It can be difficult to know where to start when it comes storytelling around an API. Many of us who have been in the space, have followed the lead of Twitter, Twilio, Amazon, and others, but when you are new to the space, knowing where to start can often be paralyzing. This is something I am regularly helping clients and partners think through, and while I'm thinking through the topic with SecureDB, I figured I'd share the details with you my readers.
If you are unfamiliar with how the API Evangelist network operates, I have common building blocks available for almost 20 core stops along the API lifecycle. However, when many of my partners and clients are just getting going, they are often overwhelmed by the volume of data I provide, so I regularly find myself tailoring, and distilling down a specific strategy for each conversation I engage in. I wanted to help SecureDB understand where they can start with evangelism from day one, by providing a 101 list for API evangelism, but before I could do this, I needed to make sure they had a few API building blocks in place first.
Wait...before we got going with a 101 API evangelism list, let's make sure the most essential element is present?
- Value - Check! Encryption for all your data in this climate is critical.
Now, let's make sure the minimum viable API management building blocks are in place to support evangelism efforts:
- On-boarding
- Portal - Check. The SecureDB product is their API, so the website is their portal.
- Getting Started - Check. There is a simple quick-start to get developer up and running.
- Self-Service Registration - Check. There is a simple, self-service signup for the platform.
- Documentation
- API Definition - Check. SecureDB has their API defined using Swagger.
- Documentation - Check. They provide an attractive Slate version, as well as interactive Swagger playground.
- Support
- Contact Form - Check. There is an easy to find contact form when you need help.
- Email - Check. There is also an easy to find email if you need it.
- Twitter - Check. SecureDB is available via an active Twitter account.
- Business Models
- Pricing - Check. There is a clear pricing model available for SecureDB. I know what I'm getting into, and understand tiers to climb.
- Communication
- Blog - Check - There is an existing blog, and RSS feed for SecureDB to tell stories on.
- Twitter - Check - In addition to support, the Twitter account is available for communicating with the community, and Internet at large.
- LinkedIn - Check - SecureDB has an active LinkedIn account for communication via the business social network.
- Github - I didn't find an official org account for SecureDB, but see their developers are actively working on Github.
With this base, now I can explore some initial API evangelism building blocks SecureDB can think about:
- Goals
- New users - We want to attract some new users to put SecureDB to work.
- Brand Awareness - We want to help build up the awareness of SecureDb brand.
- Storytelling
- Projects - What are some projects we could kick off exploring for storytelling purposes?
- Secure Users - Let's show basic example that secures a user base for any application.
- Secure Data - Move a little further and secure the data for an application.
- Secure Files - Beyond data, let's show how to secure files used as part of an application.
- API Key Manager - Based upon a story I did last week, on need for secure API storage.
- SecureDB API Strategy - What I am doing here, telling the story of their API strategy (real-time).
- Stories - What are some of the stories across these projects that we could tell?
- Let's Explore...
- Projects - What are some projects we could kick off exploring for storytelling purposes?
- Social Management
- Linkedin - Share the stories we tell, and engage in conversation on LinkedIn.
- Twitter - Share the stories we tell, and engage in conversation on Twitter.
- Social Bookmarking
- Product Hunt - Share SecureDb and any apps we or the the community build on Product Hunt.
- Hacker News - Share all stories on Hacker News, and engage in conversations.
- Reddit - Share all stories on Reddit, and engage in conversations.
- DZone - Share all stories on DZone, and engage in conversations.
- Syndication
- Own Blog - Which stories get put on the SecureDB blog.
- Partner Bog - Which stories get put on the partner blog(s).
- Tech Blogs - Which stories can be pitched to major tech blogs.
- Other Blogs - What are other blogs that stories can be published to.
- Internal - Are we sharing these stories internally, and encouraging them to engage in sharing, and conversations.
This list personalized for SecureDB, from the numerous building blocks I've aggregated across API management and evangelism strategies I've helped craft, and gathered by watching the approach of leading API providers. This is why I partner with companies like SecureDB, so that I can move forward, and ultimately share the information I've gathered, personalized in different ways, as a regular drumbeat on my blog(aka storytelling). It helps me evolve my ideas, share them with partners and clients, as well as with you my readers.
This is just an example of what I do behind the scenes for my partners, and an example of the approach brought to the table by my APIWare partner. Let me know if we can help you get over the hump with your API strategy, whether you are at the beginning of the journey like SecureDB, or further down the line--I am happy to talk to you at any stage.