The article emphasizes the importance of explaining the 'why' behind new software features in DevRel roles, rather than just the 'how'. It captures the common scenario where users lack understanding of the features' purpose, despite potentially high-quality designs. This misunderstanding often stems from insufficient socialization of the feature's problem context. The author shares their 11 years of experience and highlights a technique likened to the Texas Sharpshooter to aid in communication. Overall, successful DevRel work requires bridging knowledge gaps to ensure user understanding and adoption.
As a DevRel, almost as important as our work helping folks understand HOW (to install, to use, to extend) is explaining WHY: Why is this capability necessary?
Even with well-designed features, the user response often reveals a lack of understanding about the problem the feature addresses; it's not merely a design flaw.
Explaining HOW is relatively easy. Explaining WHY can be a lot of work, but it's critical for user adoption and understanding.
The response to new features often resembles confusion; customers fail to grasp the context unless the problem has been adequately socialized.
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