Defining a Minimum Viable Product Scope - Ultra Commerce

A clear MVP scope relies on the project stakeholders identifying which features are absolutely necessary in providing value to your business and your customers. Blog DefiningaMinimumViableProductScope WhyDefineaMinimumViableProduct(MVP)Scope? Buildinganecommercewebsiteorothercustomapplicationcanbetimeconsuming,expensive,andpotentiallyrisky.Youcanshortenyourtimelinebetweenfeatureinceptionandlaunch,aswellascutdownonyouroverallexpensesandrisks,bydefiningaclearMVPscopeasearlyaspossible.AclearMVPscopereliesontheprojectstakeholdersidentifyingwhichfeaturesareabsolutelynecessaryinprovidingvaluetoyourbusinessandyourcustomers.Inotherwords,whatarethe“needtohave”vsthe“nicetohave” featurestoimplementinordertoreachyourproject’sgoals?Byfocusingonlaunchingthe“needtohaves”first,yourprojectwillbeliveandsolvingyourcriticalbusinessneedsasquicklyaspossiblewhileyourteamprioritizesthe“nicetohaves”,whichwillberolledoutinsprintsaftertheinitiallaunch.It’sastraightforwardconcept,andwithabitofbrainstorminganddecisionmaking,you’llbeonyourwayinnotime. StepOne:IdentifyYourMainBusinessObjective Startbyidentifyingyourmainbusinessobjective.Whyareyoubuildingthiswebsite?Whatisyourmaingoal?Youmayhaveseveraldifferentbusinessobjectives,butinordertotrulydefineyourMVPyouneedtoidentifyyournumberonegoal. StepTwo:AddStoryMapping Whoareyourtargetusers,andwhatprocesswillmostofthemtaketohelpyouachievethegoalstatedabove?Inotherwords,youknowwhatyouwantthemtodo,nowhowwilltheydoit?Ifyouenjoycreatingflowcharts,theycanbeahelpfultoolforthinkingthroughthestorymappingstep,buttheyarenotnecessary.Outlinethestepsatahighlevelfirst;don’tworry,you’lladddetailinthenextstep! Takealookateachhigh-levelstepabove,andthinkthroughallthedifferentfeaturesthatcouldbeinvolvedinthatstep.Howwouldyouliketheuserexperiencetooperate?Thisisagoodtimetovisitotherwebsitesforinspiration(yourtopcompetitorsaswellaswebsitesyousimplyenjoybuyingfrom).Beasdetailedandfeature-heavyasyouwanttobeinthisstep.Whateveryoudon’taddtoyourMVPscopecangointoyourbacklog.Anexampleofsomepossiblefeaturesfor“UserFindsDesiredItem”isbelow. StepThree:DefineyourFeatures Withallyourdesiredfeaturesthatsupportyourmainbusinessobjectiveoutlined,it’stimetoseewhichonesmakethecut.Foreachfeature,assignanumberonascaleof1-10forthefollowingquestions:StepFour:AssignaValuetoyourFeatures Howimportantisthisfeatureinsupportingtheuserstory(ie,userfindsdesireditem)?(1-10) Howpopulardoyouexpectthisfeaturetobe?(1-10) Howmuchvaluewillthisfeaturebringtotheoverallprocess?(1-10) Howmuchwoulditimpactyourbusinessifyoulaunchedwithoutthisfeature?(1-10) Tallyupthepointsforeachfeature.UsethetablebelowtohelpinformyourdecisiononwhetherornottoincludethefeaturesinyourMVPscope. Congratulations,You’veDefinedYourMVPScope!NowWhat? NowyouhaveathoughtfullyconsideredMVPscopeforyourproject,andalistoffeaturestoprioritizeyourbacklog.Togrowyourbacklogandfurtherfleshoutyourproject,gobacktostepone,thinkthroughyoursecondaryandtertiarygoalsforyourprojectandrepeattheprocess.Featuresthatscorehighonthelistshouldbeprioritizedandaddedasquicklyafterlaunchaspossible. Relatedposts: BenefitsofB2BeCommerceWorkflowAutomation Readmore HowManufacturersCanGetStartedwithDigitalCommerce Readmore ResourceCenter ResourceCenter Post FuelingB2BRevenueGrowth:EmbracingtheDigitalCommerceJourney ThematurationprocesswhenembracingdigitalcommerceisdifferentforeveryB2Bcompany.Forthoserootedintraditionalcommerceittakestimetogofromofflinesellingtoonlinetofindingnotjustanycustomerbuttherightcustomertotechnology-focusedautomatedsellingacrossmultiplechannels. Readmore Post HeadlessCommerce:AnUltraCommerceDefinition,UseCasesandMore AcloserlookfromtheUltraperspectiveonwhatwereallymeanwhenwetalkabout headlesscommerce andwhyitmaynotberightforeverycompany. Readmore CaseStudy DavisPublications:K-12ArtsCurriculumDavisArtGets‘Ultrafied’withaBrandNewWebPresence DavisArtisnowtheonlyonlineK-12publisherdedicatedtothearts,creatingtop-notchcurriculumandresourcesforarteducatorsnationwide,allfromtheUltraCommerceplatform. Readmore Let’sTalk Ifyou’rereadytolearnmore,scheduleademoorgetstarted–let’stalk! GetStarted Backtothetop