Today, most businesses depend on digital products to meet the high demands of tech-savvy customers. However, in trying to provide value, many companies end up creating complicated products that are expensive to maintain and hard to use.
To solve this problem, businesses often start with an MVP (Minimum Viable Product). This lets them test their ideas, see if there is demand in the market, and launch their product more quickly.
To make an MVP more ready for the market and more attractive to early users, companies are now using the idea of an MMP (Minimum Marketable Product). An MMP is a step between an MVP and a complete product launch. It has all the important features of the MVP, but it is refined to be more marketable.
Want to know more about how this works?
Let’s explore!
What Is A Minimum Marketable Product?
A minimum marketable product (MMP) is the simplest version of a product that is ready to be sold. Based on the idea of minimalism, it includes only the most essential features needed to fit well in the market.
You might think that this sounds just like a minimum viable product (MVP), which is the most basic version of a product. However, there are some differences between them. Let’s explore those differences below.
Minimum Viable Product VS. Minimum Marketable Product
Before we get into the details of Minimum Marketable Product, let’s first understand what makes Minimum Marketable Product different from Minimum Viable Product.
Minimum Viable Product (MVP)
A minimum viable product, or MVP, is the most basic version of a product that is created to test it out with beta testers and early users. This version doesn’t have any extra features and focuses only on the main idea of the product.
MVP is a Process and not a Product – Eric Ries
The main purpose of a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) is to test it with real users and gather important feedback for the next version. This process helps the business confirm whether their idea is good and allows them to review comments from early users to improve the product for everyone.
Suggested Read– MVP Development: Guide For Entrepreneurs & Product Companies
Minimum Marketable Product (MMP)
MMP, or Minimum Marketable Product, is a method that helps development teams create just enough features to launch a product to market. Another term for this is Minimum Marketable Feature, or MMF.
The main goal of an MMP is to make the product appealing and easy to use for its audience. This method helps the business to promote the product by improving the user experience so that it can be accepted and enjoyed by the target audience.
Difference Between MVP & MMP
MMP is similar to an MVP, but it includes even more features. MMP stands for a product that is ready to be launched, but it is still a basic version of the final product. This first launch isn’t just for early adopters; it’s aimed at a wider group of potential customers.
Here’s a table that shows the differences between MVP and MMP.
| Aspect | MVP | MMP |
|---|---|---|
| Stage | Initial development | Pre-launch |
| Focus | Validating product idea | Building on MVP for market readiness |
| Goal | Validate concept | Attract and retain customers |
| Features | Minimum to gain feedback | Refined and aimed at target market |
| Audience | Beta testers, early adopters | Customers |
| Market Approach | Problem-solution fit | Product-market fit |
| Development | Quick and only focuses on basic functionality | Focus on quality and compliance |
From MVP to MMP
A minimum viable product (MVP) can be anything from a rough idea to a simple drawing or design to a basic digital product with a simple interface. The goal is to let early users test the idea and provide feedback on it.
Once you get positive feedback on your app idea through the MVP, the next step is to create a minimum marketable product (MMP).
This stage is all about getting your product ready for the market.
So, how do you move from MVP to MMP?
It depends on the type of MVP you made to get feedback from your target users.
- No Product MVP: This process takes longer because you start with just a visual representation of your idea. You’ll need to create a product development team to build the MVP. Once it’s complete, you can bring in designers and developers to create user interfaces and make improvements for the MMP.
- Product Mockup: This approach is quicker because you already have a validated idea through a simple prototype. It doesn’t use advanced technology—just the main concept. You can turn this into an MMP by improving the interface, incorporating feedback from the MVP, and improving the user experience (UX).
- Single Feature MVP: This is the best way to develop an MVP and allows for a quicker launch of the MMP. You just need to improve the experience and focus on what customers want if the idea has been validated through that feature.
- Minimum Lovable Product (MLP): This type of product already has the features that users love. It doesn’t require many changes to become an MMP.
- Exceptional Viable Product (EVP): This is an almost complete version of the MVP that can be launched directly into the market. There’s a big difference between an MVP and an EVP; the latter is a very polished version that doesn’t need to be turned into an MMP.
- Paper Prototype: This is just a visual idea of how you want your MVP to look. However, it can’t be sold in the market without further development into a full MVP, which includes adding marketable features and improving the UX.
Essential Steps to Move from MVP to MMP
Here are the essential steps you need to follow to move from MVP to MMP:
1. Hire UI/UX Designers
You need to bring on more UI/UX designers to make your product look and feel better. Since it’s about to be launched, it should be user-friendly and easy to navigate. Hiring designers will help to improve the front-end of the product.
2. Eliminate Extra Features
To make your Minimum Viable Product (MVP) ready for the market, focus on just one main feature. Too many extra features can confuse users and make the product seem complicated or similar to others. To create a Minimum Marketable Product (MMP), it’s important to remove any unnecessary features that might clutter the product when it launches.
3. Implement Feedback
MVPs gather a lot of feedback and data about how users interact with them. This feedback is important and should be included in the MMP. Using an agile software development approach makes it easier to take in feedback and make changes accordingly.
4. Enhance Usability
The user experience is key to turning an MVP into a successful MMP. It’s important to improve the user interface, making it easy to use and navigate. Additionally, the product should be designed so that it’s accessible for everyone in your target audience.
What Makes a Minimum Marketable Product (MMP) Successful?
A successful minimum marketable product (MMP) has features that are easy to promote and sell to customers. It helps reduce risks when launching the product on a larger scale.
Great User Experience:
The user experience (UX) is the most important aspect that makes an MMP stand out. While a minimum viable product (MVP) might not focus much on UX, an MMP makes sure that the user experience is excellent.
Demonstrated Future Benefits:
To be appealing in the market, an MMP should show some kind of benefits for the future. An MMP must clearly outline these benefits, which should also be included when discussing the software MVP.
Value Proposition:
Another key factor in building an MMP is the value it provides. Since it’s a minimum version, the features included should address the main needs of users and add real value.
Feedback Loop:
Since the MMP is the first version released without extra features, it needs a way to gather feedback. This feedback loop will help the development team collect information to improve future versions.
Focus on Customer Needs:
To make the product attractive to customers, it’s crucial to understand what they need. If the product meets these needs, it is likely to succeed, even if it is simple.
Interface:
The interface is also an important part of the MMP. It should be easy to use and provide a smooth experience so that anyone can navigate it without difficulty.
Agile & Lean:
Keeping your MMP lean means being dedicated to this approach. Using lean and agile methods can help create a successful MMP while also allowing room to make changes based on user feedback and behavior.
Getting Started with MMP Development
Even though many minimum viable products (MVPs) get tested and receive positive feedback from early users, a lot of them still fail in the market and don’t become successful. This often happens because they lack the important features needed to sell and promote the product effectively.
To prepare your product prototype for the market, you need a minimum marketable product (MMP). An MMP is simpler and usually focuses on one main feature that is essential to the product or represents the core idea of your startup.
If you want to create a minimum viable product and then develop a minimum marketable product, we can be the software development partner you need.
With nearly 7 years of experience, we have become experts in MVP development. We are flexible and can easily adjust based on feedback from your MVP to help you launch your MMP quickly.
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