Business

Transform your app or digital platform concept into a structured project with the Business Model Canvas

By Khalid Yagoubi - 23 Jan, 2026
5 min read

Every month at KERN IT, we encounter entrepreneurs with new ideas, sometimes brilliant ones, that often lacks a clear framework.

The biggest pitfall? Rushing into costly development before proving your product has a purpose, a viable business model, or a real market fit.

Avoid falling in love with your own idea

This is arguably the #1 trap we see with project owners:

Getting emotionally attached to an idea... to the point of losing all perspective.

You believe in your concept, you already imagine thousands of users, you want to "move fast". But when simple questions are asked:

How will you generate revenue?
Who is your target audience?
Who else is in the market?

You either have the facts and figures ready, or you hit a complete blank.

Occasionally, we encounter founders who are unwilling to accept that their concept is underdeveloped or misaligned with current market priorities.

Brilliant idea + Zero strategy = Zero users + Zero revenue + 100% frustration.

Let’s talk numbers: what is the real cost of a digital project?

Developing an app, platform, or SaaS product requires a significant investment, even with a lean approach. Here is a realistic budget range for a professional-grade project:

MVP (Minimum Viable Product):
👉 Starting at €50 000 for a functional core (design, API, security, user base).
Evolutions & maintenance:
👉 Budget between €100 000 and €300 000 annually to keep your product running, evolving, and secure.
Marketing & Customer acquisition:
👉 From €20 000 to €100 000 per year, based on your target market and acquisition channels.
Sales é Customer supports:
👉 To be included in your HR plan as soon as you hit the initial traction phases.

Keep in mind, these figures don’t include:

Technical or strategic unforeseen challenges;
The time required to reach the right product/market fit.

The moral of the story: never start coding until you have a clear roadmap… and a realistic understanding of the total investment.

Secure your investment: map out your idea using the Business Model Canvas

One euro spent on strategic thinking equals ten euros saved on unnecessary development.

The Business Model Canvas (BMC) is a high-impact tool designed to structure your project, clarify your financial stakes, and bridge the gap between your vision and actual market needs.

The 9 essential building blocks:

Customer Segments
Value Propositions
Channels
Customer Relationships
Revenue Streams
Key Resources
Key Activities
Partnerships
Cost Structure

1. Customer Segments

Who are the people behind your solution? Who are your core users or clients? What specific audience are you aiming for? Which pain points are you addressing?
Examples: Freelance professionals, healthcare SMEs, students, French-speaking travelers…

2. Value Propositions

What specific problem do you address? What value do you promise to deliver?
This is the reason someone would choose your solution over another.
Examples: Instant online appointment booking, Streamlining accounting workflows, Fostering real-time social engagement in local cafés.

3. Channels

How will you reach your customers? Which means will you use to promote, sell, and deliver your product?
Examples: web platform, mobile app, social networks, strategic partnerships, direct prospecting.

4. Customer Relationships

How do you intend to interact with your customers? Are you aiming for a high-touch personal approach or a seamless automated experience? Will support be human-led or tech-driven?
Examples: email onboarding, customer service, regular newsletters, live chat.

5. Revenue Streams

How will you generate revenue? What does your economic model look like? Who is the payer, what is the price point, and what is the billing frequency?
Examples: monthly recurring revenue (SaaS), transaction fees, commission-based, freemium-to-premium.

6. Key Resources

What are your mission-critical assets? These may be human, technological, financial, or material in nature.
Examples: engineering team, hosting infrastructure, proprietary databases, domain expertise, strategic alliances.

7. Key Activities

What are your core daily operations? The key tasks required to build, deliver, and continuously improve your solution.
Examples: engineering, customer success, business development, content creation.

8. Partnerships

Who are your key allies for success?
Which partners assist you in building or scaling your service?
Examples: partner agencies, independent contractors, tech vendors, distribution channels, public or private institutions.

9. Cost Structure

What are your primary cost drivers?
What expenses should you plan for during launch and for ongoing operations?
Examples: software engineering, cloud infrastructure, marketing campaigns, payroll, legal costs, ongoing maintenance.

Once it's filled out, what is the Business Model Canvas actually used for?

The Business Model Canvas is far more than a theoretical exercise or a trendy startup gadget. It is a strategic roadmap for decision-making and validation that provides value across your entire project:

1. Clarifying your vision

A well-completed BMC gives you a consistent overview of your project. On a single page, you can:

Ensure total alignment (Value – Customer – Distribution – Revenue)
Detect strategic gaps (e.g., pitching a free model to an audience that values premium exclusivity over cost-saving)
Identify unclear areas that require further exploration.

2. Prioritizing your efforts

Instead of diving headfirst into building a complete product, the BMC enables you to:

Focus your resources on core value-driving features
Design a relevant MVP (Minimum Viable Product)
Determine which elements to prototype and test rapidly before investing heavily.

3. Aligning with your stakeholders

The BMC is a communication tool. It can be used to:

Pitch your project to a development agency (such as KERN IT)
Explain your vision to an investor or a business partner
Get your team on the same page with a shared framework

4. Save time during the scoping phase

For partners like KERN IT, a solid BMC is infinitely more valuable than a generic ChatGPT-generated requirements document or a rambling 40-page brief. It provides the necessary framework to ask critical technical questions, prioritize features, and establish accurate budget estimates.