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X-Dreamers

Startup ideas · Lesson 5 of 6

Concierge MVP: Deliver the Smallest Useful Outcome

Scope a manual prototype that tests value before a full product is built.

20 min · Free · no sign-up

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What you will learn

Build around the job

A prototype should let you observe whether a person can achieve one useful outcome. Remove features that do not test that outcome. You may provide the service manually, using a document or spreadsheet rather than new software.

Be honest about how it works

Tell participants what the prototype does, what is manual and what its limits are. Ask only for data you need. A concierge service is a legitimate test when the human involvement is understood.

Measure use and delivery cost

Record whether the person used the result, returned, and what it cost you to deliver. A result that users like can still be too expensive or error-prone to provide. Learning about constraints is part of the test.

An example

Before building a reporting platform, manually produce one weekly report from a volunteer’s non-sensitive sample data. Observe whether they use it in their workflow and measure the time needed to create it.

The trap to avoid

Do not automate an untested workflow merely because building software is more comfortable than speaking with users.

Try it: the exercise

Answer these three prompts. In the Equip learning desk your answers are saved in your browser, with a checklist to review them.

  1. One useful outcomeWhat should a participant be able to do after the pilot?
  2. Scope and boundariesList included work, excluded features, data needs and manual steps.
  3. Evidence to collectHow will you observe usefulness, repeat demand and delivery effort?

A good answer has

  • A single customer outcome
  • Honest scope and data handling
  • A way to measure actual use
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Check yourself

Which prototype best tests a reporting need?
  1. A full dashboard with accounts and billing.
  2. A logo and launch animation.
  3. One manually produced report used in a real decision.

Answer: C. A used report directly tests whether the outcome is valuable. Infrastructure and branding do not establish that.

Users like the pilot, but it takes six hours per delivery. What is missing?
  1. Evidence of a workable delivery model and economics.
  2. A larger logo.
  3. More social followers.

Answer: A. Customer value and feasible delivery are different assumptions. Measure both before scaling.

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