Applying Lean and MVPs to Web Development

Applying Lean and MVPs to Web Development

by | Jul 22, 2022 | Branding, Design Strategy, Digital, Marketing

When you are launching a new company, or product, or brand, it’s important that you like it. But it’s really really important that you have customers who like it. 


A business without sales, has a hard time sticking around. So while your idea may be great, and you have a passion and a vision for it  If you haven’t tested it you really have no idea if it will sell. Lean Startup philosophy uses a technique called Minimum Viable Product (MVP) where you create a website to sell or pre-sell an idea that doesn’t exist in physical form to gather data about how the idea or product will perform in the market place. . Here are some keys to ensuring your MVP is a success. 


Build a Website  (It should say who you are, describe the benefit, include illustrations and diagrams, videos)


Incorporate E-Commerce (It’s not enough to just track visits, you want to know who will  buy in)


Build A Marketing Strategy (SEO, Digital Advertising, Email Campaign, A/B testing)


Track Your Data (analytics, tracking, CRM)


Manage Expectations (communicate how/when your product/services will be delivered)



Setting up lean and MVPs (minimum viable product) in your website can be a great way to test new language and marketing with your audience and gather feedback, so that you can have more conclusive data before investing the big funds in your messaging and marketing.

As a design agency, we specialize in brand communications, and we get especially jazzed about digital platforms. We start by understanding who our clients are, and creating colors, logos, fonts, and styles that express this identity within a snap-judgment second of web scrolling. We also think strategically. Aside from visual strategy, we work with expert copywriters to ensure that content is relevant and engaging, and we talk about all of the tiered goals so that we know what should be built and implemented now, and what we want to build and implement in the future after some user feedback. 


Some advantages that come with leaning into a tiered web approach could be more clearly identifying your target audience and their pain points, understanding how they use the website and how they want to use the product, understanding your direct and indirect competitors, and learning what to highlight so that you are differentiated from the competition.

Ready to get started? Schedule a complimentary consultation. 


Brand Brag:


One great example of an MVP site is Groupon. When Groupon first launched, this was a brand new concept- digital coupons. They started with a simple WordPress site, and used downloadable PDFs as the groupons. Once they proved a desire and made some revenue, they stepped up their game, and now have a net worth of 0.69billion dollars. 

They Love Me, They Love Me Not

They Love Me, They Love Me Not

by | Feb 7, 2022 | Branding

We all know a marketer’s worst fear; having their message be misunderstood. When this happens, there is a chance that your customers will forgive and forget. However, that is not always the case. Because of social media and the ability to voice any opinion at any time, marketing mishaps can shift the perception of your brand for the long haul. The goal is to avoid making marketing mistakes in the first place, but no one is perfect. Here are five steps that will help your brand recover if your marketing campaign doesn’t land well. (according to zoho.com) 

  1. Listen to what people have to say– in order to learn from your experience and ensure that nothing similar ever happens again in the future, you need to understand where you went wrong. It is important to listen to your consumers and value their opinion. Once you hear what they have to say, own up to your mistakes and take responsibility for your actions. 
  2. Think like a customer- remember, your marketing campaign can flop even if it wasn’t offensive. Maybe it wasn’t unique. Maybe it didn’t highlight what made your brand different from the rest. Maybe it didn’t do anything wrong, but it didn’t do anything right either. Put yourself in your customers shoes and ask yourself if you would remember the marketing campaign that you just created. If not, go back to the drawing board and rework it so that your customers are engaged. 
  3. Analyze your numbers- you need to dig deep. Sometimes just looking at a metric does not tell the whole story. If something has a lot of views, it doesn’t mean that everyone watched it. They could have clicked on your video and then exited out because they found it boring. If you look at the data and you see that a lot of people clicked out of your video at the same part, go back in and make changes. Do people click away once they see numbers? Do they click away when the music cuts out? Pay attention to these minor details and it can make a major impact on your brand. It helps to have analytics installed on your website, to use a CRM platform to track different messages, and to compare analytics from different forms of communication.  
  4. Do one thing at a time- do not feel rushed to jump into many different avenues after (or before!) a marketing mishap. Like with anything in life, it is best to fully dedicate yourself to one thing then it is too spread yourself too thin and try to cover too many bases. When you do this, you are not fully dedicating yourself to one task, and are missing out on an opportunity to excel in something. So learn from your mistakes, and take your time to fix it. Focus. 
  5. Hire an Expert- Remember, marketing takes up an entire section of your business plan because without it you don’t have a business. Too many business owners waste time and energy trying to tackle marketing tasks that they don’t understand. When faced with any challenge it’s always better to meet with an expert, come up with a budget and use what you’re good at to earn the money you need to hire the right help.

Remember that every business has its failures and it is okay to make mistakes as long as you are willing to learn from them.