Prototypes validate ideas. Production builds run businesses.
A prototype (or proof of concept) is built to answer a question. A production build is built to run reliably. The difference matters in how they're scoped, built, and what happens next. Knowing which one you need prevents over-investing in validation and under-investing in production.
Scope decision between a prototype/proof-of-concept and a production-ready build — often unclear on what distinguishes them and which is appropriate for the current stage
A prototype:
- Answers: "Does this idea work?" or "Can this be built?"
- May have hardcoded data, no real auth, no error handling
- Not intended for real users
- Fast and cheap
- Disposable: once the question is answered, the prototype may be thrown away or heavily refactored
A production build:
- Intended for real users doing real things with real data
- Requires: error handling, authentication, data validation, monitoring, backup, security
- Performance matters: slow responses lose users
- Reliability matters: downtime costs money
- Maintainability matters: the code will be worked on for years
The dangerous middle: A prototype that gets used by real users. The missing security, error handling, and data validation in a prototype become production problems when users start hitting edge cases. This is the most common scenario: "we built a quick prototype to test the idea, now it has 100 users and we can't add features without it breaking."
The right use of prototypes: Validate with low fidelity before investing in production. Show Figma mocks to customers before writing code. Show a prototype to 5 potential users to get feedback before building the full product.
When to go straight to production:
- You have validated demand (pre-sales, confirmed users)
- The product domain requires correctness (financial, healthcare, legal)
- You're past the hypothesis stage
Clear scope decision that matches the current need — prototype for hypothesis validation, production build for reliable operation
Production-quality builds only. MVP scope (narrow features) with production-quality implementation.
One honest number to start.
Fixed-scope, fixed-price. The number below is the starting point — final scope is built from your brief.
Clear scope decision that matches the current need — prototype for hypothesis validation, production build for reliable operation
Three steps, every time.
The same repeatable engagement on every project. No surprises, no mystery, no billable ambiguity.
Brief & discovery.
We send you questions, then get on a call. Output: a written scope with every step, feature, and integration listed.
Build & ship.
Fixed schedule, weekly reviews. No scope creep unless you change the scope — and if you do, we reprice it transparently.
Warranty & retainer.
30-day warranty on every launch. Most clients stay on a monthly retainer for ongoing features and maintenance.
Why Fixed-Price Matters Here
"MVP" at RCB Software means narrow scope, not low quality. The 12-week delivery is a production-ready application.
Questions, answered.
MVP (Minimum Viable Product) is a production-quality product with a minimal feature set. A prototype is a low-quality demonstration. An MVP ships; a prototype demonstrates.
Depends on the prototype. If it's a Bubble application or a quickly assembled no-code tool, migration is usually a rebuild. If it's a poorly-structured coded application, code review determines how much can be salvaged.
Tell Ryel about your project.
Describe what you’re building and what outcome you need. You’ll have a written, fixed-price scope within the week.