What comes to mind when you hear "MVP"?
For many teams, it's a rallying cry for speed. Ship fast. Start small. Test early. And in principle, that's exactly right. The minimum viable product (MVP) has long been the darling of lean startup culture—a way to validate assumptions without over-investing.
But over the years, "minimum viable" has become a bit of a trap. Too many MVPs are scoped for speed, but not for sustainability. They’re stripped down to the point of being unhelpful, hard to maintain, or misaligned with the future roadmap. And when the first version falters, teams scramble to rebuild—burning precious time and morale in the process.
At Ridiculous Engineering, we’ve seen the good, the bad, and the over-engineered. And we think it’s time for a fresh take on what MVP really means.
The Myth of Simple MVPs
There’s this persistent myth that MVPs should be the easiest thing you can ship. But "easy" isn't the same as "viable." And if your MVP can’t scale, be integrated, or provide meaningful value, then you’re not building a product, you’re building a disposable prototype.
Here are some common pitfalls:
- No content strategy: The CMS is hardcoded or an afterthought.
- Missing architecture: There’s no plan for how version one will evolve.
- Unclear user value: Features exist, but nobody’s sure why.
- No feedback loop: You shipped it, but how will you learn from it?
Viable doesn't mean perfect. But it should mean intentional.
From MVP to MLP: Building a Minimum Lovable Product
At Ridiculous Engineering, we encourage our clients to go beyond the MVP and think in terms of a Minimum Lovable Product (MLP). Why? Because viable alone isn’t often not enough, not when users are bombarded with options, and expectations are sky-high. This shift helps our clients think more holistically about their needs, aligning short-term priorities with long-term value and user experience.
An MLP is more than usable. It’s meaningful. It makes people care. It offers just enough delight, utility, and clarity to make someone say, "I’d use that again."
So instead of asking, "What’s the smallest thing we can launch?" we ask:
- What’s the simplest version of this that users can genuinely love?
- What will leave them wanting more?
- How can we make this first experience unforgettable—even if it's modest?
Most Valuable Path
We still believe in lean, but we reframe MVP as the Most Valuable Path.
That means building in a way that:
- Delivers real value now to users or stakeholders
- Builds momentum and buy-in internally
- Leaves room to grow without rework or scrapping everything
That doesn’t mean gold-plating version one. It means designing smart scaffolding. Something that balances feasibility, usability, and future-readiness.
For example, when we help teams build ecommerce platforms or content systems with Consus, our proprietary headless CMS solution, we don’t just drop in a few static pages and call it a day.
We:
- Create a flexible component system so teams can manage content easily
- Set up analytics and feedback loops
- Establish basic roles and workflows for long-term use
- Lay out a roadmap with versioning in mind
It’s not just about launching; it’s about launching well.
What to Ask Before You Build
Whether you’re working on a storefront, a customer portal, or an internal tool, here are a few questions we think every team should ask before building an MVP or MLP:
- What does "viable" mean in our context?
- Will this MVP teach us something we can actually act on?
- Is this MVP setting us up to scale?
- Are we solving for now and next?
- What will make this version lovable to users?
- Who owns it post-launch, and how will they maintain it?
If you can’t answer those confidently, it’s not too late to reframe. That’s where thoughtful architecture, smart CMS integration, and scalable design patterns come in.
How Ridiculous Engineering Helps
At Ridiculous Engineering, we specialize in helping teams build lean but lasting solutions. From ecommerce storefronts to content-rich applications, we bring a sharp eye for both agility and longevity.
We do this by:
- Guiding MVP and MLP scoping with business outcomes and user value in mind
- Leveraging Consus and Directus to build headless, low-code experiences
- Creating flexible content structures that grow with your team
- Supporting launch and transition plans so teams can take over smoothly
You don’t have to choose between moving fast and building right. With the right approach, you can do both, and maybe even make people fall in love along the way.
If you’re thinking about building something new, or revisiting an MVP that didn’t stick, let’s talk. We’d love to help you find the most valuable path forward.
Ridiculous Engineering: building what's next, thoughtfully.
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