Minimum Viable Product is a concept we've stolen from the world of startups. Instead of developing a software solution with all the bells and whistles the MVP approach means you solve one or two of the most necessary requirements first, then add additional functionality as it is required (and as budgets are made available).
In a non-MVP environment a typical development lifecycle might look like this:
When we develop with MVP the lifecycle looks like this:
There are several key benefits of this approach:
Every project is different and there can be complications around access to data etc, but we generally deliver the first phase of an MVP for $5,000 to $20,000.
Further iterations are similar.
A leading courier company identified a requirement for an ETA Tool. Ideally it needed to be available to all staff and customers via existing their track and trace system, it needed to be tied into track and trace numbers, it needed to be based on expected routes and it needed to cater for anything going wrong in the rest of the network.
Unfortunately as different teams had different expectations and requirements the project had repeatedly been delayed as the various stakeholders couldn't agree.
Through discussions with the client the Catevo team found a different approach to get the project started. 400 customers a day were phoning the call centre asking for an ETA, and they only needed a broad indication. With the realisation that we could assist over 100,000 customers a year we designed an MVP.
By using historical data we could provide two hour delivery window based on the customers address, which a customer services representative could enter into a web form. Greater problems within the network were already known about by the customer service representatives and could be explained to the customer if necessary. Drivers were text messaged to ensure they knew someone was expecting their parcel at a certain time.
Talk to us about how an MVP might solve your problems.
Contact Us87 King George Avenue, Epsom, Auckland | +64 21 721 160 | andrew@catevo.com