You built the feature. You shipped it. And the thirty-eight people who asked for it still have no idea.
Silence costs more than delay
A customer will happily accept that a request takes six months. What they will not accept is never knowing whether it was read. The portal then turns into a suggestion box nobody writes to.
An unanswered request costs more than a rejected one.
Three moments, three messages
1On arrivalAn automatic acknowledgement that says where the request goes, not a generic “thanks”.
2On status change“Planned” or “Not for us”: both deserve one sentence of explanation.
3On releaseEvery supporter gets the changelog entry, with a link to what they can try right now.
What it changesCustomers who get told come back and write again. It is the only known way to keep a portal alive past the first three months.
Automate without sounding like a robot
The sending should be automatic, the wording should not. A rule triggers the message; a person writes the sentence that explains the decision. That is the difference between a notification and an answer.
When an idea changes status
StatusShipped
Notify supportersSame message for everyone
End of journey