Discover how your API can become a strength for your company if you promote it as a product. A talk given by Arnaud Breton at API Days Paris 2016.

1. API Days Paris
Turn your API into a
strong Product
Arnaud Breton

2. Who am I?
Arnaud Breton
Head of API Product
and Developers Relations
arnaud_breton
Endorphin addict

3. 3
All-in-one email service provider
A team of experts
+ 110 employees globally
80% growth YoY
Global deliverability consulting
Email sending at scale
+ 1B emails a month
+40,000 clients
A rapid growth
#23 in Deloitte’s EMEA
Technology Fast 500
3185% growth over 4 years
A trusted technology
Email sending specialist
Marketing & transactional email

4. From a Software to a Product
API Product Management
What’s next?
GET
/agenda
01
02
03

5. 1
func Product(Software)
1

6. It all starts with a great software01
At this stage, you aim to:
• Validate your product value.
• Build the technical foundations.
• Onboard your first developer users.

7. 7
YES!

8. 8
BEGINNING
4
Documentation
Libraries
Support
Versioning
Sunset
Scaling
Community

9. The 3 pillars of a strong API Product
1. It’s not only about the best software
02
Support your users
Show your customers that
they’re not alone, there’s a
community to support
them!
Document
Guide developers on
their first steps. Show
them the real value of
your API.
Ecosystem
Not everyone codes in PHP
or NodeJS.. nor wants to
spend time connecting your
API with 3rd parties.

10. DOCUMENTATION
01.01

11. API Guides01.01
Great API guides are made of:
• Step by step guide, allowing the developers to
understand how your API works
• Clear structure and content, enabling your users
to find key information, quickly.
• Plug’n’Play code samples in major programming
languages.
• Up-to-date information, few like to troubleshoot.

12. API Reference01.01
An API reference, what for?
• Enabling advanced users to quickly find key
information.
• Provide another view of your API, endpoints
oriented.

13. BUILD AN
ECOSYSTEM
01.02

14. 3rd party integration01.02
Leveraging 3rd parties will:
• Increase your product value.
• Increase your audience and revenue.
• Save time for your users.

15. Libraries01.02
Developers love libraries:
• Ease the integration within their system.
• Deal with the specifics of each environment.
• Make them feel at home.
• Allow them to contribute.

16. SUPPORT YOUR
COMMUNITY
01. 03

17. Share updates
Tell where you’re going.
Go out
Be where your users are.
Meet with people.
Encourage Contributions
Make contributions easy
and reward them.
Build a strong community01.03

18. Developers want to speak to
developers.
Don’t make the experience
with your support team
another pain.
Be here when your users need you most01.03

19. 1Product
Management
2

20. What it takes to get there02.01
Mailjet API team is composed of various profiles:
• Product Managers, listening to the market, users and giving global product directions.
• Developers, building a first class API.
• Project Managers, turning ideas into developer friendly APIs.
• Customer Success, guiding developers to production.
• Ecosystem Developers, integrating with the best.
• Dev. Evangelists, making sure all developers send emails via Mailjet.
• QA, the production gatekeepers.

21. Iterate fast02.02
Learn from your customers:
• Determine what they care the most about.
• Streamline scenarios.
• Be backward compatible, never break.
• Consistency is key.

22. Measure02.03
• Define KPIs and goals every time you add new
features.
• Implement them as early as possible.
• Track them regularly and take actions.

23. Scaling up02.04
Your API is a living product, hence it’s normal to:
• Add new, non backward compatible features.
But, never break!
• Deprecate features, even endpoints deserve a
bit of REST.
• Identify bottlenecks in your system and
unlock them, one after the other.

24. 1What’s next?
3

25. Never settle03.01
• Publish content, to reach out to new
developers and provide the best developer
experience.
• Grow our ecosystem, tech moves fast and you
don’t want to be left behind.
• Keep improving our Product.
• Build channels to reach out our community
• Feature our customers’ success stories

26. Questions

27. Thank You