Stealth Startup | Media Management App Concept Validation
Boris Todtenhaupt
Market Researcher
Product Manager
UX Designer
Figma
Invision
Miro
Industry/Domain
Technology | Family Media Management | Consumer Applications
The Challenge
A stealth startup sought to develop an innovative app to manage family media consumption, including parental controls, device access management, and usage tracking. However, the team lacked clarity on user needs, market positioning, and key feature priorities. With a limited budget and a complex device landscape to address, the startup needed validation of its product idea to ensure development focus and cost-efficiency.
My Approach
As the Product Consultant, I conducted a focused 2-week discovery sprint to validate the product concept and identify the most impactful features. Key steps included:
Market & Competitive Research
Analyzed existing parental control and media management apps to identify market gaps, user pain points, and emerging trends.
Evaluated competitor offerings for functionality, ease of use, and security features.
User Interviews
Conducted interviews with parents from diverse family structures to uncover challenges in managing family-wide media usage.
Collected insights on pain points such as device complexity, usability, and privacy concerns.
Feature Prioritization
Leveraged MoSCoW prioritization (Must-Have, Should-Have, Could-Have, Won’t-Have) to align feature development with user needs and business goals.
Recommended key features such as intuitive parental controls, content usage dashboards, and customizable device settings.
Prototype Design and Testing
Designed a high-fidelity MVP prototype focused on core features for usability testing.
Conducted user testing sessions to validate ease of use and identify opportunities to simplify workflows across devices.
The Impact
Cost Savings: Reduced initial development costs by $130K through a reprioritized feature list that focused on high-value, user-validated functionality.
Validated MVP Concept: Delivered a high-definition MVP prototype that provided clear direction for development and stakeholder alignment.
User-Centric Insights: Identified critical challenges related to ease of use, security, and the diverse device ecosystem, ensuring these were addressed early in development.
Key Challenges Addressed
Complex Device Landscape: Simplified workflows to ensure compatibility across multiple devices and platforms.
Ease of Use: Designed an intuitive interface to accommodate both tech-savvy and less technical parents.
Security: Addressed privacy and data security concerns, a top priority for families managing sensitive information.
Key Learnings/Highlights
Early user validation and research can significantly reduce costs and de-risk product development.
A well-designed, user-centric MVP prototype accelerates alignment among stakeholders and development teams.
Feature prioritization frameworks like MoSCoW ensure focus on delivering value while managing scope effectively.
