# Should you have a public roadmap? > A public roadmap helps when customers plan around your releases, but every item on it becomes a promise. Many small teams do better with a private inbox, a changelog and direct replies. Escuta Produto has no public roadmap or voting board, so you share progress through your own channels. Source: https://escutaproduto.com/resources/public-roadmap-pros-and-cons Last updated: 2026-10-09 ## What a public roadmap does well A public roadmap shows customers where the product is going. For some products that matters a lot. A team selling to other companies may need to plan its own rollout around a release. A developer tool with many integrations may need to know when a platform change is coming. In those cases, a roadmap is information the customer can act on. It also signals that the team is active. A visible list of planned work can reassure people who worry that a small product will stall. ## What it costs you Every item on a public roadmap is a promise, whether you intended it or not. Readers hear "planned" as "will ship". When the date slips or the scope changes, the customer remembers the roadmap, not your reasons. A roadmap also invites debate in public. Items that look wrong to a reader get comments, and a comment thread can take more time than the feature. Someone has to moderate it, answer it and keep the tone calm when the answer is no. Finally, a roadmap shows what you have not built. For a small product, that list can look long to a new visitor, even when the team is working hard. ## The promises you start making Once a roadmap is public, the team has to decide what counts as a commitment. Is a "next" item a promise for next quarter, or just a direction? Customers will assume the stronger meaning. If you do not define the words, your reply to a delayed item will sound like a broken promise even when it was never one. If you do publish a roadmap, write a short note on what each column means. Say that dates are estimates and that scope can change. Most readers accept that. They dislike discovering the rule only after something moves. ## Alternatives that keep the loop closed Most of the benefit of a public roadmap comes from telling customers what happened to their request. You can do that without a board: - **A changelog.** Each release says what changed and credits the requests behind it. Readers see progress without a list of plans. See [how to write a changelog customers read](/resources/write-a-changelog). - **Direct replies.** When a request moves to planned or done, tell the people who asked. This feels personal, and it works well with a small customer base. - **A status on each item.** Keep your own statuses clear and close items with a reason, so the team knows what is being worked on. - **Shared updates in your newsletter or product emails.** Use the channel your customers already read. These options give you the signal without the list. They also let you say "not yet" to one customer without a public comment thread around it. Pick one or two of these and do them well before you add a third channel. ## What happens when a roadmap goes quiet A public roadmap that stops changing reads as abandoned. Customers check it, see the same items for six months, and assume the product has stalled, even when the team is busy. If you publish one, agree on an update rhythm before launch and keep to it. If you cannot keep that rhythm, remove the page or mark it as archived with the date it was last reviewed. An honest archive is better than a stale list. Moving an item from now to later in public also draws questions. Prepare one sentence for that case before it happens. Something like: "We are moving this to later so we can finish the export work first. The request is still on the list." A short, plain sentence keeps the conversation from turning into a debate about your priorities. ## Escuta Produto has no public roadmap Escuta Produto does not have a public roadmap, public voting boards or a public feedback page where customers vote on ideas. The product is a private inbox for the team. Feedback comes in through the widget, the hosted page or the REST API, and the team sees it in one place with five statuses: new, planned, in progress, done and closed. If you need a public voting board or a roadmap page that customers browse, that is not what Escuta Produto is for. It works well when you want feedback kept private and tied to the product, and when you tell customers what happened through your own channels. ## How to decide for your product Ask four questions before you publish anything: 1. **Do customers plan around our releases?** If not, a public list adds little. 2. **Can we keep dates honest?** If the team cannot keep the list current, do not publish it. 3. **Who will answer comments?** Name a person who has time for it every week. 4. **What do we do when we say no?** A roadmap needs a clear way to show things that were dropped. If you answer no to the first question, start with a changelog and direct replies. Revisit the roadmap when customers ask for it repeatedly. Many small products find that asking the question is enough signal to act on. For the internal side of the decision, the weekly routine in [how to turn customer feedback into a roadmap](/resources/turn-feedback-into-roadmap) keeps your private plan separate from anything you publish. Alerts in Slack or Discord help the team see new requests as they arrive, which is set up in the [notifications docs](/docs/notifications). ## Frequently asked questions ### Is a public roadmap good for a small software product? Often not. A public roadmap helps when customers plan around your releases. For small teams, it adds promises and comment threads. A changelog and direct replies usually tell customers what they need to know. ### What are the main risks of a public roadmap? Each item reads as a promise, so delays and scope changes damage trust. It also invites public debate that someone must moderate, and it shows the work you have not done, which can look like a long list to new visitors. ### Does Escuta Produto have a public roadmap? No. Escuta Produto has no public roadmap, voting board or public feedback page. It is a private inbox for your team, and you share progress through your own changelog, emails and direct replies. ### What can you use instead of a public roadmap? A changelog that credits requests, direct replies when a request moves to planned or done, and clear statuses that your team keeps current. These let customers see progress without a list of promises.