Developer portals can serve all sorts of purposes, whether that might be delivering access to important resources associated with a new API or indeed whichever cloud-based solutions your organization offers.
Of course, not all developer portals are created equal, so here is a look at the aims that any portal should strive towards if it wants to stand out from the crowd and keep its users happy.
Delivering exceptional documentation
First and foremost, a devportal needs to be equipped with all the in-depth documentation that anyone might need to understand how to use it.
These can take the form of guides and tutorials or even involve fully-fledged multimedia training, depending on your goals, audience, and budget.
The more detailed you can make this documentation, the better, although, of course, you also need to craft it in such a way that third parties will be capable of interpreting it easily, rather than being baffled.
Of course, you don’t just want to cater to beginners, so you also have the objective of documenting and demonstrating typical workflows so that as devs get to grips with the portal, they are empowered every step of the way.
Offering extensive code samples
Developers will appreciate any portal that features plenty of code samples written in mainstream programming languages since this will save them a lot of legwork.
Aside from giving devs a handy shortcut when they are getting started, it will also mean that your resources can be integrated and implemented in less time.
Providing intuitive navigation
Even if your portal is packed with actionable documentation and plenty of code samples, this will be irrelevant if users cannot easily navigate to find what they need.
Therefore, paying attention to the UX is necessary, and it pays to demystify this as much as possible, not only for the benefit of third parties but also for your in-house users.
This is another element that will help to catalyze development, eliminating pain points before they have a chance to cause frustration.
Building your brand reputation
An oft-overlooked aspect of a devportal is that it will unavoidably act as a representation of your business and your wider brand. Thus it is similar to any other presence you foster and platform you occupy in that it can enhance or hinder your reputation according to its quality.
It is helpful to think of your portal as a place to showcase what is great about your organization, and by extension, encourage others to connect with you and spread the word. This should shape any strategies you put in place and changes you make going forward.
Final thoughts
Perfecting your devportal is not going to be a process that happens overnight. Nor is it one that should ever be considered truly finished.
Having the core objective of making a functional, accessible, and comprehensively documented portal for developers will stand you in good stead and mean that problems arise less often and are easier to address when they do.