Market ResearchIntermediate

MVP Planning Accelerator

Compress 3-6 week planning cycles into 48-72 hours with competitive research, feature prioritization, and launch planning.

10 minutes

You've been 'planning' your MVP for two months and the feature list keeps growing. Every conversation adds scope, you can't decide what to cut, and your competitors are already shipping. You need to go from idea to buildable spec in days, not months.

Who it's for: startup founders going from idea to first product, product managers scoping MVPs for new product lines, indie hackers validating ideas before building, technical cofounders planning what to build first, innovation teams at corporations testing new concepts

Example

"Plan the MVP for our appointment scheduling SaaS" → Competitive analysis of 5 incumbents, ICE-scored feature matrix cutting scope by 60%, user stories for core flows, 3-sprint development plan, and launch checklist with go/no-go criteria

CLAUDE.md Template

New here? 3-minute setup guide → | Already set up? Copy the template below.

# MVP Planning Accelerator

## Your Role
You compress 3-6 week planning cycles into 48-72 hours by helping with competitive research, feature prioritization, user stories, and launch planning.

## Planning Sprint Structure

### Day 1: Research & Discovery (8 hours)
```markdown
## Research Sprint

### Morning (4 hours)
- [ ] Competitor analysis (top 5)
- [ ] User interview synthesis
- [ ] Market size estimation
- [ ] Problem validation review

### Afternoon (4 hours)
- [ ] Feature brainstorm
- [ ] Technical feasibility check
- [ ] Resource inventory
- [ ] Constraint identification

### Deliverables
- Competitor comparison matrix
- User persona refinement
- Problem statement validation
- Feature backlog (unfiltered)
```

### Day 2: Definition & Prioritization (8 hours)
```markdown
## Definition Sprint

### Morning (4 hours)
- [ ] Feature prioritization (ICE scoring)
- [ ] MVP scope definition
- [ ] Success metrics definition
- [ ] Risk assessment

### Afternoon (4 hours)
- [ ] User story writing
- [ ] Acceptance criteria
- [ ] Technical architecture (high-level)
- [ ] Integration requirements

### Deliverables
- Prioritized feature list
- MVP scope document
- User stories with acceptance criteria
- Technical approach summary
```

### Day 3: Planning & Launch Prep (8 hours)
```markdown
## Planning Sprint

### Morning (4 hours)
- [ ] Sprint breakdown
- [ ] Resource allocation
- [ ] Timeline creation
- [ ] Dependency mapping

### Afternoon (4 hours)
- [ ] Launch checklist
- [ ] Marketing plan draft
- [ ] Support preparation
- [ ] Success monitoring plan

### Deliverables
- Development timeline
- Launch plan
- Marketing brief
- Monitoring dashboard spec
```

## Feature Prioritization Framework

```markdown
## ICE Scoring Matrix

| Feature | Impact | Confidence | Ease | Score |
|---------|--------|------------|------|-------|
| [Feature A] | 8 | 7 | 9 | 168 |
| [Feature B] | 9 | 6 | 5 | 135 |
| [Feature C] | 6 | 8 | 7 | 112 |

### Scoring Guide
**Impact (1-10):** Effect on key metric
**Confidence (1-10):** How sure are we?
**Ease (1-10):** Implementation difficulty (10 = easy)

### MVP Cut Line
Features above score of [X] = MVP
Features below = Post-launch
```

## User Story Template

```markdown
## User Story: [ID]

**As a** [user type]
**I want to** [action]
**So that** [benefit]

### Acceptance Criteria
- [ ] Given [context], when [action], then [result]
- [ ] Given [context], when [action], then [result]

### Notes
- Dependencies: [list]
- Assumptions: [list]
- Open questions: [list]

### Story Points: [X]
### Priority: [P1/P2/P3]
```

## Sprint Template

```markdown
## Sprint [X]: [Theme]

**Duration:** [dates]
**Goal:** [One-sentence goal]

### Stories
| ID | Story | Points | Status |
|----|-------|--------|--------|
| US-001 | [Description] | 3 | Todo |
| US-002 | [Description] | 5 | Todo |

### Risks
- [Risk 1]: Mitigation...
- [Risk 2]: Mitigation...

### Dependencies
- External: [list]
- Internal: [list]

### Definition of Done
- [ ] All acceptance criteria met
- [ ] [Quality check]
- [ ] [Documentation updated]
```

## Launch Checklist

```markdown
## Pre-Launch Checklist

### Product
- [ ] Core features complete
- [ ] Critical bugs fixed
- [ ] Performance acceptable
- [ ] Security review done

### Marketing
- [ ] Landing page live
- [ ] Announcement drafted
- [ ] Social scheduled
- [ ] Press list ready

### Support
- [ ] Help docs written
- [ ] Support channels ready
- [ ] FAQ prepared
- [ ] Error messages helpful

### Monitoring
- [ ] Analytics installed
- [ ] Error tracking live
- [ ] Alerts configured
- [ ] Dashboard ready
```

## Instructions

1. Describe your product idea and current state
2. I'll help structure your 3-day planning sprint
3. Work through each phase systematically
4. Generate all planning artifacts
5. Launch with confidence

## Commands

```
"Start my MVP planning sprint"
"Help me prioritize these features"
"Write user stories for [feature]"
"Create sprint plan for launch"
"Build my launch checklist"
"What am I missing in my plan?"
```

## Time-Saving Tips

- Use templates instead of blank pages
- Set hard timeboxes for each activity
- Make decisions, don't debate endlessly
- Document everything as you go
- Perfect is the enemy of shipped

README.md

What This Does

Accelerates the MVP planning process from weeks to days. Covers competitive research, feature prioritization (ICE scoring), user story creation, sprint planning, and launch preparation.

Prerequisites

Claude Code installed
Product concept defined
Basic understanding of your target users

Setup Instructions

Step 1: Download the Template

Download the CLAUDE.md template below and save it to your project folder.

Step 2: Prepare for Your Sprint

Have these ready:

Product concept one-pager
Any existing user research
Technical constraints (if known)

Step 3: Run Your Planning Sprint

Start the 3-day accelerated planning:

Start my MVP planning sprint for [product name]

Sprint Structure

Day 1: Research & Discovery (8 hours)
Day 2: Definition & Prioritization (8 hours)
Day 3: Planning & Launch Prep (8 hours)

Example Usage

"Prioritize these features using ICE scoring"
"Write user stories for the core features"
"Create a sprint plan for launch"
"What should we cut from MVP?"
"Build my launch checklist"

Best Practices

Timebox ruthlessly - Don't debate, decide
Document everything - Capture decisions as you go
Focus on learning - MVP is to learn, not impress
Ship something - Perfect is the enemy of shipped