Reflections on 2 Years Running Developer Relations
7 days ago
- #DevRel
- #Developer Marketing
- #Dagster
- The author reflects on their two years in developer relations (DevRel) and developer marketing at Dagster, sharing insights and lessons learned.
- DevRel has seen a resurgence, partly due to challenges in reaching developers amidst the AI/LLM craze and the decline of traditional SEO.
- At Dagster, the DevRel team initially lacked a clear purpose, leading to fragmented efforts. The author realigned the team around three pillars: awareness, product/community, and education.
- The transformation of the DevRel team was so successful that the author was asked to lead the marketing team, realizing that DevRel is fundamentally a marketing function.
- Combining DevRel and marketing teams created synergy, turning DevRel into a core revenue-generating part of the business.
- DevRel encompasses developer advocates, developer relations, and developer marketing, with a focus on the full developer journey from discovery to scaling.
- The three pillars of DevRel are awareness (engaging content and multi-channel outreach), product/community (feedback and integrations), and education (documentation and structured learning).
- Hiring for DevRel should prioritize candidates from the developer community with proven technical skills and public engagement over career DevRel professionals.
- Success in DevRel is measured by alignment with company goals and the team's indispensability, rather than just metrics.
- Quick wins and strategic big bets are essential for proving the value of DevRel to higher-ups and securing long-term investment.