Guide to BigCommerce Ideas

Ideas is your place to be heard. We are committed to aligning BigCommerce with your business needs. Whether you have an idea for product enhancements, improving our support offerings, or something you would just like to see more of, BigCommerce Ideas will empower you to suggest new product enhancements, vote, comment and interact directly with BigCommerce staff.

BigCommerce Ideas drives innovation through user feedback. Here you can suggest and vote on ideas and gather support for submissions you’re passionate about. The popularity of an idea helps us understand what’s important to you and determine the requests our Product and Engineering teams should consider.

We are committed to communicating with you and giving you insight into why ideas are/are not under consideration. We do this through consistent and timely status updates and comments directly from our staff.

Please keep in mind that when determining which features to implement, we evaluate many internal and external data points. In addition to submitted ideas, we weigh and consider data from market research, customer support cases, telemetry data, resource requirements, design considerations, product strategy and industry trends in order to build an effective roadmap that allows us to bring the most value to the greatest number of BigCommerce clients. Simply stated, we do not guarantee every feature request submitted will be implemented and in some cases, we may choose to solve the problem in a different way than originally suggested.

1. Browse — Browse by category to see if another Community member has already submitted your great idea or look to find ideas that align with your business needs.
2. Search — You can also search for ideas by keyword or phrase.
3. Vote — If your idea has already been submitted or you simply find an idea you like, vote for it to help it rise in the ranks. You can vote for as many ideas as you like, but you’ll only have one vote per idea. Each vote adds 10 points to the idea’s overall score.
4. Comment — Comments may consist of a specific impact to your business, suggestions, solutions, metrics, etc. Again, the more details and information we have from you, the better we will be able to understand and meet your needs.
5. Post your idea — When posting a brand new idea, keep these guidelines in mind:

Crafting Your Title

The more concise and informative your idea title, the more likely it will be found, read, and voted on by others. Here are some great examples:

Effective Titles

• “Ability to schedule blog posts for publication”
• “Redesigned single page checkout”
• “Full integration with Pinterest Buyable Pins”

Ineffective Titles

• “Fix it.”
• “Is this a bug?”
• “This is unacceptable!”

Selecting a Category

Properly categorizing your idea will make it easier for other Community members to find it and for BigCommerce staff to efficiently report back to our product team.

Writing Your Idea

Once you’ve crafted your idea, provide additional details or examples within the description area. Please share details such as: what the current process is like for you, how this idea could impact your business, and any suggestions you have to make the change truly meaningful. Here are some guidelines to keep in mind:

• Keep it simple — Broad ideas can be difficult for our team to scope. Instead of submitting an expansive idea on every possible new discount rule, submit each specific idea one at time. Keep it as granular, focused, and specific as possible.
• Keep it on topic — Either create a new idea or build on an existing idea. If the conversation goes off topic, take it to a Group for further discussion.
• Keep it problem-focused — It can be tempting, but don’t jump right to a proposed solution -- first give us a little backstory! The better we can understand the root problem behind your request, the better we can weigh its impact internally. We want to understand your needs better. Help us out by telling the story about what this feature will do for you, your industry and products, and even how it could positively impact your bottom line.
• Keep it friendly — Last but not least, remember to keep it friendly. It is easy to get fired up when you are passionate about an idea. We welcome your energy, enthusiasm, and collaboration, but don’t forget to keep our Code of Conduct in mind.

Behind the scenes, our Community team will be monitoring to understand which ideas are most important to you. From there, we will be working closely with our Product team to scope, evaluate, and prioritize the suggestions you’ve articulated. Then, we'll update your idea's status and communicate with you if we decide to place your idea on our product roadmap.

New	The default status of a newly submitted Idea. This is a recently submitted idea that has not yet been reviewed by the Community Management team.
Community Review	The idea is currently being reviewed by the Community Management team.
Open	The idea has been reviewed by the Community Management team and is open for votes and comments.
On Roadmap	The idea is on our roadmap, however a release date has not been set. The idea will be updated when the feature is ready for delivery. Please note: Feature and product plans are subject to change, and customers should always make business decisions based on features that are already available.
Limited Beta	The idea's solution has been developed and is now being tested with a limited group of beta merchants and partners before release.
Early Access	The idea has a solution in an early access state for general use by all eligible users who can opt-in while development continues.
Partially Delivered	Part(s) of the idea have been delivered and are generally available within our product, however part(s) of the idea remain undelivered. The idea will be updated if the undelivered part(s) of the idea are added to the roadmap.
Delivered	The idea’s solution has been implemented and is fully available within our product.
Existing Feature	The idea is already part of an existing feature.
App Available	The requested functionality can be implemented by use of an app in our App Marketplace.
Developer Solution	The requested functionality can be built through custom development by a developer or BigCommerce partner.
Not Right Now	The idea has been reviewed by the BigCommerce Product Team. It is not currently on our roadmap, but may be revisited in the future. The idea is still open for votes and comments.
Not Planned	The idea has been reviewed by the BigCommerce Product Team and has been declined. It will not be put under consideration for future development.
Closed	The idea has been reviewed by the Community Management team and has been determined to be a duplicate, spam, inactive, or does not meet our guidelines for ideas. Closed ideas are not open for comments or votes.

Do I need to be a BigCommerce customer or partner to submit an idea?

Yes. Only BigCommerce customers and partners can read, submit, and comment in Ideas.

What kinds of ideas and comments can I submit?

We welcome any idea to help us improve our product, services, and business. You can submit ideas on a wide variety of topics including but not limited to product ideas, website updates, and support.

I think I’ve found a bug. Can I submit it here?

No. The Idea site is designed solely for feature requests and enhancements to our product offerings. While the line between bugs and feature requests can sometimes feel blurry, we define a bug as a defect that produces an incorrect or unexpected behavior or result. If you have found a bug, please submit it directly to our Support team. They can work with you to reproduce and investigate this issue. Confirmed issues will then be communicated to our Product team.

How does voting work?

By hitting the thumbs up button, you can cast your vote for ideas that you agree with and would like to see implemented. You can vote for as many ideas as you like, but you’ll only have one vote per feature. Each vote counts for 10 points to the idea’s overall score.

How do I know BigCommerce is listening?

Through Ideas, we are committed to better, more transparent communication. You’ll see our staff comment on your idea submissions, ask questions, request more details, and share what’s happening behind the scenes at BigCommerce. You’ll also see us updating the status of an idea as it reaches milestones in our considerations and product lifecycle. However, keep in mind that sometimes it can take time to assess your feedback and take action on that feedback.

How do I know if my idea will be developed?

Watch the status! We’ll update the status and let you know once an idea moves out of consideration and planning and into product development.

How can I see what ideas have been implemented?

Simply sort by “Delivered” and view the ideas that have been submitted and incorporated into our product.

How often does BigCommerce review ideas for consideration?

BigCommerce meets quarterly to review ideas.

How is BigCommerce Ideas moderated?

Submitted ideas and comments are not moderated prior to posting. Our Community Manager and moderators retroactively remove posts that violate our Code of Conduct. Users can also flag content as inappropriate if you feel it needs removal or attention.

Will I be compensated if my idea is implemented?

We do not offer any compensation or reward for feedback submitted through BigCommerce Ideas.