t obviously have an MVP
Elizabeth Holmes famously pitched her blood-testing company Theranos with a slick PowerPoint presentation. The problem? The technology was nowhere near viable. The slides might have dazzled investors, but the reality was far from functional.
2. The “Half-Baked Beta” MVP
So you’ve The “Half-Baked Beta” MVP built a prototype, but it’s more glitchy than a 1990s internet connection. Buttons don’t work, pages don’t load, and if you squint, you can almost see your user’s soul leaving their body in frustration. The only thing this MVP is “minimally viable” for is driving your users to the brink of madness. Remember, an MVP is supposed to be functional, not a psychological endurance test.
Microsoft Zune
Microsoft’s attempt to compete with the iPod, the Zune, was rushed to market with software that was prone to crashes and an interface that left much to be desired. The half-baked product never gained traction, and Microsoft eventually discontinued it.
3. The “Feature-Bloated Behemoth” MVP
On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have the Feature-Bloated Behemoth. This is when your MVP tries to do everything at once. It’s got bells, whistles, and a built-in espresso machine. The result? A confusing, unwieldy product that leaves users wondering if they’re supposed to be using it or making a cappuccino. The point of an MVP is to focus on the core value—not to create a Frankenstein’s monster of features.
Samsung Galaxy Note 7
Samsung tried to pack so many features into the Galaxy Note 7—an iris scanner, curved screen, water resistance, and more—that they overlooked one crucial detail: battery safety. The result was a phone that literally exploded, leading to one of the most infamous product recalls in tech history.
4. The “Post-It Note” MVP
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Sure, minimalism is trendy, but there’s such a thing as taking it too far. If your MVP consists of nothing more than a Post-It note with a vague idea scribbled on it, you might want to rethink your approach. Yes, it’s minimal, but is it viable? Not unless you’re marketing to the world’s laziest venture capitalists.
JooJoo Tablet
The JooJoo Tablet started as a conceptual sketch on a napkin, hyped as an iPad competitor. However, when the product finally hit the market, it was underpowered, lacked apps, and was riddled with issues. Unsurprisingly, it flopped.
5. The “Invisible MVP”
This one’s for all the over-ambitious thinkers out there. You’ve got big plans—huge, in fact. But when it comes to actually building something, you’re a bit... invisible. Maybe you’re still “ideating,” or perhaps you’re waiting for Mercury to be in retrograde. Whatever the reason, you’ve got nothing tangible to show, which means your MVP is as elusive as Bigfoot.
Quibi
Quibi raised $1.75 billion to create a new streaming platform but spent so much time building the perfect product that by the time it launched, the market had shifted. The app struggled to find an audience, and the invisible promise of what it could have been was never realized.
7. The “Can’t Do Anything” MVP
This MVP is like that one friend who talks a big game but never actually shows up. It promises the world but delivers nothing. Maybe it’s a mobile app that doesn’t connect to the server, or a website that’s just a placeholder page. Either way, it’s about as useful as a chocolate teapot. Remember, an MVP needs to do something—anything, really—to be considered viable.
Google Wave
Google Wave was marketed as a revolutionary communication tool that could replace email, chat, and document collaboration. But when it launched, users were baffled by its complexity and lack of clear functionality. It didn’t do anything particularly well, leading Google to quietly shelve it.
Avoiding the MVP Traps
Creating an MVP is like walking a tightrope. Lean too far in one direction, and you end up with a glorified demo. Lean too far in the other, and you’ve got a full-fledged product that’s neither minimal nor viable. The key is balance—focusing on what truly matters and delivering a product that can stand on its own two feet, no matter how basic.
So the next time you’re tempted to call your product an MVP, take a step back and ask yourself: Is it minimal? Is it viable? Or is it just a Post-It note in disguise? If it’s the latter, it’s time to go back to the drawing board—before your “MVP” turns into a “Majorly Vexing Product.”
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