The Construct of Minimum Viable Demand (MVD)

In our lecture today on “Building the First Version of Your Product”, I introduced the concept of “minimum viable demand (MVD)”. MVD refers to the smallest amount of customer interest or need that is necessary to validate a business idea and justify further development of a product or service, essentially representing the lowest level of demand that would make it worthwhile to pursue a market opportunity.

You have a higher chance of success if you can find extremely dedicated adopters who believe in you than trying to serve everyone and end up serving none. I have called this Minimum Viable Demand (MVD). With MVD, the demand is real and viable which means it is leverageable even though you are focusing on the smallest demand possible.

Key points about minimum viable demand:

• Focus on core value proposition: The key is to identify the core problem that your product solves and prove that a significant enough group of potential customers actually care about that solution.
• Early market testing: This concept encourages entrepreneurs to test their ideas with a small group of potential customers early on to gauge genuine interest and gather feedback before investing heavily in development.

How to validate minimum viable demand:

• Customer surveys: Conduct surveys to understand pain points and potential willingness to pay for your solution.
• Landing pages: Create a simple landing page with a clear value proposition to capture email addresses and gauge initial interest.
• Pre-order campaigns: Offer a pre-order option to assess demand before fully launching the product.
• Focus groups: Conduct focused discussions with potential customers to gather detailed feedback on your concept.

Why minimum viable demand is important:

• Reduces risk: By validating demand before significant investment, you minimize the chance of developing a product that doesn’t resonate with the market.
• Improves product-market fit: Early customer feedback helps refine your product to better match the actual needs of your target audience.
• Efficient resource allocation: Focusing on building a product that addresses a proven need allows you to allocate resources more effectively.

Understanding Minimum Viable Demand (MVD) for Digital Startups

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