A Minimum Viable Product (MVP) is a product that does just enough. Just enough to learn; just enough to earn; just enough to prove it works. It’s your first fastest thing.

Sometimes the first fastest thing is built to scale. But there are times when it’s designed to be scrapped. 

Problem is, many businesses end up stuck with something that’s not built to last. Because it takes a bit of risk to go back to basics and build whatever is next: your V2.

Otherwise, your first fastest thing goes from being about discovery and learning to delivering just enough. And when it comes to growth, you don’t want just enough.

At Planes, we’ve built and rebuilt countless MVPs. We've helped companies like Getter scale their previously unscalable MVP. So it goes without saying, that we know a thing or two about how to build a V2. 

Read on for the warnings signs that your MVP might have reached its shelf life, as well as learnings from our V2 build with Getter.

If things have gone from being fine and dandy to "why is this always broken?" then it might be time to step back and look at your functionality as a whole, rather than your developers working overtime to plaster the cracks. 

If you’re unsure when the best time to rebuild is, it’s a lot easier to do so when you have fewer users. Building a slim V2 helps you jump the gap between maintaining two platforms – the old and new – simultaneously which can be costly. 

An MVP isn't designed to be a stripped-down version of your end goal. What you’re offering to your customers is different at this point than it will be later. Your finished product could look nothing like your first iteration, and it's through listening to your customers that you'll find yourself at a V2.

If you knew what that looked like at the start, there'd be no point in building an MVP, and if you don't give yourself the flexibility to rapidly change the fundamentals of your MVP after a while, you'll never grow. 

An MVP isn't designed to be a stripped-down version of your end goal.

As you've ducked and dived your way through user testing and discovered your product-market fit, have all these layers muddied your overall picture? That is to say: are you making a mountain out of a molehill? 

Don’t be afraid to pull out features you built the first time around. Now you have a clearer idea of what your customers want, you might find some features are redundant. Or, you might find there are better ways of technically achieving the same outcomes now that you've got more experience. 

Rebuilding doesn't have to mean a lot of work. It can just be making things simpler, cleaner, and a hell of a lot easier to manage. 

Stagnation can be easy to spot externally, but when you can't see the wood from the trees, rebuilding your MVP can sound more of a headache than a help. 

Remember: there's not always a clear line between an MVP and your V1. Leaving the MVP stage can feel a little like flying the nest, and the nest is so warm and cosy… If you're looking at the nest like you could set up a nice retirement village there, kick yourself out.  

Are people interested in your product? Have you answered your biggest test questions? If so, burn the nest. Don't waste time and energy trying to perfect an MVP that wasn't built to last. 

If your MVP is based on one or two features, perhaps now is the time to really escalate your growth and offer your customers more. V2 is the perfect opportunity to refocus and regroup.

Don't waste time and energy trying to perfect an MVP that wasn't built to last. 

Getter is an online shop and on-demand delivery service for the construction industry, helping tradies with broken tools and on-site shortages. But the processes and tech Getter had used for their initial MVP launch were stopping them from scaling.

A common problem with MVPs that have outgrown themselves is that none of the processes are technically broken; there are just a lot of them. And when you've been used to operating at pace, the phrase "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" comes to mind. 

We helped Getter to identify three main areas to focus on:

1. Rebuild a MVP that could handle scaling by automation

2. Smooth out customer journey issues with a leading digital UX

3. Help implement a team to grow Getter further 

With some tactical changes, Planes and Getter were able to reset the foundations of the MVP, moving away from the quick and dirty V1 to a sustainable and scalable future-proof platform.

We developed the new product in iterations to ensure it stayed lightweight. While the business was keen to add more features, getting the foundations rebuilt and the UX right took priority. After all, an MVP V2 still needs to be agile and stay true to its nature.

You can read the full story and get all the details on our work with Getter here.