If Your Developer Marketing Isn’t Working, Read This

In our recent EOC podcast, Matt Palmer said, "Developers are just regular people with real-world problems. If you solve for that, you win." That line captures our long-standing conviction that developers don’t hate marketing, just that many companies get it wrong.

Ever since we made our "manifesto" article on marketing to developers, we've tested those principles in practical scenarios, working with teams that came to us for help, publishing thought pieces across various platforms, and hosting podcasts with industry experts.

This guide distills those lessons into practical steps you can apply right away. It covers everything from shifting your mindset about developer marketing to creating content that software developers value, distributing your content, advertising, and shaping a developer experience (DevX) that helps them.

To complement this guide, you'll find our Developer Marketing Strategy Playbook. The playbook makes it easier to apply these strategies to your campaign. You can download it now and start building a stronger developer marketing plan.

Your mindset shapes everything.

If you follow the comment from the screenshot above, you may approach developer marketing with dread or uncertainty. The notion that developers hate marketing warps how you create and deliver your developer marketing program.

Most companies fail because they prioritize product pushes over actual teaching. When your entire approach says, "I'm here to help you solve a problem," developers will naturally let down their guard (although it's not that simple, and that's why you have this guide).

Software developers aren't a monolith. Some are fresh out of college, and others are seasoned architects. Some manage cloud infrastructure, and others build microservices. Each of these developer segments takes pride in mastering new tools and frameworks but wants those tools to work in tangible ways. Instead of labeling them as "marketing-averse," consider them partners in product adoption.

Your own mindset guides everything that follows, from content topics to how you speak with your community. If you view developers as partners, you will listen to their feedback and respond with authentic, educational content. If you view them as people to "sell," you will push features that might not resonate. That difference is the root of whether your campaigns thrive or flop.

Once you shift your mindset, the next question is whether investing in a developer marketing effort is worthwhile.

Why bother with developer marketing anyway?

The truth is that developers didn't always have this much influence, but things have changed. The interest in marketing to developers grew because our target audience gained more influence over technical decision-making. As mentioned in our earlier piece, the GitHub Developer Survey shows that 60% of developers can approve or reject a tool, which makes them a key audience for you to reach.

Here's what drove that shift and why it's important to you:

• Open source growth: Developers gathered around shared codebases as open source communities expanded. You had to join those spaces and offer value to connect with them.

• SaaS and cloud services: When SaaS and cloud tools took off, developers drove adoption and integration. Traditional marketing couldn't keep up, so companies had to rethink their approach and focus more on practical, developer-focused strategies.

• DevOps culture: Developers started working more closely with operations teams, and their influence over product decisions grew. Ignoring developers was no longer an option.

If you understand this backstory, you'll avoid outdated tactics developers tend to ignore. But to reach them, you need to rethink how you market your product.

Why developer marketing isn't like regular B2C

Slapping a "developer" label on traditional marketing tactics won't work. Developers think and behave differently, and your approach needs to reflect that. If your marketing targets software developers, you'll need to replace broad claims with practical, code-driven insights.

Here's a side-by-side comparison of traditional B2C vs. developer-focused marketing:

In typical B2C marketing, brand awareness and big-picture messaging often take the lead. But in developer marketing, you need to focus on practical solutions, speak plainly, and back your claims with tangible proof because:

• Proof beats promises: Developers want to see code samples, benchmarks, and clear results, not vague claims or flashy ads.
• Honesty wins: If you downplay your product's limitations or dodge technical details, you'll lose their trust fast.
• They trust their peers: Before adopting your tool, developers will likely turn to forums, Slack groups, or GitHub discussions for advice.

As you can see, developers are discerning and often skeptical, which creates unique hurdles for developer marketers. To succeed, you'll need to tackle some common roadblocks head-on.

Common developer marketing challenges (and how to solve them)

You might struggle to explain complex technical products, break into fragmented communities, or maintain trust after the first impression. Here's how to tackle those common issues:

• Technical complexity: If your product is technically complex, you risk confusing or losing developers. To prevent this, layer your content. Start with an approachable tutorial or quickstart, then offer deeper technical docs or repositories for advanced users.

• Skepticism toward marketing: Developers often distrust generic brand slogans. Use data, code samples, or benchmarks. Show how your tool solves a common error or scales performance instead of relying on vague claims.

• Fragmented communities: When targeting fragmented communities like subreddits, Discord channels, or GitHub repos, research each channel's tone, follow community guidelines, and share content that fits the context. Engage in discussions to show you're there to contribute, not just promote.

• Maintaining trust and momentum: Even if developers like your initial pitch, trust can quickly evaporate if your docs or onboarding experience is off. Continuously improve DevX, respond to feedback promptly, and highlight user contributions. Transparency about roadmap updates or known issues reinforces that trust.

These challenges also explain why traditional content often struggles to connect with developers. Your content must align with their needs and mindset to engage this audience.

How to write for developers

A piece I published on The New Stack: How to Write for a Technical Audience inspired this approach. You don't want to preach. You want to teach:

A. Focus on solving real problems

Developers have urgent deadlines, tricky bugs, and ambiguous product roadmaps. If your article or eBook doesn't contribute to a pressing need, it becomes background noise. While investigating what content works for developer audiences, I found that the most engaging pieces often start with a clear focus: "What problem is the developer facing, and how can this piece provide a solution?"

One approach is to structure every article like a mini-tutorial. If your product helps with container orchestration, show how to reduce Kubernetes downtime in a few steps. If your solution deals with documentation, demonstrate how your approach saves time or clarifies complexities. That specificity hooks developers more than broad statements about being "innovative" or "cutting-edge."

B. Show, don't hype

Developers want to see tangible proof. If you claim your product can cut deployment times by half, show a snippet or reference a case study. Avoid marketing language that says "best" or "unmatched." That triggers skepticism. Instead, present step-by-step guides, code samples, or quick screenshots illustrating outcomes.

While creating content for developer audiences, we found that adding actual code blocks to walk readers through real scenarios made a significant difference. Practical walkthroughs give developers the information they need to explore the platform independently. Developers prefer evaluating solutions firsthand, so your job is to offer a direct view of that solution.

C. Building trust through empathy

If you want developers to trust you, empathize with their day-to-day challenges. That might mean acknowledging that debugging complex microservices is stressful or that some cutting-edge technologies create as many headaches as they solve. By speaking their language and recognizing their concerns, you set the stage for a genuine relationship.

The article covers the nits and bits of writing for this audience. Check it out.

How do you generate developer content ideas?

Finding the right content ideas can be challenging, especially when aiming for deep technical insights. One of our guides on generating developer content ideas offers a practical system for brainstorming, such as:

A. Research on the go

• Google search and trends: Look at common queries developers type. If you see patterns like "Deploying microservices on AWS Fargate," that might be a topic.

• Developer community forums: Questions asked repeatedly are goldmines. If you see "How to handle authentication for React apps in Docker," you can turn that into a tutorial.

• Survey your audience: Ask what they struggle with if you have a mailing list or a Slack group. You'll get specific topics to address in content.

B. Dig into internal expertise

Your sales teams, DevRel folks, or support engineers receive feedback daily. Tap into that. If multiple users submit tickets about the same trouble, write a blog or create a tutorial. This approach is how most of our clients built an extensive content library. Listen to recurring frustrations and tackle them in articles or short videos.

C. Look for use cases

You'll get a well-defined audience when you focus on industry or technology-based use cases. For instance, "How to build real-time dashboards with Node.js + your product" is more compelling than broad coverage of Node.js frameworks. Developers who need real-time dashboards feel that content speaks to them.

Nevertheless, even with great content, developers won't stumble upon it unless you meet them where they are.

Why you need a great content distribution strategy

One of the most effective developer marketing tactics is placing content where developers already congregate. We wrote this post on developer marketing channels based on our experience to guide you in distributing your content:

A. Where developers hang out

1. Communities

Slack groups, Reddit subreddits, open-source project forums, or even private Discord channels. Developers trust peers in these forums. If you share content that directly answers common questions, you become a valued voice in that community.

2. Technical publications

Sites like The New Stack, Dev.to, HackerNoon, and Hashnode get large developer traffic. Your expert content gains credibility when it appears on recognized platforms. Some of your best engagement might come from third-party sites where developers were already searching for answers.

3. Newsletters

Many developers sign up for specialized newsletters on DevOps, backend engineering, data engineering, or AI. If you can sponsor or contribute content, your piece might land in the inbox of thousands of target developers actively seeking your insights.

4. Dev platforms

Dev.to, Hashnode, GitHub discussions. These channels allow you to embed code, share personal experiences, and receive direct feedback.

5. Social media

Twitter (X) is popular among devs for quick tips, while LinkedIn is where engineering leads or CTOs share curated thought leadership. Tailor your message to each platform.

B. The proper angle for each channel

Developers on Reddit want an honest conversation about performance issues, while a newsletter audience may appreciate a condensed breakdown of how your tool solves a common pain point. Focus on context. Community channels frown upon spam, so tie your content to real problems.

C. Avoid dump-and-run

You'll look spammy if you only drop links without context. Summarize why the article is necessary, mention a question a community member asked last week, or briefly tease what they will learn. When you treat the distribution as an extension of your teaching effort, developers welcome your content.

Now, let’s talk advertising to developers

While writing this piece on advertising to developers for The New Stack, I ran into a dev community thread where people vented about ads in the most extreme ways. Some posts were so harsh they could make anyone second-guess running paid ads to devs.

Users shared how they employ every ad blocker available, calling ads "annoyances of the internet." Reading through those comments made me understand why some marketers suggest avoiding ads for developers altogether. But it doesn't have to be that way.

Developers push back on ads that claim "ultimate solutions" or "magic bullets." So, how do you advertise to developers without annoying them?

A. Shift the focus

If your product solves a scaling issue on Kubernetes, start by describing the scenario of a developer wrestling with concurrency or memory headaches. The focus should be on the pain point, not the product. I always recommend phrasing it as:

"You can use this tool (or approach) to fix X."

Instead of:

"This tool will help you solve X."

The difference is subtle but powerful. The first approach invites developers to explore the solution on their terms. It makes the ad or content feel less like a pitch and more like a helpful suggestion. Developers prefer to be in control, and this shift in language helps them stay in the driver's seat.

This approach also taps into curiosity. Showing how a solution fits developers' workflow rather than just selling it outright makes them more inclined to try your product.

B. Pick the right channels

Developers are selective about where they spend their time. The wrong ad in the wrong space will be ignored (or, worse, ridiculed). Focus on channels that developers use and trust:

• Technical websites: Platforms like The New Stack, HackerNoon, and Dev.to attract technical readers who are actively looking for insights. If tied to a useful tutorial or educational resource, a banner ad here feels far less intrusive.

• Newsletter sponsorships: Developers subscribe to newsletters for practical insights, not sales pitches. If you sponsor one, skip the fluff and provide something valuable like a cheat sheet, an E-book, or a free tool that directly helps developers.

• Contextual ad targeting: Running ads for specific search queries like "Docker container fails to start memory error" is far more effective than chasing broad keywords. Developers searching for that term are already trying to solve a problem, so positioning your tool as part of that solution feels helpful rather than disruptive.

• Reddit and forums: Subreddits like r/DevOps or r/learnprogramming have strict no-spam rules, but if you understand the culture and post valuable content, developers may welcome your contribution. Ads that mimic the style of helpful posts (without over-promoting your tool) tend to perform better in these spaces.

C. Measure over time

Developers rarely click an ad the moment they see it. They may encounter, dismiss, and recall it later when facing that problem. This delayed action makes standard ad metrics like click-through rates less helpful in tracking developer program success. For a fact, Stack Overflow reported that 83% of their ad conversions happen without a click.

Therefore, instead of relying solely on immediate clicks, measure conversions and signups over a longer window (often 60-90 days). Developers are more likely to search your brand later, visit your docs, or ask a peer about your product before committing. This long-tail effect matters far more than raw CTR.

Of course, you can’t ignore developer experience (DevX)

After attracting developers, whether they stick around often depends on how they experience your product. I wrote about how developer experience influences developer marketing in collaboration with our friends at DX Heroes, and it remains a key principle.

Try walking through your onboarding experience as if you were a developer seeing it for the first time, and you'll quickly spot the pain points. If your documentation or onboarding is unclear, developers see it as a waste of time because:

Getting started should be effortless.

How quickly can software developers sign up and try your tool or API? Is your developer portal intuitive and easy to navigate? Do they need to fill out a massive form? Is your documentation buried behind multiple clicks? If developers can't get started in minutes, they'll likely move on.

Great docs keep developers engaged.

If your docs are poorly written, all your marketing promises collapse. Good documentation should provide short, clear instructions. Include code samples, offer a troubleshooting guide, and provide details for both beginners and advanced users. If your docs help them succeed, you build trust instantly.

Your tool should fit into existing workflows.

Developers rely on well-established setups for CI/CD, hosting, containerization, and version control. If your product doesn't fit into those workflows, they'll face friction and move on.

DevX is an ongoing effort.

When you improve DevX, developers notice, and they talk about it. Positive word-of-mouth carries far more weight than any ad campaign. Ask for feedback. Encourage developers to open GitHub issues or forum posts. Listen, refine, and publicly acknowledge their input. This turns early adopters into vocal champions.

Yet, you can only achieve this level of engagement when you have a strong, connected, and active developer community.

Use these methods to keep your developer community engaged.

Think of a developer community as your unofficial marketing team. When it's thriving, members support newcomers, recommend your tool, and share success stories without you even asking. But getting there takes effort. Here's how to make it happen:

Keep people talking

Creating a Slack or Discord channel isn't enough. Developers won't just jump in and start chatting. You need to give them a reason to engage. Ask questions, post tutorials, and invite feedback.

We’ve seen communities thrive when they introduce structured activities like "Office Hours," Q&A sessions, or short polls that invite members to share their thoughts. These moments create opportunities for developers to feel heard, which keeps them involved.

Celebrate your champions

When someone writes a plugin, builds an integration, or creates a helpful guide about your product, highlight it. Feature their work in your newsletter or on social. It shows you value their contribution and encourages others to get involved. Developers appreciate recognition, and it's one of the best ways to turn casual users into loyal advocates.

Bring those stories into your marketing.

Your community is full of great stories, so put them to work. Instead of saying, "Our product is easy to use," point to a developer's Slack post about how they solved a tricky problem in minutes. Real stories from real developers feel authentic, and that's what earns trust.

A thriving developer community can also inform your marketing strategy. Listening to their pain points and success stories will uncover key insights that shape your content, messaging, and outreach. Find out more on our guide on building a thriving developer community.

Practical steps to develop your developer marketing strategy

Creating a solid developer marketing strategy doesn't have to be overwhelming. Our Developer Marketing Strategy Playbook breaks the process down into simple steps you can use right away.

Here's how you can get started:

1. Work on your product's value.

Start by writing a short, clear description of the core problem your product solves. Then ask yourself:

• How are developers currently handling this problem?
• What's frustrating or inefficient about their current approach?
• Where does your product make things easier or faster?

Getting this right helps you focus on the developer's core pain points.

2. Know your audience

Outline the types of developers you want to reach (could be DevOps engineers, data scientists, or web developers) and then go deeper:

• What's their skill level?
• What tools do they rely on?
• Where do they hang out online?

Knowing these details makes your content feel more personal and relevant.

3. Map the journey

Break their journey down into three stages:

• Awareness: What content helps them first hear about you?
• Evaluation: What guides or resources help them decide if your tool is worth trying?
• Decision: What makes it easy for them to take the final step and sign up or download?

Plan content for each stage so you're guiding developers at every step.

4. Plan your content

Create a content calendar based on developer questions, common frustrations, and your audience's interests. Mix up the formats, too. Combine tutorials, case studies, and advanced guides. Then, match each piece to the right platform.

Some questions you might have

What is developer marketing?

There's no single definition of developer marketing; the term often means different things to different teams. Based on our experience, we define developer marketing as building trust with developers through a teaching and solution-oriented approach.

Where do I start if my company has no dev outreach?

Identify one or two urgent pain points developers face with your product. Create simple tutorials or code samples around those problems, then share them in a relevant dev community.

How do I measure success in developer marketing?

Go beyond raw signups. Track documentation use, time-to-first-successful API calls, code-lab completions, community engagement, and feedback loops through GitHub issues or Slack.

What if stakeholders want more product mentions?

Show them that developers respond better when content solves real problems rather than lists product features. Companies like Stripe, GitLab, Twilio, and HashiCorp have mastered this approach. Instead of shouting about product benefits, they focus on clear documentation, hands-on examples, and community-driven conversations.

Do I need a dedicated dev advocacy team?

If possible, yes. Developer relations, Developer evangelists, engineers, or advocates maintain the technical bridge between your brand and dev communities. For smaller teams, cross-train one or two staffers with coding experience. There are also developer marketing agencies like Hackmamba (😉!)

My final thoughts

Developers are gaining more influence, and brands that recognize this will thrive. Successful developer marketing strategy boils down to solving real problems. Whether you're writing content, running ads, or engaging with communities, developers respond best when they see practical solutions that improve their workflow and development efficiency.

Developer marketing is moving toward deeper personalization, greater transparency, and stronger community involvement. AI and machine learning are already shifting the landscape. Developers working in these spaces will need more tailored guides (some of our clients are doing this well), ML-friendly docs, and sample models to support their workflows.

Meanwhile, growing concerns around data privacy will push companies to embrace transparency, which could become a powerful differentiator. We're also seeing more brands adopt community-led roadmaps, allowing developers to propose and vote on features. This not only builds better products but also nurtures long-term loyalty.

That said, I hope by adopting and integrating these techniques, you'll come to experience how thoughtful, solution-driven marketing works. And you'll also come to agree with us that developers don't hate marketing when it's done right.