Minimum Viable Product is Old Advice. Here’s the Upgrade
The modern entrepreneur’s edge is creating products people enjoy using immediately
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Introduction
If you’re a new entrepreneur, you’ve probably read the books, taken the courses, and heard the advice:
“Start with an MVP; a Minimum Viable Product.”
The logic is simple:
Launch something basic, test it in the market, and improve from there, but I want you to throw that rule out, or at least rewrite it.
Introducing MDP or MLP
Instead of asking:
“What’s the simplest version of my product that works?”
Ask:
“What’s the simplest version of my product that people love using?”
This mindset shift changes everything.
Why MVPs fall short
The problem with most MVPs?
They’re too minimal.
They may solve the problem… but they do it in a way that feels clunky, uninspired, or even frustrating.
When your very first users experience something bland or difficult to use, they rarely stick around long enough to see the “improved versions” you plan to release later.
The power of delight
A Minimum Delightful Product still starts small, but it’s built with experience in mind.
You’re not just solving the problem; you’re making people enjoy the solution.
That means:
- A clean, intuitive user interface
- A smooth, frustration-free journey
- Thoughtful touches that make people smile
Even if your first version is far from feature-rich, it feels good to use, and that’s what makes users come back.
Why this changes the game
Here’s the truth:
Your first 100 users are your most important ones.
They will decide whether your product gets shared, talked about, and remembered.
If they love using it from day one, you’ve built stickiness — the habit of returning, again and again, and stickiness is far harder to create later.
How to build MDP/MLP
Start with your MVP core, the essential functionality that solves the problem.
Layer in delight. Smooth onboarding, thoughtful design, tiny “wow” moments.
Test with real users, and watch their emotional reaction, not just their feedback.
Polish the experience, even if it means delaying launch slightly.
Food for thought
The MVP mindset focuses on function.
The MDP/MLP mindset focuses on function + feeling. In crowded markets, function gets you noticed, but feeling gets you remembered.
So as you build, remember:
Don’t just launch something people can use. Launch something people want to keep using.
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Prompt used to create the image for the note
P.S.: Image made on Meta AI using the prompt, “a passionate entrepreneur working on product development that solves the problem for the customer, delights them and makes them fall with the new brand”