Part 2: Value Propositions for Developer Audiences

Creating a compelling value proposition is a crucial step to winning buy-in from developers - but getting it right can be tricky. This framework will show you how to write a value proposition that reflects the needs of your developer audience.

What are developers looking for from a value proposition?

The primary goal of your developer audience is to understand how your product works, evaluate whether it will make their lives easier, and use it to improve what they’re working on. Your value proposition should address each of these considerations.

What is a Value Proposition?

A value proposition is a statement explaining your product’s unique benefits to developers. It addresses the problems the product solves, describes how it solves them, and explains what makes it a better solution than any of the alternatives. To develop a statement that works for your developer audience, you need to know who they are, what problems they have, and how they would benefit from a solution. A successful value proposition uses insights to meet developers where they are rather than relying on them to go out of their way to find the product.

How Are Value Propositions Structured?

A value proposition will generally include the following elements:

Headline or tagline
Subheading or short explanatory paragraph
Graphic or illustration to reinforce the concept

Building a Developer Profile

Tasks

What is the developer trying to build or accomplish?

What is their team trying to achieve at a broader level?

Pains

What undesired outcomes or risks does the developer need to avoid?

What pain points or obstacles are getting in their way?

Gains

What positive outcomes or benefits is the developer seeking?

What solutions or improvements would help them out?

Bridging the Value Gap

Starting with a Developer Profile allows you to understand what “value” means to your developer audience. You can then apply what you learn to your product or service to create a Value Map.

Where Can I Find Information About My Developer Audience?

Stakeholder interviews, secondary research, and primary research can help you build a developer profile. Check out our Developer Marketing Flywheel to learn more.

How Can I Effectively Summarize the Value My Product Provides?

Keep it simple and focus on what you do well. Our Developer Program Framework can help you clarify what makes you stand out from the competition.

Creating a Value Map

Products and Services

What does your company do or offer?

What types of tasks can each product or service support?

What is the minimum feature set required to meet developers’ needs?

Pain Relievers

How does your product or service eliminate undesired outcomes, risks, pain points, or obstacles?

Examples:

Reduce time and cost to market

Simplify developer workflow

Reduce complexity for building multiple platforms and devices

Alleviate security and privacy concerns

Gain Creators

How does your product or service provide positive outcomes, benefits, solutions, or improvements?

Examples:

Reach more customers across more devices

Facilitate promotion and distribution of apps to users

Simplify developer workflow

Accelerate app development

Writing a Value Proposition

A successful value proposition will connect your value map and developer profile with an easy-to-understand description.

You can evaluate it with the following criteria:

Clarity: Is the value proposition clear about what the product does, who it’s for, and how it’s different from the alternatives?
Engagement: Is the description of the product meaningful? Is the value your product offers clear to your developer audience?
Confidence: Is there a galvanizing statement aligning the product’s main benefits for your developer audience?

The Finished Product

Check out these examples from our value proposition portfolio:

The Leading Developer Marketing Agency

We build, grow, and manage marketing programs for the world’s largest technology platforms. For over 14 years, we’ve helped our clients engage integrated ecosystems of developers, partners, and customers to extend the usage of their products and services.

Need help winning buy-in from developers? Get in touch!

Part 3: How Community-Building Contributes to Developer Program Growth
Community-building is the secret to sustained program growth. In this post, Associate Director of Technology Kyle Tyacke explores how developer communities enhance engagement, turn users into loyal advocates, and drive the organic growth of developer programs.
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Part 4: How to Create Content Developers Care About
Inspire and educate developers with technical marketing content.
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Part 5: Developer Marketing and Engagement Programs Are Essential
Create ongoing engagement with your developer audience using marketing programs.
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