A dedicated product updates newsletter and public roadmap
Hi,
I noticed Cronometer already has a "New & Improved" updates page, app update notes are available through the Play Store under "What's New", and there is also a newsletter option in account settings. That's useful, but the newsletter seems more focused on general nutrition content, like how to eat healthy, rather than dedicated product updates, app changes, and development progress.
Would Cronometer consider offering a separate newsletter focused purely on new features, app updates, database improvements, and development progress?
Something like a monthly "what's new, what's improved, and what's coming next" update could be really valuable. Not everyone checks the blog regularly, and app store release notes are easy to miss, especially when they are split across platforms.
A dedicated newsletter could highlight things like:
- Newly released features
- Improvements to existing features
- App changes that might otherwise go unnoticed
- Features currently being worked on
- Upcoming priorities
- Database improvements and quality work
This would not need to be a huge production either. Even a simple monthly format with "shipped, improved, in progress, and database updates" would already make a big difference. For example:
- Shipped: New features or app improvements released this month
- Improved: Existing features, usability changes, or bug fixes
- Database: New foods added, verified entries, or data quality improvements
- In progress: Features or fixes currently being worked on
- Next: Upcoming priorities or areas of focus
Ideally, this could be available as an email newsletter, an in-app update feed, or both. The important part is making the updates easy to see for people who are interested, instead of relying on users to stumble across them.
To support this, a public roadmap page would also be great. It would give users a clearer sense of where the app is heading and what kinds of improvements are planned. It doesn't have to be a binding promise carved into stone tablets, guarded by lawyers and/or dragons. Even a lightweight "planned / in progress / recently shipped" roadmap would be enough. Check out https://immich.app/roadmap for a nice roadmap.
Finally, I think a statistics or database insights page could be really interesting, especially for the nutrition nerds among us. Things like database growth, number of verified foods, recently added foods, data quality improvements, or other behind-the-scenes metrics would help show that the database is actively maintained and improving.
I think the biggest benefit would be transparency. People are more willing to pay for Gold when they can clearly see that the product is improving and that they are getting new value for their money. Some users may also see Gold as a way to support a good product and active development, but that only really works if the work being done is visible.
For existing Gold users, this would also make the subscription feel better. New features, database improvements, and smaller quality-of-life changes are easier to appreciate when they are communicated clearly and regularly.
Basically: the work may already be happening, but making it more visible could make a big difference. It would improve trust, make Gold feel more valuable, and reach users where they actually are instead of hoping they stumble across the updates themselves.
Edit: I know there's an option to subscribe to a Newletter in the Account settings; what I'm looking for is more app updates & feature related and not a "nutrition blog sent to my inbox" stuff.