Start small so we can go big…

Continuing on our theme of planning for success, I wanted share my thoughts on a quote from a Mashery customer in the retail sector. During a meeting with her team, Michele proclaimed “start small so we can go big.” This was one of those “ah ha” moments for everyone.

One of biggest challenges we see companies face is the arduous task of determining what content or services to make available through their API. They get bogged down in the depth and breadth of what they could make available. The key is to start with something simple, but of value. When launching an API companies must make information or services available that is interesting to the potential users – give them enough to build something really interesting – otherwise no one will use it. Starting “small” doesn’t mean risking the success of your API.

Early adopters or users will try and test things for you. These same people are also the ones who will be vocal and will share feedback. You will learn a great deal from these users in the first 30 days (if not sooner). You will learn what your users want to consume, how they want to consume it, and what they are willing to pay to use. If you try to figure all of this out ahead of time, you will get it wrong. Ask the companies that have gone before you…..everyone has lessons learned they can share.

The first version of your API will be focused on learning how to support your community and how to leverage them to shape your next release. This means everything from observing what they do with the API, to being responsive to their requests and comments on blogs and forums, and promoting the apps they have built…all with the goal of continuing to build on what you learn and creating a longer term strategy.

A great example of this would be to look at what NPR is doing. In mid-July, they released the first version of their API. They made some of their valuable content available and gained a great deal of momentum and visibility for it. NRP did get some push back on what they didn’t make available but that is a topic for another blog post! (media companies have content they own, content they get from others, and paid contracts that put some level of limitations on what they can do…again, a later blog post) NPR is now looking to take their API to the next level and is pro actively seeking feedback for the next generation of their API. Take note and follow their model.
Identify what you have that is of value to others, make it available, listen to feedback, learn….and then iterate.

Thank you to Michele A for the great quote – “start small so we can go big!”

Planning for success vs planning for ok

The number of companies releasing APIs continues increase(see programmable web blog post). Whether it is the New York Times, Lonely Planet, Dada Entertainment or WhitePages.com, planning is an important part of driving both adoption and ongoing success. Planning isn’t just about the types of web services you offer, or about the business model that might be deployed. In the words of one of our customers, Tom Tague, from the Calais Division of Thomson-Reuters, “it’s about planning for success vs planning for ok.” In the 7 months the Calais service has been available, he has experience that provides insight to his words.

Tom tells the tale of being “slash dotted” – which to many is seen as the ultimate achievement among the developer community. What is Slashdot? It is one of the technology industries most prominent sites where millions of developers around the world share the their perspectives. In the first month of being launched, the Calais initiative was slash dotted and their registered user count went from a few hundred to over 1000 in a matter of 12 hours. Having the infrastructure and support in place to manage this high activity was extremely critical – even more so for Calais being part of Thomson-Reuters. The press has a reputation for being the hardest on it’s own kind. Not being able to handle this could have created a backlash.

While some people think that traffic volumes might be an issue, Tom told us that one of the key components to success is managing the ongoing user activity. The real notion of planning for success means thinking about what you need for support. Users lose keys, users need to have their access limits increased or decreased, and keys need to be blocked because they are using your content on inappropriate sites. This type of activity must be managed on a daily basis. The ability to have real time insight to user activity and being able to respond immediately are critical. Pro-actively managing what is happening from a business perspective is important to your success with your partners and community of API users.

Launching an API requires some thoughtful planning and requires continuous nurturing. Whether it is for a handful of strategic partners, or scaling to thousands of users, you must have the necessary infrastructure and tools to be able to support their changing needs.

If you get a chance to hear the Calais story, you really shouldn’t miss the opportunity. Tom has much to share.