What

Developer experience is the sum total of how developers interface with their tools, end-to-end, day in and day out.

The product is an important part, but while it’s paramount to bring a great product to the market, it’s not enough. Developer experience focuses on bridging the gap.

Why?

If you've ever found a blog post that should have been in the docs or learned something about the library only from talking to other users, you've felt the misalignment that arises when it's nobody's job to design for the end-to-end developer experience.

KPIs

DevEx KPIs

Lifecycle of a developer

Source: https://devrelbook.substack.com/p/a-framework-for-developer-relations

The individual components:

• DevEx (department / function)
  • Developer Experience – includes the developer portal, product, and docs, to activate the developer with the least friction.
  • Developer Success – activities to nurture developers as they build and scale with your product, including retention.
  • Docs (domain)
    • Developer Education – product documentation and education resources to aid learning and build affinity with your product and community.
  • DevRel (domain)
    • Developer Marketing – outreach and engagement activities to create awareness and convert developers to use your product.
    • Community – like the trunk and roots of the tree, a community must be nourished to grow and stay healthy for a successful, sustainable program.

The radiating circles

https://dx.tips/circles

• DX starts from the core. The best docs and devrel in the world don't matter if the product is fundamentally broken. All you'll have is a leaky bucket - People will try you out and then leave right away with a poor first impression. This is part of why Gatsby sunk vs. Next.js.
• Fix problems at their root.
  • Docs → Product. The best docs are the docs I don't have to read because the product is so intuitive or teaches me as I go.
  • Content → Docs. The best tutorials, talks, and blog posts are the talks and blog posts I don't have to consume because the docs clearly said everything there was to be said.

DevEx flywheels