I swear I didn’t take offense to this message from a dev.

Many developers have read my books and made similar comments. What might seem negative is actually the biggest compliment they could give me.

Here’s what a dev sent recently:

They’re referring to the recommendations in ​Developer Marketing Does Not Exist​.

As this developer considers marketing, the ideas in my book seem natural to them… maybe even obvious.

Put another way: the approach I recommend in that book (and in many of these memos I’ve sent to you) is exactly how a developer wants to be treated. They don’t want the marketing to seem market-y. They want it to feel helpful and educational, like one dev supporting another.

But that’s just half of the equation, isn’t it? Your job as a marketer is to think about campaigns and funnels. Messaging and positioning.

The magic happens when they come together. When your marketing efforts meet a dev where they are and teach them something new.

I’m glad developers continue to find my books, even if they think the message is obvious.

That validates what we’re all trying to do: reach more of the right developers and build their trust.

The best way is to genuinely want to support them. That means understanding their mindset. If you’d like to explore what that looks like, ​I know a partner who can help​.