How to Build a Public Product Roadmap (Step-by-Step Guide)

A public product plan builds trust, reduces support tickets, and keeps users engaged. Here is how to create one.

Your users want to know what is coming. A public product plan answers their questions before they ask, reduces "when will you add X?" support tickets, and shows you are actively building.

Here is how to build a public plan that actually works.

Why Go Public?

Many founders hesitate to share their plan. What if competitors copy us? What if we do not deliver?

Here is why the benefits outweigh the risks:

• Trust, transparency builds credibility
• Reduced support load, users can check the plan instead of asking
• User involvement, people invest in products they can influence
• Feedback loop, users vote on what matters most
• Marketing, your plan is content that attracts visitors

The risk of competitors copying? Minimal. Execution matters more than ideas.

What to Include (and What to Hide)

Include:

• Feature requests under consideration
• What is currently in progress
• Recently shipped features
• General direction and priorities

Keep Private:

• Specific launch dates (use "Q1" or "Coming Soon" instead)
• Unvalidated experiments
• Internal metrics and business details
• Security-related improvements

Step 1: Choose Your Categories

Most plans use status-based columns:

• Under Review, new requests being evaluated
• Planned, accepted, will build eventually
• In Progress, currently being worked on
• Shipped, done and live

Keep it simple. Too many categories create confusion.

Step 2: Gather Existing Feedback

Before building your plan, collect what you already have:

• Support tickets requesting features
• Discord/Slack messages about improvements
• Twitter/social media suggestions
• Your own product ideas

Do not start empty. Seed your plan with 10-20 items so it looks active.

Step 3: Choose a Tool

Options range from simple to full-featured:

Simple (Free):

• Notion public page
• GitHub Projects
• Trello public board

Dedicated Tools:

• RoadmapAI, AI-driven, works with Discord
• Canny, feature-rich, higher price
• Frill, simple and clean
• Nolt, budget-friendly

Dedicated tools offer voting, notifications, and connections that spreadsheets cannot match.

Step 4: Set Up Voting

Voting lets users signal what matters most. Benefits:

• Quantitative data for prioritization
• Users feel heard when they vote
• Popular requests rise to the top naturally

Most dedicated tools include voting. If using Notion/Trello, you will need to track this manually.

Step 5: Turn On Notifications

The magic happens when you close the loop. When a feature ships:

1. Update its status to "Shipped"
2. Notify everyone who voted for it
3. Thank them for the feedback

This turns passive voters into loyal fans.

Step 6: Share Your Plan

A plan nobody sees is useless. Share it:

• Link in your app's navigation
• Add to website footer
• Mention in welcome emails
• Pin in Discord/Slack community
• Include in support responses

Step 7: Keep It Updated

A stale plan is worse than no plan. Schedule time to:

• Review new submissions weekly
• Update statuses as work progresses
• Archive completed items monthly
• Respond to comments and questions

Public Plan Tips That Work

1. Do Not Over-Promise
Only mark things "Planned" when you are confident. "Under Review" is safer for maybes.

2. Communicate "No" Gracefully
Not every request will happen. Close items with an explanation: "Thanks for the suggestion! We decided not to pursue this because..."

3. Celebrate Launches
When you ship something, make noise. Tag voters, post updates, show momentum.

4. Use Your Plan in Marketing
"See what is coming" is compelling. Link to your plan in launch posts and landing pages.

Example Plan Structure

Here is a simple template:

🔍 Under Review (10-20 items)
New requests being evaluated

📋 Planned (5-10 items)
Accepted, prioritized for development

🚧 In Progress (2-3 items)
Currently being built

✅ Shipped (Recent 10-15 items)
Completed and live

Start Today

You do not need a perfect plan to start. Begin with what you have:

1. Pick a tool (even Notion works)
2. Add 10-20 existing ideas
3. Share the link
4. Improve as you go

Your users will appreciate the transparency, and you will get better feedback in return.

Want a product plan with AI-driven feedback collection? Try RoadmapAI free, captures feature requests from Discord automatically.