The Dispatch

November 14, 2024 | Edition #6

Argon Labs is a specialized technical and developer marketing agency that helps developer-focused startups to scaleups build out their content strategy and helps them establish domain authority and presence in their industry.

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Welcome to the latest edition of the Dispatch, where we provide you with the latest musings on technical marketing and Developer Experience & Relations to help educate and inform you on building the best content strategy for your team and organization.

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Developers are one of the hardest audiences to win over.

They’re no BS, a tad skeptical, and pretty allergic to anything that feels like a sales pitch.

So, if your developer-focused product isn’t really resonating, it’s probably because you’re missing a few key factors.

Many developer tools fail not due to lack of functionality but because they overlook how developers actually engage. Let’s dig into some common pitfalls and discuss how you can avoid these “red flags” to truly connect with your developer audience

But first, here are a few things that caught our eye over the past month.

What Caught Our Eye

• ​How to sell to engineering leaders: Speak their language, win their trust (Developer Marketing Alliance) - this breaks down the art of speaking their language: how to align with technical priorities to showing the value of your tool in their day-to-day challenges.
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• ​DevTools Marketing That Works, According to Developers Themselves (Every Developer.com) - marketing strategies that actually resonate with developers, highlighting real examples and methods for creating content that educates and builds trust.​
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• ​Cut Through the Noise: Make Your Dev Tool Newsworth​y (Everydeveloper.com) - this one explains why storytelling beats feature lists, and how to craft the narratives that resonate. By focusing on real-world problems and delivering stories that stick, your tool can stand out in a crowded space.

Why Developers Aren't Engaging With Your Product - And What to do About it

One of the biggest questions we get asked by our clients is why
developers aren’t engaging with their product.

We know that developer-focused companies often invest in robust tools,
solid documentation, and intuitive design—yet struggle to win over
developers.

It’s definitely a loaded question and while every company and developer-
product is different, we have noticed some key red flags across a variety
of companies we’ve worked it.

If your product ain’t resonating, the problem may be how it’s being
presented. For developer audiences, traditional sales tactics often fall flat,
or worse, drive them away.

Selling to Devs: Why it’s Different

But first, let’s all agree that developers are a unique audience.

They value transparency, real utility, and information, not just sales
language.

Trying to “sell” can make them wary and disengaged. Instead, they need to
be convinced through practical value, authentic engagement, and trust-
building resources.

Here’s some red flags we’ve picked up along the way that might help you
strengthen your developer community and brand.

Let’s dive in.

Red Flags Devs Aren’t Engaging With Your Product

Overemphasis on Features, Not Use Cases

Just listing fancy features without practical examples can make it hard for
developers to connect the tool to their actual needs.

Instead, you should feature a "problem-solution" approach, where each
feature is tied to real-world scenarios. For example, instead of saying,
"Our tool provides automated testing," say, "Our tool automates testing,
helping teams deploy 30% faster by reducing manual QA time." -- you
can then back this up with a practical tutorial guide on how to do this.

Specificity matters, and being able to throwout numbers backed by real-
world applications is a huge unlock!

Overly Complex Documentation

We all know that devs lose interest when they can't quickly find answers
or navigate documentation.

Most of the founders we work with are developers themselves, so they
know how much of a pain in the butt it can be to find good documentation
to help them solve a problem fast.

Create clean, structured documentation that includes step-by-step
guides, code snippets, and a “Getting Started” section. You can also split
lengthy docs into manageable segments to improve readability.

Make the docs ‘flow’ because being able to navigate and traverse a
website a dev has never come across before to get access to information
quickly is a big deal!

Missing Real-Life Examples and Case Studies

Devs also want to see how a product fits into their existing workflows and
real-world applications - this is a big one!

We noticed that developers were consistently requesting on one of our
client’s Discord channels to make third-party integration easy along with
real-world examples! The easier and smoother integrations can become,
the better the experience and stickiness for the users.

One way is to share detailed user case studies that show different use
cases, such as how a large tech company used the product to cut costs or
how a startup leveraged it to scale faster.

Content That’s Too “Salesy”

Developer audiences are also put off by sales-heavy language that feels
insincere.

What you can do is...

Q1 '25 Slots Open Now

We’ve got some open slots for new clients left for Q1 '25.

If you’re struggling with developer marketing, we’re here to help.

Maybe your product isn’t getting the traction it deserves, or your technical messaging is getting lost in translation.

We understand the pain points—whether it’s driving adoption, creating technical content that resonates, or getting noticed on platforms like HackerNews.

Just reach out and we'll be happy to work together to refine your strategy, craft content that engages your audience, and help you get the visibility you need to grow.