It takes a lot more than a revolutionary idea to survive the competitive mobile app market, especially when you consider the costs involved and the resources required.
Approximately 70% of businesses prefer to build an MVP App to negate the risks involved. Some of the apps you see in the market today, like Spotify and Instagram, took full advantage of MVPs to become successful.
An MVP allows businesses to gauge market interest and the features to be added and validates an app idea.
So, how do you build an MVP App and launch it?
The steps involved in building an MVP, launching it, and collecting feedback are explained in the sections below. But before, let’s deep dive into the importance of an MVP in app development.
Table of Contents
Why is an MVP Important for Mobile App Development?
An MVP is a simpler version of a mobile app. It allows businesses to test how effective an app idea is without spending too much from their app development budget.
The risk involved in building and launching an MVP and the time to market (TTM) is significantly less.
A Detailed Look at the MVP’s Role in Mobile App Development
✅Collect and Validate User Feedback
An MVP gives the opportunity to comprehend how the app addresses the target audience’s pain points. Businesses can analyze the feedback received and implement the new features in the updated versions of the app.
In addition to new features, an MVP also helps identify areas of improvement, which can be app loading speed, enhanced user experience, more CTAs, etc.
✅Minimal Investment Risk
Developing a fully functional app can easily run into thousands of dollars, which is a huge risk for businesses with limited capital.
An MVP is a cost-efficient method for startups to study the marketability of an app. The resources and capital required are comparatively less as the MVP includes only the core feature(s).
✅Speeds Up the Development Process
A mobile app with all the essential features spends at least a year in development before it is released into the market.
For an MVP, however, the development time is comparatively less, attributable to the fact that it is a basic version of an app with a minimal set of features. The lesser development time speeds up the entire app lifecycle as early adopters test the MVP and share feedback, which the developer team can quickly act upon.
✅Risk Management
Risk management is a critical aspect of any business. Developing an MVP poses a lower financial risk when compared to a fully developed app.
It provides a controlled environment to test new features. Setbacks in this state give businesses the room to roll back and work on solutions without facing too many losses.
What are the Key Characteristics of MVP in App Development?
Time and resources are vital aspects of mobile app development. Building an MVP is beneficial as businesses can collect actionable data from an MVP by allocating minimal resources. The shorter time to market also gives businesses time to analyze the usability and functionality of the app and proceed accordingly.
Here Are the Four Key Characteristics of an MVP App:
☑️Lays the Foundation for Future Iterations
An MVP is a version of an app with a single core feature or a set of features. It progresses through multiple development cycles based on user feedback for improvements.
Eventually the MVP shapes into something that will address the target audience’s pain points while generating revenue.
☑️Validate App Idea
By building an MVP, businesses get the opportunity to test an app idea before investing time and resources into it. As the MVP will have only the core feature, businesses can analyze how effective and user-friendly the app is in addressing the end user’s pain points.
The objective is to collect feedback on the app’s performance and decide on the add-ons that can be included in the future and the optimization options to consider.
☑️Determine Growth Objectives
It’s important for businesses to retain customers, not just for financial reasons, but also in terms of growth. The data collected after launching an MVP is critical to the path the app will take. It gives a clear picture of what the fully developed app will look like.
Additionally, businesses can develop strategies on where to focus their resources throughout the mobile app development lifecycle.
An MVP also gives businesses the freedom to create new growth objectives based on user feedback.
☑️Creates Core Value Proposition
An early adopter is an MVP’s biggest advocate. They provide feedback that is valuable to the app’s and the business’s future.
Businesses can use the feedback to create a value proposition, which offers valuable insights on what users of the app can expect.
How to Build an MVP App? (9 Effective Steps)
To build an MVP for your mobile app, start by performing a comprehensive analysis of the market and competitors. Then ideate the features to be included in the MVP, design an intuitive UI with a focus on UX, and create an MVP prototype. Build the MVP using the chosen tech stack, test it, and launch it to the early adopters. Next, collect feedback and user data from the MVP and iterate as required.
Here Is a Detailed Explanation of the 9 Steps Involved in Creating an MVP App:
Step 1: Market & Competitor Analysis
Extensive market research is crucial to the success of the MVP. The data collected gives a better perspective on the target audience’s pain points and market opportunities the MVP can capitalize on.
Employ numerous mediums, both online and offline, to gather insights on the problems the target audience is facing.
Market research also includes competitor analysis. Understanding the competition reveals the mistakes you shouldn’t commit and the areas you can outsmart them.
Step 2: MVP Feature Ideation
The data gathered through market research is used to comprehend the target audience’s core problem. Knowledge of the issues the app should resolve and the current competition helps in determining the scope of the project, the budget required, the methodology to be used, the risks, and the deadline for MVP launch.
Step 3: UI/UX Planning
UI and UX are critical aspects of mobile applications. There are reports saying that conversion rates can go up to 200% for apps with a good UI.
An MVP with a well-thought-out design will be easy for the user to maneuver, which directly contributes to a better user experience. Understanding the customer journey is also vital here.
UI/UX design involves research, creating a wireframe, preparing a mockup, and building a prototype. The process goes through multiple iterations until a satisfactory conclusion is reached.
Once UI/UX has been finalized, the MVP moves into the final prototype stage.
Step 4: Prototype Creation
A prototype describes the features to be included, how it will look, and how the MVP meets the target audience’s demands.
It is used as a tool to generate investor and stakeholder interest. Prototypes also provide data on usability issues that may pop up.
Step 5: MVP Development
Choosing a tech stack is a crucial aspect, as its impact goes beyond the lifetime of an MVP. The tech stack chosen has a role in the time taken for development, the costs incurred, how the app will perform, and future maintenance and optimization options.
A development methodology is also finalized in this step. The options include Waterfall, Agile, and Rapid Application Development (RAD). Agile is preferred as it has a faster TTM. Scrum and Kanban are among the most-used agile methodologies.
The essential APIs are integrated into the MVP during the development stage.
Step 6: Testing and Debugging
The MVP has to undergo a comprehensive testing process before it is released into the market. Testing identifies bugs in the code and helps in improving user experience. The process usually includes unit testing, integration testing, and user acceptance testing.
The debugging process is done in real-time, eliminating bugs that may impact usability and performance. Using an email debugger during this process ensures that email-related issues are identified and resolved efficiently.
Step 7: MVP Launch
After testing and debugging, the app is launched to the respective app store, or to both if it followed a framework that supports cross-platform compatibility.
The launch will be the first of many, as the MVP will be updated based on user feedback and launched again.
Step 8: Feedback Collection & User Analysis
After launch, it’s time to collect feedback from the early adopters. User feedback informs what the MVP does right and the areas that need improvement.
The data collected includes information on user engagement, app usage metrics, and whether the app met the end user’s expectations, all of which are crucial to the future of the MVP.
It is critical to create proper channels to receive user feedback. Surveys and interviews are the most preferred methods.
Step 9: Feedback Implementation
The MVP goes into the development phase again to implement features based on user feedback gathered in the previous stage. The updated MVP goes through testing and debugging again, and the new version is released as an update.
The process of collecting feedback, development, testing, and launch is repeated. Even the chosen tech stack may change if it is incompatible with a new feature or the dev team runs into unexpected challenges.
What are the Things to Avoid When Building an MVP App?
It’s easy to get carried away when building an MVP app. A lack of direction or focus in the MVP development stage can impact the app’s functionality and its potential in the market.
Make sure you avoid these mistakes when developing your MVP app.
✔️Adding features that aren’t necessary.
✔️Omitting core features and focusing on add-ons.
✔️Not separating constructive feedback from nitpicking.
✔️Ignoring MVP user data.
By avoiding the mistakes mentioned above, businesses can capitalize on the benefits an MVP has to offer, which are discussed in the next section.
What are the Benefits of MVP in App Development?
Opting for an MVP during mobile app development offers several benefits, including quicker time to market, app success predictability, and determining app idea marketability.
Here is a comprehensive look at the benefits of investing in MVP application development.
✅Affordability
Developing an app from scratch is expensive. Even a basic app can cost anywhere between $5000 and $50000. Jumping into app development without clear knowledge of its marketability is a huge risk to take.
An MVP, on the other hand, is affordable, as the app will only have the core functionalities, and the resources required for development are comparatively less.
✅Predictability
The success (or failure) of the MVP gives you a clear picture of what you should (and shouldn’t) do.
A successful MVP lays the foundation for all the improvements that can be integrated in the future. It proves that there is a market for your idea, which is something that investors want to hear.
✅Lower Time to Market
A fully developed mobile application takes up to a year to be released into the market. An MVP app, however, can be wrapped up in roughly three months.
Releasing a barebones version of the app speeds up the development process. The developers now know what the target audience want, doesn’t want, and want to be improved and can work on them at a quicker pace.
Conclusion
Developing and launching an MVP is crucial to the success of the app. It’s an effective approach that identifies how marketable the app is, offers insights on the features to be integrated, and determines whether the app meets user expectations.
Building an MVP also comes with its fair share of challenges. Businesses often drift away from the core concept of the app or end up adding non-essential features, which is something that should be avoided.
Now that you have a general idea of what an MVP is, it’s time to build one. Discuss your requirements with an MVP development company today. They have the expertise and experience required to develop scalable MVP applications that drive business growth. Schedule a call to talk about your innovative app idea.
Want to implement your idea in an MVP?
Lokesh Kumar is a seasoned professional with a decade of experience in Full Stack Development Company. Passionate about innovation and technology trends, Lokesh thrives on bringing cutting-edge solutions to market.
