As you have probably noticed, we published a new web release last night. Details of what are in that release can be found here:
http://www.runkeeper.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=450
While seemingly a minor release, there are some key tenets in here that we are introducing or expanding upon that I wanted to bring to your attention.
Individual Data
As we build the RunKeeper service, we hope we have shown you so far that we are doing so with the needs of the users first. Core to those needs is for the data tracked for your individual fitness activities to be solid, usable, and sortable as a user’s personal dashboard grows. As a runner and cyclist (and big fitness guy in general), I know how important this is. While there are so many other exciting possibilities for where we can take this service, we don’t earn the right to attempt any of those things unless we do a GREAT job with the individual stuff first. I just wanted you to know that we understand this, and plan on continuing to improve our performance in this area so the individual experience is second to none.
Community
There are a large (and growing rapidly) number of RunKeeper users all over the world that are pounding our servers every day as you track your activities. Yet, if you go to our site, all you see is your own data. Where is everybody? Well, they are all here, and we want to give you all greater insight into what else is going on in the RunKeeper community. Creating a user profile is the first step towards making that happen. While the profile doesn’t do much yet, it is the base from which we will be adding significant functionality, with the primary goal being to foster a greater sense of community and interaction on the site.
Sharing
In addition to your experience within the site, we have been hearing from many of you who are clamoring to have better tools to push your activities out to the social web—email, blogs, Twitter, Facebook, etc. This is important for two reasons: One, while you are doing the activity, if you know you are going to share it, you are motivated to perform better—faster, longer, harder, etc. since you will be “on stage” in that you know the world will see how you did. Two, just by using RunKeeper, you will be helping spread the word about it throughout the social web, which means more RunKeeper users, a more vibrant community, more resources to build out the product faster, etc. The Twitter integration is the first big sharing initiative, as you can now “auto-tweet” your activities to your Twitter profile. Try it out, and let us know how it works out for you! User feedback around sharing (and in general) is going to carry a lot of weight as far as how the product continues to evolve.
Finally, in addition to what we have been adding, there is also something we removed. As of last night, there are no more ads on the http://www.runkeeper.com website. That is not to say we will never have them (never is a strong word), but we did want to send you a message that what gets us most excited about this opportunity has nothing to do with crappy advertising. We are in this for the for the long haul, and have every intention of getting there. And it goes without saying, but we couldn’t do any of it without all of your incredible support!
By the way, check out this (blurry) pic of RunKeeper featured in Apple’s full-page iPhone ad in Sunday’s NY Times!
It ran the last two Sundays. No idea how much longer it will run, but thanks Apple for the great honor and free press!
Thanks everyone. Stay tuned, lots more to come.
Jason