Complete Roadmap: Launch E-Commerce MVP in 3 Months

The MVP Trap: Failing by Seeking Perfection

80% of startups fail from “over-building.”

Common failure pattern:

Month 1-3: Build perfect design system
Month 4-6: Implement all features
Month 7: Launch
Month 8: Zero customers, out of funds

Successful MVP principle: Minimum features, maximum speed

3-Month MVP Roadmap

Month 1: Core Feature Identification & Prototype

Week 1-2: Problem Validation

- [ ] Interview 20 target customers
- [ ] Always ask "How much would you pay?"
- [ ] Identify top 3 pain points

Week 3-4: Initial Shopify Setup

# Minimum configuration
✅ Shopify Starter Plan ($5/month)
✅ Simple theme (Dawn recommended)
✅ Payment: Shopify Payments only
✅ Shipping: Flat rate nationwide
❌ Custom theme (unnecessary)
❌ Apps (zero initially)

Month 2: Polish Core Experience

Essential question:

“Would customers suffer if this service disappeared?”

Implement (5 features only):

Product browsing (detail pages)
Add to cart
Checkout
Order confirmation email
Basic contact form

Don’t implement:

❌ Recommendations
❌ User registration (guest checkout sufficient)
❌ Reviews (direct interviews with early customers)
❌ Social integration

Month 3: Launch & Learning Loop

Week 1: Soft Launch

Sell to 10 friends/family
→ Collect feedback
→ Improve

Week 2-3: Target Customer Acquisition

Ad spend: $500-1,000
Channel: Instagram or Google Ads
Goal: 20 initial purchases

Week 4: Data Analysis

// Track critical metrics only
const kpis = {
  conversionRate: visit→purchase rate,
  averageOrderValue: average purchase value,
  customerAcquisitionCost: cost per customer,
  repeatPurchaseRate: repeat purchase rate
};

// Watch these only
if (kpis.conversionRate > 1% && kpis.cac < kpis.averageOrderValue * 0.3) {
  console.log("PMF signals. Scale phase.");
}

7 Principles for MVP Success

1. Strict 80/20 Rule

80% of implementation time on 20% of value features
→ Implement only that 20%

2. Don’t Fear Manual Operations

Example: Inventory management
❌ Auto-sync system (2 months)
✅ Google Sheets manual updates (1 day)

"Manual" sufficient until $100K/month

3. Maximize “No Code”

Feature	No Code Tool	Implementation Time
Landing page	Shopify Pages	3 hours
Contact form	Google Forms	30 min
Email marketing	Klaviyo free tier	2 hours
Inventory	Google Sheets	1 hour

4. Design at “70%” is Fine

/* ❌ BAD: Perfectionism */
3 days adjusting 1px margins

/* ✅ GOOD: 70% mindset */
Shopify theme defaults
→ Customize logo and colors only
→ Complete in 1 hour

5. Add Apps Later

Month 1: 0 apps
Month 2: 1-2 apps (payment/shipping only)
Month 3: Add as needed

Reason: Apps degrade cost and performance

6. Don’t Automate Customer Support

First 100 customers: Founder handles **directly**
→ Biggest opportunity to hear customer voice
→ Goldmine for product improvements

Introduce chatbot at $300K/month revenue

7. Dialogue Over Data

Google Analytics: Postpone
Customer interviews: 3x weekly required

Numbers show "what happened"
Dialogue reveals "why it happened"

Failed MVP vs Successful MVP

Case A: Failed “Perfect Pet Food EC”

Development:

Custom theme (3 months)
AI recommendations
Subscriptions
Points system
Member tiers

Result:

Dev cost: $35,000
Launch: 6 months later
Month 1 revenue: $850
Month 6: Service terminated

Problem: Pursued “perfection” without validating customer needs

Case B: Successful “Organic Baby Food EC”

Development:

Shopify default theme
5 products only
Payment: Shopify Payments
Shipping: Manual (no carrier API)

Timeline: 2 weeks Cost: $550 (Shopify + theme customization)

Result:

Month 1: $1,900 revenue (20 orders)
Month 3: $8,200 (added products from customer feedback)
Month 6: $23,500 (custom theme development at this point)

Success Factors:

2-week launch
Learn from real customers
Data-driven gradual improvement

MVP Checklist

Pre-launch verification:

Required:

Unnecessary (initially):

Summary: MVP Success Formula

Success = (Minimum Features) × (Fastest Launch) × (Customer Dialogue)

Failure = (Perfectionism) × (Long Development) × (Assumptions)

DEMETIO supports EC MVP launches. Target 2-week initial launch, PMF achievement in 3 months.

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