Getting the art of ABM right for developer-focused marketers

[00:00.41] - Shai:

I think the most accurate answer to this question is that it changes from one method to another. But if you think of signals as a bucket and you're trying to split them into categories, you need to decide whether to pursue someone now or continue targeting them with ads or nurturing them with content. I think the most reasonable split is between third-party intent and first-party intent. When an engineer or developer enters your website and explores your docs, it means that this person has a high intent to try out your product. And it makes sense because an engineer wouldn't be interested in reading the feature pages that the marketing team—no offense to the marketing team—has written. It's not the ground truth. The ground truth lies in the actual product, and that's usually detailed in the docs by someone technical, someone similar to the developer. So this first-party intent, such as docs exploration, product signups, or even downloads from your GitHub repository of open-source projects, would be a great signal for me to pursue this specific person with targeted outreach, ads, or whatever is appropriate.

[02:18.63] - Achintya:

‍Hey, everyone. Welcome to another episode of the Modern Dev GTM Brew. I'm your host, Achintya. Today, we’ll be discussing a very interesting topic: account-based marketing (ABM) for developer-focused marketers. Our guest today is Shai Alani, who currently serves as the VP of Marketing at Aporia, an award-winning AI control platform. Shai is a seasoned marketer with over 12 years of experience driving revenue growth in global startups through account-based marketing and data-driven insights. Shai, welcome to the podcast. Excited to have you here.

[02:54.08] - Shai:

Thank you, Achintya. It's good to be here. I'm genuinely excited. I think discussing the complexity and the day-to-day challenges of dev marketers is important, and I’m happy you’ve raised the topic.

[03:10.71] - Achintya:

Great. I wanted to start by getting the basics right. A lot of B2B marketers use the term ABM very loosely; it’s almost used for everything. But as someone who has practiced ABM for a long time, what does account-based marketing actually mean to you, and most importantly, what is it not?

[03:38.02] - Shai:

That’s a very good question. I think ABM has become a buzzword for marketers over the past, I don't know, three to five years. If you think about it, marketing has evolved dramatically over the past 20 years. Traditionally, marketing was all about broad media—ads on TV, radio, newspapers—delivering messages to a wide audience, hoping to capture those who could actually buy your product. But around 20 years ago, with the advent of online marketing, we became more focused on targeting specific audiences. This focus intensified as marketers like us, who have been in the field for the last decade or more, sought to reach not just anyone, but the right people. And that’s where ABM comes in. Instead of thinking about intent at the level of keywords or audience segments, we’re thinking at the company level. ABM allows you to market, sell, and promote yourself to a specific audience of companies. There are multiple methodologies to practice ABM, but that’s essentially how it started and evolved.

[06:37.54] - Achintya:

That’s great, Shai. In the same spirit of our topic being account-based marketing for developer-focused marketers, I also wanted to understand the other part of it. How do you see developer-focused marketing being different compared to traditional marketing? We’ve spoken about account-based marketing; let’s discuss that too.

[06:57.05] - Shai:

Yeah, developer-focused ABM is completely different. As I mentioned, ABM is about marketing to specific companies, but how you do it is crucial. Traditional ABM systems rely on two main components: signals and actions. Signals trigger the system to identify relevant targets, often based on website activity or interactions with broad media content. These signals work well for targeting businesspeople, marketers, or sales professionals. But the decision-making journey for developers is completely different. The second component, what you do with this information, is equally important. How do you promote your company to these specific audiences or companies that have engaged with third-party or first-party assets? Developer-focused ABM requires a different mindset. Developers aren't entering your website to explore traditional content; they’re not reading general journalism. Their buying journey is entirely different. They look for solutions on open-source platforms like GitHub and read your docs before even visiting your homepage. Understanding these signals and how to act on them is critical. Traditional ABM won’t work for developers—you need a completely different approach.

[11:09.11] - Achintya:

You mentioned two interesting things: intent signals for developers and what to do once you’ve identified them. Let’s dive deeper into those. What intent signals have you seen working best across companies or in your experience? When do you know it’s time to go after an account?

[11:36.13] - Shai:The most accurate answer is that it varies depending on the method, but if you think of signals as a bucket, you can split them into categories: those you need to pursue now and those you should continue targeting with ads or nurturing with content. The most reasonable split is between third-party intent and first-party intent. When an engineer or developer enters your website and explores your docs, it’s a strong signal that they have a high intent to try your product. This makes sense because developers aren’t interested in marketing pages—they’re interested in the ground truth, which they find in the product documentation. So, first-party intent signals, like docs exploration, product signups, or even downloads from your GitHub repository, are great indicators that you should pursue this person with targeted outreach, ads, or other actions. On the other hand, third-party intent signals are also valuable, but pursuing these developers with direct outreach might not be the best approach. Developers are smart and can quickly sense when something is off if you’re too aggressive. Instead, continue nurturing them with relevant content, perhaps a comparison between the solutions they’re exploring and what you offer. This way, you’re still engaging them without being too pushy.

[15:18.03] - Achintya:

Shai, you touched on something important: using traditional tools like targeted ads and campaigns for developers, even though the general perception is that developers don’t respond well to advertisements. What best practices have you seen when using these tools for a developer audience?

[15:53.14] - Shai:

I’ll answer that, but first, let me clarify something. The change in mindset we need as developer marketers is recognizing that developers aren’t thinking from a commercial perspective. Running ads that say “buy this” or “get this” usually doesn’t work. I’ve spent nearly 13 years doing marketing for various startups targeting different audiences—from B2C to B2B, even B2G (government). In most cases, you can have a creative session and figure out what triggers decision-making because the mindset is commercially driven. But developers are triggered by different things: what can save them time, effort, or validate their work? So, when targeting developers through ads after identifying intent signals, the key is to provide value. This value could be in the form of content. For example, if a developer is exploring an open-source alternative to Aporia, I’d target them with an ad that highlights the differences between Aporia and the alternative. This way, you’re offering them valuable content relevant to their interest. Or, if a developer is exploring your docs, you might target them with a webinar recording on the topic they’re interested in. Trying to push them to “buy now” or “book a demo” likely won’t trigger the desired action. It’s about meeting their immediate needs and providing value first.

[20:07.86] - Achintya:

Makes sense. In this journey of providing value to the developer, what stage do you see as the point where an account is ready to buy? After all, the goal is revenue. What’s the playbook for identifying that stage?

[20:25.84] - Shai:

That’s a great question. There’s no single way to do it, but at Aporia, and from my past experience, we map signals from ABM solutions on a chart with two axes: quality and quantity. Ideally, you want all signals in the top right corner—high quality and high quantity. For example, if someone visits my docs, explores the free product, and frequently checks out my GitHub repository, that’s a strong indicator they’re ready to buy. But you can also have a lot of third-party signals or a few first-party signals. The key is to leverage this data to allocate resources effectively. You don’t want to target someone who only interacted with third-party content once or twice. Instead, double down on those in the top right corner while nurturing those in the other quadrants. When you see someone move from the bottom left or right to the top right corner, that’s a great signal they’re ready to buy. That’s the Slack notification we all wait for—when someone is ready to be addressed and convinced to buy.

[23:08.24] - Achintya:

Amazing. Shai, this is very useful. My last question, which I ask all the guests on my podcast, is: What are some of the best books, podcasts, or other resources you recommend for developer marketers?

[23:27.14] - Shai:

As I mentioned before, transitioning into developer marketing wasn’t easy for me because the mindset is so different. For those in this community or exploring opportunities in developer marketing, first, kudos—you’re making a challenging decision. My best advice is to start by understanding the landscape you’re entering. For me, the AI domain was uncharted territory, and while it still evolves, understanding it helped me grasp the pains of my target audience. So, my first advice is to learn the field you’re entering. Then, there’s some good content out there on developer marketing. The Dev Marketing Community on Slack and the Developer Marketing Alliance both provide valuable resources. But more than best practices, it’s about truly understanding the person you’re selling to and their daily pain points. It’s a constantly evolving field, so keep learning.

[25:45.98] - Achintya:

This is very useful, Shai. I think this gives us a lot to think about. Thanks so much for spending time with us. Personally, I learned a lot. Thanks once again.

[25:56.08] - Shai:

Sure. Thank you, Achintya. I appreciate it. The developer marketing community is still growing, and knowledge hubs aren’t easy to find. Having this podcast and bringing in talented people to talk about it—I’m not talking about myself, but others—is very helpful for those considering or who have made this transition and are asking themselves, “What have I done?”

[26:32.45] - Achintya:

It’s definitely not an easy marketing field. I can see that for sure.

[26:38.60] - Shai:

Absolutely. Thanks for your time. Bye-bye.

[26:41.12] - Achintya:

See you then.

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