If your answer is \u201cship it and then move on,\u201d we\u2019d understand. You\u2019re done\u2014time to move on to the next thing!<\/p>\n
But, we\u2019d argue that there\u2019s a better way\u2014one that actually shares vital information with your user base, and gives you a chance to highlight the hard work you\u2019re doing by improving your product.<\/p>\n
The final piece of the puzzle? A public changelog.<\/p>\n
What is a changelog?<\/h2>\n
Typically, a changelog is a file where product changes or versions are listed chronologically. It\u2019s just a log<\/em> of changes<\/em> (go figure).<\/p>\n But, the type of changelog we\u2019re focusing on here is one that is public-facing, and intended for people who use your product.<\/p>\n Now, depending on your customer base, they might be technical. Or, they might not be. Naturally, the types of details you include, and how technical you make your changelog, will vary depending on your customer base.<\/p>\n Why should you keep a changelog? And not only that\u2014why should you display it publicly?<\/p>\n Without a changelog, you have a couple of options for how to share updates with your users.<\/p>\n You can:<\/strong><\/p>\n Options 1, 2, and 3 don\u2019t make it easy for users to look back on recent changes, or find everything in one place.<\/p>\n If product updates are mixed in with your regular blog posts, they\u2019re not super easy to find. And, most of us don\u2019t hold onto emails indefinitely.<\/p>\n So, users might never see your updates if they\u2019re just going out in a blog post or via email. They won\u2019t have a way to easily find these updates at a later date. And, if you\u2019re sharing updates that include info on how to set up or use certain features, having to hunt through an inbox or blog isn\u2019t convenient.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re going to share changes with users, it makes sense to share them in one permanent place.<\/p>\n (And while option 4 is certainly available<\/em> to you, we\u2019d recommend you actually tell people when you\u2019ve changed something about your product. We\u2019ll touch on why that is throughout this article.)<\/p>\n If we had to highlight the most<\/em> valuable thing about having a changelog, it would be this:<\/p>\n A changelog closes the loop from user feedback to execution.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Collecting feedback is the beginning of this process<\/a>. You find out what your users have to say, what they want to see from your product, and what\u2019s working and what isn\u2019t.<\/p>\nBut broadly, a changelog that you share with the world will show:<\/h3>\n
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Should you use a changelog tool?<\/h2>\n
1. It keeps all updates in one place<\/h3>\n
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2. Close the feedback loop on feature requests<\/h3>\n
![\"using](\"https:\/\/canny.io\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Canny-feedback-loop.png\")
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![\"Canny](\"https:\/\/no-cache.hubspot.com\/cta\/default\/5705808\/e1d55d08-a2cf-44a3-a9a0-f3ca5ff21dfa.png\")
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