Have an idea for a great new feature for NextChapter? This guide is here to help you understand how we keep track of feature requests as well as how to submit new ones.
What we're currently working on:
Want to see what we're currently working on and what's on deck? Follow along with our public-facing roadmap! Users can also "vote-up" features that they would love to see added in the application to help us better prioritize. Simply comment on the card for the feature you want to vote for with your name. If you include your email address, we'll be sure to keep you updated on the progress and completion of the feature. We often look for users to help with testing and to serve as focus groups. If you're interested in joining a focus group, add that to your comment!
Workarounds & Support
The feature you want may not exist yet in NextChapter, but there might be a simple workaround. Our Customer Success Team is great at working with you to see if there is another solution for what you want to achieve in NextChapter. Feel free to chat with our team to discuss what you would like to do and we'll work with you to find the best way to do it!
How We Decide On New Features
NextChapter is always growing and we are guided by our core value which is to help others get to the next chapter of their life. We do that by creating a product that will help attorneys and paralegals better serve their clients. To stay on track with our goals and to stay in line with our core values, sometimes that means not working on one thing so we can work on something else that's more important. Deciding what's important isn't easy. Here's how we do it:
We review the ideas submitted to us through our in-app chat and to our feature request mailbox (see below for more on that).
We prioritize requests made by our "voting" system. Users receive voting points based on how much they use the system (see below for the voting point system).
We review customer communication via Twitter, Facebook, our public development boards, and incoming email that raise common themes and excellent ideas to the team.
We have an internal NextChapter Development board that we use to discuss features among the team and decide who will work on them.
NextChapter's leadership team meets regularly to discuss the overall direction of NextChapter and what features will help move us in the right direction.
We want to be careful to add the right features to NextChapter so that it remains a product that you love.
Submitting A New Feature Idea
Right now, NextChapter's team is focused on working on a few large-scale priorities for the app itself. These features take a lot of time to develop which means, for now, our short-term roadmap is oriented towards completing these goals.
That being said, if you have a feature you would love to see in NextChapter, we'd be happy to hear it! Just know that we may not be able to work on it right away but it will be reviewed and prioritized and added as we continue to grow!
Feel free to send feature requests to features@nextchapterbk.com. When sending your request, the following information will be helpful to prioritize and review:
What is the pain point that the feature is trying to address?
What would it do that isn’t already in the app?
How would you or other users benefit from the feature?
Voting Point System
If the feature you would like to see in the application is already on our public-facing development board, you can "vote-up" the feature to help push the feature up in priority. Your voting power increases by your commitment to the company. Here's how points are awarded:
All requests (whether the person is signed up with NextChapter or not) - 1 point
Requests from users signed up with NextChapter - 1 point
Requests from users on an annual plan (Pro, Pro+ or Whoa Plans) - 1 point
Requests from users in higher-filing firms - 1 point
So if I'm an attorney who hasn't yet signed up with NextChapter, my votes are worth 1 point. But if I sign up and join the Pro Plan, my votes are now worth 3 points.