Building a minimum viable product (MVP) is a crucial step for startups to validate their ideas, test assumptions, and gather feedback from potential customers. But how do you set and track the right goals for your MVP? Here are some tips and tools to help define, measure, and achieve your MVP goals.
What are MVP Goals?
MVP goals outline the key results you aim to achieve with your minimum viable product. Typical goals include:
– Validating core assumptions about your target customer and their needs
– Determining if your proposed solution resonates with customers
– Testing critical features and functionality
– Measuring early adoption and usage metrics
– Collecting feedback to inform future product decisions
– Identifying how to improve your product and business model
How to Set MVP Goals?
When setting MVP goals, you want to:
Prioritize Testing Key Assumptions
The most important MVP goals center on testing your riskiest assumptions first. Identify the 3-5 make-or-break assumptions without which your business won’t work. Then define goals to test if those assumptions hold. Common examples include assumptions about target customers, pain points, pricing models, core features, etc. Test those before moving down your assumption list.
Set Indicators of Viability
Define a small set of metrics that will indicate if your MVP demonstrates overall viability. This may include early user activation, engagement, conversion, or revenue metrics. Establish minimum thresholds for each metric that need to be achieved to consider the MVP viable.
Blend Quantitative and Qualitative Goals
While metrics are crucial, qualitative feedback also provides invaluable learning. Set goals for number of customer interviews, depth of feedback desired, and types of qualitative insights required to improve your offering.
Prioritize Actionability
Your goals should directly inform next steps on product iterations and your go-to-market strategy. Set measurable goals focused on learning that enables clear actions.
How to Track MVP Goals?
To effectively track your MVP goals:
Log Key Results
Continuously log metrics related to your goals in a centralized location, like a spreadsheet or Lean startup dashboard. This can include usage data, conversion rates, customer feedback quotes, interview insights, acquisition costs and more.
Visualize Progress
Use charts, graphs, and visual dashboards to display progress on goals over time. Visualizing data makes trends more apparent. Tableau, Looker, and Klipfolio are tools that help create interactive data visualizations.
Review Regularly
Set regular reviews of goal progress by the startup team. Weekly or bi-weekly reviews are recommended to discuss latest results, speculate on causes, and determine required actions.
Adjust as Needed
If data shows goals may be missed, explore adjustments to get back on track. Alternatively, if goals are exceeded significantly, you may need bolder goals. Continually fine-tune based on data.
How to Review and Adjust MVP Goals
To maximize learnings, regularly review and refine your MVP goals:
Conduct Post-Mortems
After launching your MVP, conduct a lessons learned post-mortem on what goals worked well versus those that needed adjustment. Document best practices for future goal setting.
Ask Why
When reviewing data, constantly ask “why is this happening?” and hypothesize root causes. This deepens your learning and understanding.
Test New Assumptions
If your MVP reveals flawed assumptions, establish new goals to test related assumptions. Pivot your testing focus based on insights uncovered.
Expand on Success
If certain goals produce positive results, consider expanding related goals, e.g. increasing target customers interviewed.
Try Stretch Goals
If goals are easily achieved, establish stretch goals to keep pushing your learning. But reel these back if you start missing original goals.
How to Communicate MVP Goals
To ensure team alignment, clearly communicate MVP goals by:
Creating an MVP Goal-Setting Workshop
Host a team workshop to collectively establish goals and strategies. Inspire the team through an open brainstorm.
Documenting in a Goal-Setting Memo
Capture MVP goals, underlying assumptions, and required metrics in a document shared across the startup team.
Displaying Goals Publicly
Post MVP goals prominently in the office as reminders and to motivate the team. Share progress at company meetings.
Assigning Goal Owners
Make individuals accountable for tracking and achieving each goal.
Providing Ongoing Updates
Communicate goal progress, insights, and required actions in regular company and team meetings.
By setting specific, measurable, and actionable MVP goals, startups can methodically test their riskiest assumptions and gain invaluable learnings to evolve the product and business model. Tracking progress in real-time and continually reviewing and adjusting goals based on insights maximizes the value derived during the MVP stage. With clearly defined goals and a system to monitor them, startups can rapidly validate their idea’s viability.