Today, with the advent of artificial intelligence, flexibility has become more accessible, as the speed at which companies can innovate and iterate has accelerated, becoming democratic and scalable. Running a business with minimal costs can now be taken literally—an entrepreneur with seven-figure revenue, working with a small team, recently told me: "With AI, I’ve become the equivalent of the Wizard of Oz. Pull back the curtain, and you’ll see one person pulling all the levers and letting off steam."

Achieving viability in an MVP has become much faster and more affordable. The hard part is ensuring that this MVP delivers value… to your customer.

Moreover, it’s not just about the product. Your product is likely not the only one in its category that can solve your customers' problems. Your advantage lies in creating an experience that stands out: faster, more enjoyable, painless, and more satisfying.

That’s why we entrepreneurs must shift our focus from the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) to the Minimum Valuable Experience (MVE). It’s not just about building something that works; it’s about creating an experience people find indispensable.

In this article, I’ll explain why this evolution requires a deeper understanding of KPIs—not just as key performance indicators but as tools to keep people interested, informed, engaged, and inspired.

A Classic MVE Case Study: Airbnb

Before diving into KPIs, let’s clarify what MVE is.

MVE (Minimum Valuable Experience) is about creating an indispensable experience for your audience. Again, it’s not just about the product itself but how it integrates into and enhances the lives of your target customers.

To illustrate this concept, let’s revisit Airbnb’s early days, 2008–2010. At the time, online vacation rental platforms weren’t new—VRBO and HomeAway.com had already existed for over a decade.

Airbnb offered something both different and better. They created unique and valuable experiences that went beyond simply providing a place to sleep, perfectly illustrating the essence of a true MVE:

1. Origin Story: The idea for Airbnb emerged when two co-founders, Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia, struggled to pay their San Francisco apartment rent. They decided to rent out air mattresses in their living room to attendees of a design conference. They didn’t just offer a place to sleep; they provided breakfast and even acted as local guides, creating a personalized and memorable experience for their guests.

The Secret MVE Ingredient: A personal touch and emphasis on hospitality became integral to their brand.

2. The "Photo Shoot" Initiative: Early on, Chesky and Gebbia realized that listings on their platform weren’t attracting guests because hosts used low-quality photos. Recognizing that good visuals were crucial for attracting guests, they rented a camera and traveled around New York, taking professional photos of the listed properties themselves.

The Secret MVE Ingredient: More appealing listings boosted trust—a key component of the platform’s success.

3. The "1,000 True Fans" Strategy: Instead of trying to attract everyone from the start, Airbnb focused on building a loyal base of early adopters they called "1,000 true fans." The founders personally engaged with these first users, gathering feedback and refining the platform based on their needs and suggestions.

The Secret MVE Ingredient: This strategy laid a solid foundation for growth, ensuring the core experience was flawless.

4. Personalized Customer Service: In the early days, Airbnb’s founders took customer service very seriously. Chesky and Gebbia often responded to customer inquiries and issues themselves, providing personalized support to ensure a positive experience for both hosts and guests. They also created a "hosting guide" with tips for delivering an excellent guest experience.

The Secret MVE Ingredient: This level of personalized attention made users feel valued and cared for, which was critical for building trust at a time when staying in a stranger’s home was still novel and carried some risk.

5. Launching Airbnb Experiences: Though this came later (in 2016), it was a continuation of their focus on user experience. Airbnb expanded beyond accommodations by offering "Experiences," where locals could host unique activities for guests, further enhancing the travel experience.

The Secret MVE Ingredient: This move demonstrated Airbnb’s commitment to improving the overall travel experience, ensuring guests could have unforgettable and valuable interactions beyond just lodging.

Notice the common thread in the secret MVE ingredient? It’s always about people—those creating the experience and those enjoying it. You must be relentless in evolving and improving your users’ experience. And that brings us to the importance of KPIs.

Put People First in Your KPIs

Traditionally, KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) have been used to measure business success through metrics like sales, leads, and clicks. In my opinion, this is often a waste of time when you’re tracking metrics just for the sake of tracking.

Vanity metrics don’t help; they only give you empty bragging rights. It reminds me of the Instagram influencer with 2 million followers who couldn’t even sell 36 T-shirts.

The two main reasons startups fail are building what you think people want without validating it and ignoring customer feedback.

Today, businesses need a more human-centered approach to KPIs. Instead of dry, generic metrics, treat KPIs as tools to keep people interested, informed, engaged, and inspired. Here’s how:

1. Keep People Interested

Interest goes beyond simple clicks. Measure how long people stay engaged with your content. Do they read your articles to the end? Do they watch your videos in full? Do they actively interact with your interactive content? Tools like Google Analytics can help track engagement metrics like session duration and pages per session.

2. Inform People

Beyond counting shares and likes, assess how well your content educates your audience. Do they learn something new? Do you provide valuable insights that keep them coming back for more? Track feedback and knowledge retention through surveys, quizzes, and follow-up content that tests their understanding.

3. Engage People

Engagement isn’t just a metric; it’s participation. Measure involvement in discussions, comments, and community activity. Do people participate in your forums or social media pages? Do they join webinars or live Q&A sessions? Use tools like social media analytics to gauge community activity and participation levels.

4. Inspire People

Assess the emotional impact of your content. Do people feel motivated, moved, or inspired by what you share?

Sentiment analysis tools can help measure this by evaluating the emotional tone of user comments and feedback.

People-Centric Key Metrics

To truly measure the effectiveness of delivering a Minimum Valuable Experience (MVE) to customers, you need to track key performance indicators (KPIs) long-term. Here are some of my favorites:

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)

CLV uses a simple survey to assess customer satisfaction, loyalty, and enthusiasm, measuring the total revenue a customer can expect over their relationship with your business. A high CLV indicates a strong customer base—that your brand excels at acquiring and retaining customers. This shifts the focus from immediate profits to long-term profitability, emphasizing the importance of building lasting relationships.

Net Promoter Score (NPS)

NPS gives insight into how likely your customers are to recommend your business to others. It goes beyond customer satisfaction to explore loyalty and advocacy. A high NPS indicates that your customers aren’t just satisfied—they’re enthusiastic about your brand.

Customer Churn Rate (CCR)

This simple formula measures how well you retain customers. (It’s lost customers divided by total customers over a period, multiplied by 100.) A monthly CCR audit gives a clear picture of whether you’re doing well at inspiring, informing, interesting, and engaging people—or not.

Employee Satisfaction

Creating a positive brand experience starts at home, as happy employees are more productive and deliver better customer service. Measure employee satisfaction through surveys and feedback mechanisms. High employee satisfaction also reduces turnover and fosters a more motivated workforce, positively impacting the overall customer experience.

Rate of Innovation

Innovation is as crucial to MVE as it is to MVP. The Rate of Innovation tracks the number of new ideas generated, developed, and implemented in your business. A high rate indicates a culture of continuous improvement and adaptability, key to staying relevant and meeting evolving customer needs.

Follow Your "North Star"

Of all KPIs, there’s one primary metric known as the North Star Metric (NSM), to which all others tie back. This metric should reflect the core value you deliver to your customers.

How to Find Your Brand’s "North Star": Examples and Inspiration

Want your brand to truly shine?

🔑 The key to success is the North Star Metric (NSM)—the primary metric that reflects the value you create for your customers.

Here are some examples of NSMs from well-known brands that put customers first:

- Airbnb: Number of bookings—because the main goal is helping people find the perfect place to stay.

- Amazon: Number of monthly purchases—meeting shoppers’ needs is what drives Amazon!

- Facebook: Monthly active users (MAU)—building a strong, vibrant online community.

- Medium: Total time spent reading—immersing readers in engaging content.

- Netflix: Hours watched—entertainment and leisure accessible to everyone.

- Shopify: Revenue per merchant—helping entrepreneurs grow their businesses.

- Spotify: Total listening time—music for every occasion.

- Uber: Number of rides—fast, reliable transportation.

- Zoom: Weekly meetings hosted—convenient remote communication.

What do these NSMs have in common? They all focus on customer value.

And there’s one more crucial point: the level of customer engagement with your brand.

This is what will help you transition from MVP (Minimum Viable Product) to MVE (Minimum Valuable Experience) and rethink KPIs from dry metrics to human-centered indicators.

Remember: Don’t just aim to be viable—aim to be valuable. In a competitive landscape, creating a minimum valuable experience is the key to success!