Are (public) product roadmaps useful?
I've just released a blog detailing upcoming features for an app and it's got me wondering: Are public product roadmaps even useful?
Do your users/customers/clients really care about what's coming next before it happens?
My initial thoughts are it can be good for generating interest and solidifying features by presenting them in a user focused way but I'm not of the value beyond that.
I can't think of an app where I care to know about updates before they happen. Can you?
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We have a public page where all customers can write their ideas and requests for product development and vote for them. The requests that get the most votes are the ones that we take on board.
Can't that backfire? I've just got an email from Strapi telling me that TypeScript is now available and I had subscribed to this feature request... 2 years ago :/ it can feel more frustrating than with no roadmap
It all depends on the demand for the option. Our developers are primarily focused on this.
Maybe not roadmaps but Changelogs I think are very nice way to make sure a company is still innovating: https://linear.app/blog/startups-write-changelogs
I like the idea of writing for your early adaptors. They're much more likely to care about what's coming next.
for me it's important if I see the platform is not mature and lacking features, then I try to find a roadmap to see if the company will soon implement the features I'm missing.
It can also help when I'm deciding between two apps or platforms. Seeing an active roadmap and possible changelog means the company works hard to make new features or fixes so is more likely I will choose that platform over some other that doesn't display anything
I hadn't thought of this and it totally makes sense.
This serves as a way to gauge future potential and makes it easier to compare it between it and another platform.
agree with @ajimix, the two scenarios i've personally found public roadmaps useful are 1. evaluating competitors 2. apps I use the most (like CRM or proj mang.) Those are the apps I'm invested in and whose features I care more about more.
That being said, the additional value of a public roadmap is minimal. it takes forever to make a roadmap and it changes all the time so if sharing in public i'd keep it simple and generic.
I find public roadmaps so incredibly hard to moderate.
You will always have discussions with individuals customers on priotization.
Customers don't get the bigger picture typically.
A simple way to add feature rrequests is great though. Check out ProductLane. Raphael is building a great servive and the product vision is just right IMO
We don't have a public roadmap. Instead I mention the top 1-2 high level goals we are working on in a monthly newsletter and invite people to reach out should they want to know more. Some people do (and e.g. volunteer as beta testers), but most don't and that is expected behaviour.
No public roadmap to maintain :)
For sure, maintenance is a decent reason to avoid roadmaps.
I am not fond of them. They are typical of open source project, where they make sense because they are targeted at contributors. They also smell startup, because you need to show a roadmap to people that gives you money.
But as a customer, I simply want existing bugs to be fixed asap + know what the team is currently worked on.
A public roadmap is a huge commitment, providing little value to either your business or the customer imo.
interesting take! I agree with you! I can't think of any products I care to know about. I feel like the super fans, early adopters might differ in opinion though.
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