Developer Relations vs. Developer Marketing: Different Names for the Same Thing?

My first exposure to Developer Relations was in 2018 when I launched . I was speaking at technical conferences regularly, so I created the email list to help speakers like me find “calls for proposals”.

After meeting some of my 2500 subscribers, I realized that a good portion came from the field of Developer Relations or Developer Marketing.

As a software engineer, I knew that there were companies out there that wanted to reach people like me (web hosting, software testing, and continuous integration tools to name a few), but I didn’t understand the nuance between the many job titles they held until I crept into their inner circle.

After building  and working with hundreds of Developer Relations and Marketing professionals, I feel much better equipped to explain these roles today. In this piece, I’d like to offer some perspective and hopefully help muddy the waters for those of you who might be newer to these fields.

Why Do Companies Want to Sell to Developers Anyway?

Broadly, there are two kinds of companies that sell things to software developers: “developer first” and “developer plus“ businesses.

, but in short, “developer first” companies sell software intended to be used for software development, like IDEs, specialized web hosting, or security tools. Some of these businesses have other stakeholders as well, but their  revolves around selling to technical people first.

“Developer plus” companies sell primarily to non-technical stakeholders, but may have add-ons or portions of their product that are used by developers. An example might be a bank that also offers an API. While most of their customers will use the bank’s user interface to manage accounts, some power users may integrate the bank’s offerings into their own software using their API.

The distinction between these two types of companies is important for context, but in either case, they want to reach software developers to make them aware of and help them purchase their products.

With over  and demand growing steadily, it’s no surprise that companies are clamoring to build software for them. Developer-facing tools are inherently sticky as they reach into low-level functions in the business, and become essential for making product updates and maintaining trust with users.

Developer Relations vs. Developer Marketing

Both roles - Developer Relations and Developer Marketing - are a piece of the puzzle in reaching software developers, and when done correctly, they complement each other.