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In episode #5 of "Backstage Tech", we're breaking down why most founders think they're building MVPs when they're actually funding expensive science projects nobody asked for.

Pulling from 7 years in the weeds at ⚙️ ProCoders, I walk through the five mistakes that kill MVPs before launch — and the exact frameworks to avoid burning six months and $100K:

• The "One Feature That Pays" rule — why you need to identify THE single capability customers will pay for today, not five features they might use someday
• The 50-30-20 Launch Strategy — ship to 50% of your market first, use that revenue to expand to 30%, then capture the final 20% (hidden Pareto principle at work)
• The 10X Prototype Rule — spend $2K on a prototype before $20K on production code, and why prototyping kills bad ideas cheap
• The Signature Test — never build without real commitment (signed contract or money in bank), because everything else is just a polite conversation
• The Built-In Distribution Rule — bake customer acquisition INTO your product architecture through integrations, partnerships, and network effects — hope and Meta ads isn't a strategy, it's gambling

If you own, fund, or lead a software product, this episode gives you the 5-question diagnostic that tells you whether you're building a real MVP or wasting capital on a fantasy product.

👉 Want the complete MVP validation checklist? Email [email protected] or connect with me on LinkedIn and I'll send it over.