Most MVPs fail because they try to be "cheap versions of the full product." We've seen countless business owners burn through $50k-200k building something nobody wants, simply because they skipped the fundamentals.

The right MVP is different. It's the smallest useful thing that answers your biggest business questions—so you can fund the next step with confidence, not hope.

Below is the exact process we recommend to owners and operators who want speed and signal, not busywork. We've used this with everyone from solo founders to VP-level executives at enterprise companies.

Step1: Define Success Before You Spend a Dollar

Here's what usually happens: someone gets excited about an idea, hires developers, and six months later realizes they built something impressive that nobody actually needs.

Instead, start with a one-page Product Statement that forces clarity:

Audience & Problem (1–2 sentences)
Who exactly are you helping, and what specific pain do they have right now?

Core Value Proposition
What changes for the user? Not features—outcomes. "Save 2 hours per week" not "automated reporting."

Success Criteria (2–3 measurable outcomes)
Examples: 10 paid pilots, 70% complete a key task in under 2 minutes, investor demo runs without manual intervention behind the scenes.

The Success Grid Framework

Every decision should ladder up to one of these three pillars:

Viability (Business): Will anyone actually pay for this or commit resources?
Usability (Experience): Can they complete the core task without calling you for help?
Feasibility (Technical): Can we build and operate it within time/budget constraints?

Quick Start: Use a simple Google Doc or Notion page for your one-pager. Track decisions in a project management tool like ClickUp or Linear with an "MVP-Decision" tag so you can reference them later.

Step 2: Validate the Idea With Experiments (Before Any Coding)

This is where most business owners want to jump straight to development. Don't.

You can de-risk 80% of your assumptions with simple experiments that cost hundreds, not thousands. Test things like "users actually want this," "the workflow makes intuitive sense," or "our AI/automation produces good enough results."

Three Types of Low-Cost Experiments

1. Clickable Prototypes
Create realistic-looking screens that users can click through, without any real code behind them. Tools like Figma let you simulate the entire user experience in a few days.

2. "Wizard of Oz" Tests
This means you fake the complex part behind the scenes while users interact with a simple front-end. For example: users submit requests through a form, but instead of AI processing them, you manually handle the work and send back results. Tools like Typeform (for forms) connected to Google Sheets can simulate surprisingly sophisticated workflows.

3. User Sessions
Recruit 5–10 people from your target audience and watch them try to use your prototype. Our rule of thumb is seven people find 80% of your problems. Record these sessions with Zoom or specialized tools like Lookback. You'll learn more in two hours of watching real users than months of guessing.

Write Your Tests Like Science Experiments

For example,

Hypothesis: "Small business managers will complete a weekly schedule in under 5 minutes."

Method: Figma prototype tested with 8 target users.

Pass/Fail Criteria: At least 70% finish the task without needing help or hints.

Avoid These Common Biases

• Don't explain how the prototype works—give them a task and stay quiet

• Ask users to "think out loud" as they work

• Focus on what they do, not what they say they'll do ("Show me how you'd handle this situation")

Step 3: Assemble a Small, Focused Team

You need three core roles (the same person can wear multiple hats):

Owner/Product Manager: Keeps the scope tied to success metrics. Says "no" to feature creep.
UX/Designer: Creates prototypes and defines user flows clearly.
Engineer/Technical Lead: Chooses the technology and connects pieces quickly.

Quick note: when hiring independent contractors, make sure to explicitly address intellectual property (IP) and ownership in a written agreement. Unlike employees, contractors legally own the IP they create unless there is a contract stating otherwise.

Choosing Your Technology Stack (The Non-Technical Guide)

Think of your tech stack like choosing materials for a house. You want something proven, fast to work with, and easy to find help for later.

For most business applications, we recommend: 

The Frontend (what users see and interact with): Next.js, which is built on React—think of this as the standard language of modern web applications. It's like choosing Microsoft Office instead of some obscure alternative.

The Backend (the engine that processes requests): We recommend Python for most applications due to its flexibility and scalability..

The Database (where your data lives): PostgreSQL, hosted either through Supabase (simpler) or AWS RDS (more control). PostgreSQL is the Toyota Camry of databases—reliable, well-supported, handles most needs. It’s also open source, meaning free/no licensing fee.

User Accounts & Security: Auth0 or NextAuth handle the complicated stuff around passwords, security, and user management so you don't have to.

Payments (if needed): Stripe is the gold standard. It handles the regulatory complexity of processing payments and is easy to plug into any application, with APIs for more advanced needs.

Hosting (where your app lives on the internet): Vercel for fast prototyping, AWS or Azure for the database. Think of this like choosing a reliable web hosting company, but for applications. Both also offer startup credits for free hosting. Read more about MVP development costs here.

Analytics & Monitoring: Mixpanel tracks how users interact with your app, Sentry catches technical errors before users report them.

Why This Stack?

It's mature (lots of documentation and help available), fast to build with, easy to hire for later, can scale to hundreds of millions of users without breaking a sweat, and has low operational overhead for an MVP.

Step 4: Agree on What You'll Skip (The "Skip List")

An MVP ships fast by intentionally skipping nice-to-haves. This is counterintuitive for many business owners who want to put their best foot forward.

What’s considered optional in one industry might be critical in another. That’s why you can’t just say “we’ll skip polish” without spelling it out. Communicate clearly with your team about exactly what you’re cutting or compressing. For example: if your developers only have two days to build a feature, your designers need to know so they can create something feasible—even if it’s less polished than they’d normally prefer. Alignment here saves time, money, and frustration.

Create a Skip List and pin it somewhere everyone can see. For example:

We're skipping: Single sign-on integration, multiple currencies, fully polished onboarding tutorials, complex user permissions, native mobile apps.

We will do: One core web-based workflow, simple email/password login, CSV file imports instead of custom integrations with other software.

Re-confirm Your Skip List Weekly (Or More Frequently)

In each planning meeting, review the Skip List first. When someone suggests adding a feature (and they will), either move it to the "Next Phase" list or explicitly update the Skip List. Don't let scope creep happen through the back door.

Step 5: Work in Short, Intense Sprints 

Building an MVP is like a sprint, not a marathon. Attention and focus matter more than raw hours worked. At Rescue My Code, we opt for 4–8 hour focus blocks to avoid context switching.

Here’s an example framework for your sprints: 

Sprint Length: 1–2 weeks maximum

Team Coordination: Schedule blocks where designer, engineer, and owner work together in the same room (or video call)

Goal per Sprint: Something a real user can complete end-to-end, even if it's rough

Simple Weekly Rituals

Monday Morning: Align on the sprint goal, success metric, and Skip List reminders

Daily Check-ins (optional): 10-minute status update or quick Slack thread

Mid-Sprint: Live test with internal team or external user

Friday Afternoon: Demo what you built + decide: proceed, pivot, or pause

Tools: ClickUp for tracking tasks and documentation (or Google Docs), Figma for design specifications, Slack for quick decisions. The goal with these tools is to make it frictionless for your team. 

Step 6: "Good Enough to Learn" Is the Bar

Your MVP should run reliably, be usable without a manual, and answer your big questions from Step 1. It does not need to be profitable, fully automated, or handle edge cases.

Understanding RAT vs MVP

RAT (Riskiest Assumption Test): One focused experiment per critical assumption. Example: "Will users upload photos?" Test: Simple photo upload form with 20 target users.

MVP: The smallest working product that validates multiple assumptions together. It's RATs connected into a cohesive experience.

Step 7: Use AI and Vibe Coding Strategically

AI coding tools can dramatically speed up certain parts of development, but use them intentionally.

Great for AI: Generating standard code templates, creating test data, writing documentation, building basic database structures.

Be Careful with AI for: Core business logic that you'll depend on long-term. Prototype these parts with AI, then have your engineer review and strengthen them.

Helpful Tools:

• Claude Code or Cursor for generating code and test cases

• Prisma for setting up your database structure

• Faker or OpenAI for creating realistic test data

• Cypress or Playwright for automated testing

Step 8: Plan Your Endgame

Design your MVP toward a specific milestone:

For Investor Demos: Emphasize reliability, clear value story, and smooth presentation flow

For Early Customers: Focus on onboarding experience, basic analytics, and easy support

For Internal/Board Validation: Emphasize measurable outcomes and clear reporting

Make It Easy to Show Off

Every MVP should have: one clean URL, realistic test data already loaded, a reset button for demos, and a "golden path" that shows the key value in 3 minutes or less.

Example 4-Week MVP Development Timeline:

Week 0 (Pre-work): Write product statement, define success metrics, recruit 8 test users

Week 1: Build Figma prototype → run 6–8 user sessions → refine workflows based on feedback, finalize Skip List

Week 2: Set up basic technology foundation → build the core user flow → add error tracking and analytics

Week 3: Handle the complex backend work (often manually at first) → add payment processing if needed → internal team demo → test with 3 external users

Week 4: Polish the demo experience → create basic analytics dashboard → run through with investors/early customers

What You'll Have After 4 Weeks

• Working demo with a clean URL and test data loaded

• Recordings of at least 3 user sessions

• Concrete data on your success metrics (example: 6 out of 8 users completed the core task)

• A clear 2-page document outlining next steps and biggest risks

Common Pitfalls (And How to Avoid Them)

Pitfall: Spending weeks perfecting the visual design
Solution: Lock visual scope early; focus on making the workflow correct and fast

Pitfall: Engineer working in isolation without regular input
Solution: Schedule cross-functional check-ins every few days (15-30 minutes maximum)

Pitfall: Saying yes to "tiny" feature requests that add up
Solution: Every new request must answer: "Does this help us validate a success metric?"

Pitfall: Flying blind on technical problems
Solution: Set up error monitoring (Sentry) and user analytics (PostHog) before building features

Owner's Quick Checklist

Before you start spending money on development:

☐ We documented the Product Statement and Success Metrics
☐ We ran at least one Wizard-of-Oz or prototype test with real users
☐ We agreed on a written Skip List and committed to reviewing it weekly
☐ We scheduled regular cross-functional working blocks
☐ We set up error monitoring and user analytics from day one
☐ We can demo the core value in 3 minutes with realistic test data

The goal isn't to build something perfect. The goal is to build something that teaches you what to build next, with confidence instead of guesswork. 

Want to know how much it will cost to build your MVP? Read our next post. 

Ready to Build Your MVP?

Following this process will dramatically increase your chances of building something users actually want—but you don't have to do it alone.

Rescue My Code specializes in helping non-technical founders navigate the MVP development process from start to finish. We've guided hundreds of business owners through successful MVP launches using exactly this framework.

Whether you need help defining your success metrics, assembling the right technical team, or making smart technology decisions that won't box you in later, we're here to support you at every step.

Get started with a free MVP strategy session where we'll help you:

• Refine your Product Statement and success criteria

• Identify the highest-risk assumptions to test first

• Create a realistic timeline and budget for your specific idea

• Connect you with the right technical talent for your project

Don't let technical complexity derail your vision. Schedule your free consultation today and let's turn your idea into a validated, fundable MVP.