The goal of any Minimum Viable Product is to serve the user base to solve any issues they are facing within a certain industry. But, there are times when product owners need help to release a complete product the way they want to. But where to go from there?
Today, we’ll discuss the MVP alternative solutions every startup founder should consider if their product teams don’t have a marketable product ready.
What Is the Alternative to MVP?
MVP is not always the final answer since the customer isn’t always looking to subscribe to a product that’s not finished developing yet.
The best solution for hooking potential customers from within your target audience is SLC (Simple, Lovable, and Complete), which we will be discussing soon enough.
What are the Key Characteristics of an MVP?
When releasing an MVP, you aim to validate your idea within the minimum development budget and effort.
If you’re unsure about putting effort into a business idea that may or may not succeed, launching an MVP can clear your doubts while calculating the feasibility of your product concept by learning about customers and their demands.
While there are different types of MVP with their own characteristics, here are the three key characteristics of an MVP:
- The MVP provides enough value with its basic functionality for people to buy it willingly.
- An MVP has a startup model that promises future benefits, encouraging people to stick around.
- MVP Creates a user feedback loop that creates scope for future development.
When Should You Consider an MVP?
You can ask yourself three questions to determine if you need an MVP
- Why: Determine the cause of why you should release your product. The answer should always be a core problem that exists within your target user base.
- How: Now that you have identified the problem, it’s time to figure out how you wish to solve it. The solution always has to be in a unique way that no one else in the market has implemented yet. That’s what you base your MVP development stage on.
- What: After finishing development and coming out with a simple product to solve the issues of your target audience, you can start pitching it to real users and potential investors.
What is Simple, Lovable, and Complete (SLC)?
SLC is the most viable alternative to MVP. SLC and MVP offer minimal functionalities, but the core difference is that an SLC is complete. In contrast, an MVP is a constant work in progress.
When Might SLC Be Better Than MVP?
The product can be considered simple when a product only makes claims about the current product capabilities and not any additional features.
But, if the product is considered to serve the purpose it was set out to do, then it’s safe to assume that SLC is a better choice.
Sometimes you can build a product, but simple core features alone can only get the product so far. When you build something people care for, the reach of the product increases.
That’s where the “Lovable” part comes in.
When the product is marked as “Complete,” it doesn’t mean it has reached the end of its development cycle.
It simply means it’s fully capable of serving its current purpose with the single core feature, and there’s still room for product development efforts.
What is a Minimum Lovable Product (MLP)?
As the name says, any product loved and cared for by the actual market customer from a very early stage is considered an MLP (Minimum Lovable Product).
Where the MVP focuses more on simple features, the MLP does its best to appeal to the customers to make them care for it more.
When the customers start loving a product, they’ll come back for more regardless, and it’s great for a long-term business strategy.
The Difference Between MVP vs. SLC vs. MLP
All these three approaches have their ups and downs. But still, we’ve done our best to present a comparison of the three, despite them having nearly similar approaches and purposes.
| MVP | SLC | MLP |
| It is based on an idea | It is a simple structure of an idea | It is based on MVP |
| Problems cannot always be understood | Usually doesn’t have many problems | Can help understand problems with the MVP |
| Market analyzing is much tougher | Market analyzing is relatively easier | Market analyzing is much easier |
| Customers aren’t sure what they want till they test the product | Customers love what they get and don’t need to be in an ongoing development cycle | Customers are sure what they want |
| There are fewer product alternatives | There are fewer product alternatives | There are several product alternatives |
| Technology is unpredictable | Technology is simple and stable | Technology is stable |
| Avoids architectural decisions | Stable architectural decisions | Makes architectural decisions |
| Startup founders put in the lean effort | Development teams put in a dedicated effort | Startup founders put in a dedicated effort |
| Lower chance of success | Relatively higher chance of success | Higher chance of success |
| Customers tolerate your incomplete product till improvement comes in | Customers are happy with what they received and eager to see further improvements | Customers love your core product as it is |
How Can Impala Intech Help Launch Your Startup?
Building your MVP is the first step towards capturing your target audience and market within budget and time constraints. How you plan your startup can affect your future business plans.
With the scrutiny of a software development company like Impala InTech, you never have to worry about your startup product management, from ideation to publication. Here are the qualifications of Impala that allow startup builders like you to rest easy:
- Expertise in multiple industries
- Ability to validate initial product ideas in the discovery stage
- Quick time-to-market
- Focus on customer needs by analyzing behavioral patterns
- Use of agile development methodologies
- Compliance with non-disclosure agreements
- Strong business analysis and project management skills
- Development of a viable minimum viable product with scalability potential
- Assistance with software implementation, real-time collaboration & maintenance
To Wrap It All Up
Creating an MVP is always the best solution to reach your target market with a satisfactory product. But sometimes, MVP doesn’t quite cut it, despite being an actual product. That’s where the alternatives come in.
It’s up to every startup entrepreneur to choose the right alternative for the right scenario. And if you feel like it’s too much work, Impala Intech is always here to help with professional expertise for the ideal startup MVP development.
FAQs
There are times when a minimal product just doesn’t work, so companies have to take a more direct approach to create something complete
A few popular alternatives are SLC (Simple, Lovable, Compact), MLP (Minimum Lovable Product), and MMP (Minimum Marketable Product)
It depends on the project scope and resource requirement of the alternative in question
An MVP is aimed toward minimal development time. But in the case of other solutions different than MVP, the approach is different and usually takes a longer development time, and more resources are required to complete the product
An MVP can be only marketed to a few chosen officials and early adopters. On the other hand, some MVP alternatives can be considered as fully functional products so they can be marketed to a bigger audience
