mvp/experiments talk at sva ixd program

Giff Constable Jan 2012

Experiments & MVPs

http://proof-nyc.com http://giffconstable.com

partner @ Proof

early stage specialist

skillset generalist

16 years of startups

2 years as a fine artist

co-organizer, lean startup meetup

who am I?

The core of lean startup

reducing waste

things people don't want or needthings that have no business potential

The core of lean startup

how to reduce waste?

validate early and oftenget the formula right before you scale

The core of lean startup

not just for startups

for any innovative project

“lean startup” goes beyond talking to customers

It's about running experiments

1. have a hypothesis to test

2. brainstorm a few different tests, offline and offline

3. try to break the tests into even smaller units of work

4. choose a test and set a goal

5. run the test (try to hit the goal)

6. review results and make a decision (a. confirmed belief; b. iterate test; c. iterate business)

Running Experiments

manual delivery(aka “wizard of oz”)

Examples

“concierge”(i.e. be the software)

Examples

pre-sales(with LOI, discounts)

Examples

landing page(with calls to action)

Examples

video

Examples

paper testing

fake features

Examples

working software

and of course...

it’s a rolling series of iterations

a minimal viable product is not a point release

a minimal viable product is for learning, not launching

find product market fit

optimizeconversion*

promote

* for enterprise-focused startups, replace with “find your repeatable sales process”

btw “as small as possible” != “small”

the best experiments

digital *or* analogcreativefocusedmeasured

as small as possible

vision is essential -- you can’t A/B test your way to greatness

lead with vision

use experiments to reality check against the market

I don’t buy knee-jerk excuses to avoid this stuff

experiments are often not definitive

and results have to be balanced against vision and judgement

but that doesn’t mean we should stick our heads in the sand

Business Assumptions Exercise

can be found at http://giffconstable.com

I believe that my customers have a need to ________________________________________.

Customer-Needs Assumption

keep it concise!

This need can be solved with ________________ _________________________________________.

Solution Assumption

My initial customers will be _________________ ________________________________________.

Initial Customer Assumption

describe the person(s)

The #1 value a client wants to get out of my service is: ________________________.

Value Proposition Assumptions

The client can also get these additional benefits: ___________________ and __________________.

I will acquire the majority of my users/customers through _______________________ and ________________________.

Marketing Assumptions

I will make money by _______________________ _________________________________________.

Business Model Assumption

My primary competition will be ______________ and ______________.

Competition Assumptions

We will beat them in the market due to __________________ and __________________.

My biggest product risk is ___________________.

Product Risk Assumptions

We will solve this through ____________________ ______________________________.

What assumptions does my business hold, that if proven wrong, could cause the business to fail?1._______________________________________.2._______________________________________.3._______________________________________.4._______________________________________.5._______________________________________.

Critical Risk Assumptions

Prioritize your assumptions

High Risk

Low Risk

UnknownKnown

prioritize here

1. have a hypothesis to test

2. brainstorm a few different tests, offline and offline

3. try to break the tests into even smaller units of work

4. choose a test and set a goal

5. run the test (try to hit the goal)

6. review results and make a decision (a. confirmed belief; b. iterate test; c. iterate business)

Running Experiments

email:giff@proof-nyc.com

twitter: giffconstable

blog: http://giffconstable.com

site: http://proof-nyc.com

Thank You