MVP (Minimum Viable Product)

The MVP comes in at the very start of a SaaS or mobile app project, before committing to full development. For example, a startup testing whether tradespeople will pay for an invoicing tool can launch with a simple form and a basic dashboard, skipping advanced accounting features entirely. The point is to measure real behavior (sign-ups, payments, usage) rather than collect opinions on an idea. This avoids spending six months building something nobody wants.

The most common mistake is treating the MVP as a stripped-down version of the final product and keeping too many features out of caution. An MVP that's too broad delays validation and costs money for nothing. On the other hand, an MVP that's too thin, missing the one feature that actually carries the value proposition, won't test much of anything. Pick a single hypothesis to validate and build exactly what's needed to test it, nothing more.