From Empathy to MVP: The HCD Approach to Creating Killer CVPs

This week I'm excited to share with you how my husband Steve and I used Human Centred Design (HCD) to create a Customer Value Proposition (CVP) for our Wonder and Wander Ecosystem. It might look like we're doing too much sometimes (I mean, we're juggling 5 kids and a ton of exciting ideas), but trust me, there's method to our madness, and I want to share some lessons we've learned along the way.

Now, you may be wondering, "What the heck is HCD?" Well, let me tell you, it's a game-changer. It's an approach that puts the customer at the center of the design process, which means creating a product or service that's tailored to meet their specific needs. And the best part? It's all about positivity, optimism, and innovative thinking.

Gone are the days of launching products without testing or validation. With modern tools and methodologies like agile development and customer-centric design, it's easier than ever to test and validate your ideas. So, how do you create a CVP using an HCD approach?

Step 1: Empathize with the customer. This means understanding their needs and pain points through research, interviews, and surveys. We call this the 'pantry check test' because it requires getting intimate and truly understanding our customers. To know them, we have to go beyond what they tell us and observe for ourselves.

Step 2: Define the problem. After empathizing with the customer, the next step is to define the problem or challenge that the product or service aims to solve. We call this collapsing particles because it requires framing the problem or opportunity by making decisions and documenting assumptions and hypotheses.

Step 3: Ideate potential solutions. This involves brainstorming potential solutions to the defined problem. We encourage people to transport themselves to the WONDER ZONE (or very soon our new actual physical space The Wonder Lab in Stanmore Bay, Auckland, New Zealand) in this step. Here, we challenge our own limitations and genuinely think expansively and creatively, the weirder and wilder ideas, the better.

Step 4: Prototype the solutions. This is where the fun really begins. We play and make our ideas real by building mock-ups, models, or other representations of the product or service to test and refine the design. It is important you don't choose for your customer, taking wild ideas to prototyping for testing helps stretch your own thinking as well as your customers.

Step 5: Test the prototypes with the customer. The final step is to test the prototypes with the target customer. This involves getting feedback and iterating on the design based on the customer's feedback.“If?I had?asked?people what?they wanted,?they?would have said faster horses.” is an important reminder that while customer feedback is important, customer feedback at the right stage is even more important. Don't just ask people what they want, show them solutions to address their pain points and observe how it helps them.

Once the CVP has been designed using the HCD approach, the next step is to make it real. We recommend creating a Minimum Viable Loveable Product (MVL), a basic version of the product or service that can be launched quickly and inexpensively. This allows you to test the product or service in the market and gather feedback from customers.

To make the CVP real, you also need to develop a go-to-market plan, a pricing strategy that aligns with the CVP and the target customer's willingness to pay, and a customer support system that provides an excellent customer experience through multiple channels.

Overall, an HCD approach to CVP can help businesses create a product or service that meets the specific needs of the target customer. It's all about positivity, optimism, and innovative thinking. So, let's build stuff that works for people who care, and if you want to run through this process with me, let's book a call! You can find my calendar at https://calendly.com/sarahpirienally.