{"id":64927,"date":"2022-04-18T22:44:20","date_gmt":"2022-04-19T02:44:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=64927"},"modified":"2026-01-21T15:29:51","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T19:29:51","slug":"mvp-test","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/","title":{"rendered":"The MVP Test: How Lean Startups Learn From Failure"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is an MVP test? How does an organization use the MVP test to improve? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

An MVP test is a way to test out a product by building out a prototype or stripped-down version of the product and then gathering feedback to act upon. The author of Black Box Thinking<\/em> uses the minimum viable product test as an example of how learning-oriented institutions grow from failure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep reading to find out how lean startups use MVP tests to gather feedback. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

MVP Tests Embrace Failure<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

With a failure-embracing mindset in place, you need a system that makes use of failure<\/a>. Syed argues that this system is the bottom-up method. In other words, scientists, lean startups, and athletic organizations all iterate<\/em> to develop theories, products, and skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Succeeding with this strategy isn\u2019t easy\u2014you have to fail, fail, and fail some more<\/strong>. It takes tenacity, humility, and ambition to slowly adapt your creation according to what actually works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Ryan Holiday argues in The Obstacle Is the Way<\/em><\/a> that to make it in our complex, uncertain world, we need to cultivate a deep resilience to hardship. You can do so by resolving to achieve some goal no matter what<\/em>, and sticking to that commitment at all costs. Repeatedly sticking to your commitments builds long-term resilience into your character. Similarly, Nassim Nicholas Taleb<\/a> argues in Antifragile<\/em><\/a> that we ought to become not resilient, but antifragile<\/em>\u2014rather than merely enduring stress, use it to grow ever stronger. Both individuals and organizations can take hardships as lessons to learn\u2014similarly to how muscles grow through the minor injuries of exercise.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iterate Minimum Viable Products<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Syed gives one key example of the iterative process in business: the minimum viable product<\/strong> (MVP test). To navigate the unpredictable marketplace, lean startups test out their ideas using stripped-down versions of the potential end products<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Test out your ideas by building an MVP<\/strong> test<\/strong>, and see what happens. Imagine that a startup founder wants to create a new social platform that emphasizes empathetic conversation and tight-knit social groups. To test this idea, she could mock up a video that demonstrates how these features would work.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Launching an MVP test gets you feedback\u2014whether people are interested and, if so, what they do and don\u2019t like about your product. After launching her video, the founder might find that only some social groups are interested, but they have concerns about whether or not social media is right for a deeper connection.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Adjust to that feedback<\/strong>\u2014the founder\u2019s idea found little support, but she\u2019s only sunk a little time and money into the MVP test\u2014as opposed to a great deal of time and money into a full-blown product. Now she can decide whether to explore other options. She\u2019s learned what won\u2019t work and can take her ideas in a new direction.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
    Test Internally to Validate Ideas<\/strong>

    While jumping right to action can work, it\u2019s often better to test ideas internally before seeking customer feedback via an MVP test. In Inspired<\/em><\/a>, Marty Cagan explains that a software product idea should pass four tests before your company invests in it:

    1. Value: <\/strong>A product must provide significant value that customers can\u2019t find elsewhere. Test for a market niche by launching a web page that appears to offer the product idea but leads to an interest form. If many customers click through, that\u2019s a good sign.
    2. Usability: <\/strong>If your product is easy to pick up and use, it\u2019s more likely to succeed. Recruit potential users via email, set them up with a prototype of your product, and take note on how they instinctively use it.
    3. Feasibility: <\/strong>If your team can realistically build the product, it\u2019s feasible. To test this, simply have your engineers build enough of the project that they\u2019re confident they could finish it (or, build a complete prototype).
    4. Viability: <\/strong>When your team agrees that the product will be profitable, it\u2019s viable. Focus on finance and leadership\u2014if you can\u2019t afford it, or it doesn\u2019t fit your business strategy, the product might flop.

    While you can\u2019t ensure 100% certainty about these factors, you can separate a good deal of chaff from the wheat. This way, you avoid investing in ideas that you haven\u2019t validated and improve your chances of success. Further, be sure to tap the whole team\u2019s expertise\u2014a software engineer can speak to product feasibility, but the CEO will better understand whether an idea fits the company\u2019s mission and strategy.\u00a0<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    What is an MVP test? How does an organization use the MVP test to improve? An MVP test is a way to test out a product by building out a prototype or stripped-down version of the product and then gathering feedback to act upon. The author of Black Box Thinking uses the minimum viable product test as an example of how learning-oriented institutions grow from failure. Keep reading to find out how lean startups use MVP tests to gather feedback.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":52026,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45,160],"tags":[601],"class_list":["post-64927","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","category-science","tag-black-box-thinking","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nThe MVP Test: How Lean Startups Learn From Failure - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"MVP tests allow for failure and feedback. Learn how lean startups test internally and then use minimum viable products to improve.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The MVP Test: How Lean Startups Learn From Failure\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"MVP tests allow for failure and feedback. Learn how lean startups test internally and then use minimum viable products to improve.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Shortform Books\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-04-19T02:44:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-01-21T19:29:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/building-prototype.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"960\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"543\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Melissa Stevens\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Melissa Stevens\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Melissa Stevens\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/5555e27a6d1e1737d0d16e586b815e2c\"},\"headline\":\"The MVP Test: How Lean Startups Learn From Failure\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-04-19T02:44:20+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-01-21T19:29:51+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/\"},\"wordCount\":766,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/building-prototype.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Black Box Thinking\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Business\",\"Science\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/\",\"name\":\"The MVP Test: How Lean Startups Learn From Failure - Shortform Books\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/building-prototype.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-04-19T02:44:20+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-01-21T19:29:51+00:00\",\"description\":\"MVP tests allow for failure and feedback. Learn how lean startups test internally and then use minimum viable products to improve.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/building-prototype.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/building-prototype.jpg\",\"width\":960,\"height\":543,\"caption\":\"mvp test\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The MVP Test: How Lean Startups Learn From Failure\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"description\":\"The World's Best Book Summaries\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"width\":500,\"height\":74,\"caption\":\"Shortform Books\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/5555e27a6d1e1737d0d16e586b815e2c\",\"name\":\"Melissa Stevens\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/783a9219672a3f917680643f5cff8fae373f3c9ff6635ab48f3c99ff70c794d7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/783a9219672a3f917680643f5cff8fae373f3c9ff6635ab48f3c99ff70c794d7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Melissa Stevens\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/melissa\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The MVP Test: How Lean Startups Learn From Failure - Shortform Books","description":"MVP tests allow for failure and feedback. Learn how lean startups test internally and then use minimum viable products to improve.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The MVP Test: How Lean Startups Learn From Failure","og_description":"MVP tests allow for failure and feedback. Learn how lean startups test internally and then use minimum viable products to improve.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/","og_site_name":"Shortform Books","article_published_time":"2022-04-19T02:44:20+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-01-21T19:29:51+00:00","og_image":[{"width":960,"height":543,"url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/building-prototype.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Melissa Stevens","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Melissa Stevens","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/"},"author":{"name":"Melissa Stevens","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/5555e27a6d1e1737d0d16e586b815e2c"},"headline":"The MVP Test: How Lean Startups Learn From Failure","datePublished":"2022-04-19T02:44:20+00:00","dateModified":"2026-01-21T19:29:51+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/"},"wordCount":766,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/building-prototype.jpg","keywords":["Black Box Thinking"],"articleSection":["Business","Science"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/","name":"The MVP Test: How Lean Startups Learn From Failure - Shortform Books","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/building-prototype.jpg","datePublished":"2022-04-19T02:44:20+00:00","dateModified":"2026-01-21T19:29:51+00:00","description":"MVP tests allow for failure and feedback. Learn how lean startups test internally and then use minimum viable products to improve.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/building-prototype.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/building-prototype.jpg","width":960,"height":543,"caption":"mvp test"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/mvp-test\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The MVP Test: How Lean Startups Learn From Failure"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","name":"Shortform Books","description":"The World's Best Book Summaries","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Shortform Books","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","width":500,"height":74,"caption":"Shortform Books"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/5555e27a6d1e1737d0d16e586b815e2c","name":"Melissa Stevens","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/783a9219672a3f917680643f5cff8fae373f3c9ff6635ab48f3c99ff70c794d7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/783a9219672a3f917680643f5cff8fae373f3c9ff6635ab48f3c99ff70c794d7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Melissa Stevens"},"url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/melissa\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/building-prototype.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64927","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64927"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64927\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":147433,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64927\/revisions\/147433"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/52026"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64927"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64927"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64927"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}