I’ve been thinking – what exactly is an MVP – a minimal viable product?

I hear a lot of confusing things on all kinds of topics. One of those topics involves the concept of creating an MVP. During a conversation that I had recently, someone told me that I shouldn’t talk about the MVP as an actual product because an MVP might only be a diagram or a post-it note. This seems like utter nonsense to me. The definition of an MVP is in the very words.

According to dictionary.com:

  1. minimal – barely adequate or the least possible
  2. viable – practicable (capable of being put into practice) and workable
  3. product – a thing created through labour

These definitions brought together means that an MVP is the least possible product that you can create that is adequate and workable for a customer to put into practice. It seems that an MVP is a real – albeit limited – product that customers can absolutely use and pay for.

So, does this mean that a minimal viable product could include a post-it note, or a diagram, or a requirements document? I don’t think so.

What do you think?

Until tomorrow, GUNG Ho friends!