Levitating in the World of B2D Sales
The Dua Lipa Effect of B2D firms
As we approach the end of the year an event that divides opinion unlike anything else is back on our screens: Spotify Wrapped 💫
Flipping through my 2023 recap on Spotify unveiled some unexpected insights - e.g. that I spent way more time listening to country music (esp. thanks to Morgan Wallen) than I would have thought - but one thing did not come as a surprise at all: My #1 artist for 2023
Thinking about why it’s Dua Lipa of all singers I spent so much time with over the year and what makes her and her music special, I remembered one of my favorite VC articles, “What Taylor Swift Can Teach Us About Business” from
on his Substack Digital Native. From that moment on, I could not unsee the parallels between the rise of Dua Lipa and B2D companies anymore. So here goes.On Dua
In the pop music cosmos, one name resonates with magnetic charm and undeniable talent: Dua Lipa. Born in London to Kosovo-Albanian parents, Dua Lipa launched into the music scene with her smoky vocals and magnetic stage presence and went on to create her very own music genre “Dance Crying”. Her journey to fame wasn't an overnight phenomenon; it was more a blend of determination, talent, and perseverance that led her to become the global superstar we know today.
Dua Lipa's breakthrough single, "New Rules," wasn't just a chart-topper; it was a manifesto for empowerment and independence. With her 'rules' on repeat, she carved her space in an industry notorious for its unpredictability and cutthroat competition (or as I would call it in VC-speak: ‘red ocean’).
Much like Dua Lipa's ascent to musical royalty, the world of Business-to-Developer (B2D) companies has undergone its evolutionary journey. These firms have crafted their hits in the tech industry, building platforms and tooling that resonate with developers, much like Dua Lipa's tracks resonate with millions worldwide.
So, let's embark on an unusual yet harmonious comparison between the rise of Dua Lipa and the awe-inspiring success of B2D companies. Get ready to explore how the rhythm of Dua Lipa's journey syncs with the beat of B2D companies, leaving us all stimulated and eagerly awaiting the next verse.
New Rules - B2D is re-writing the sales playbook
Firstly, let's groove to the beat of Dua Lipa's first big hit, "New Rules". Just as Dua Lipa carved her path by setting new rules in the music industry with her captivating melodies and fresh style, B2D firms have orchestrated a symphony of change in the sphere of developer relations, evangelism, and community-led sales.
Essentially, B2D companies have rewritten the playbook, shifting from traditional, convoluted strategies to a no-nonsense approach. Much like Dua Lipa's unabashed declaration of "I got new rules, I count 'em," these companies have embraced a mantra centered around transparency, authenticity, and innovation. They've discarded the dated notions of sales-driven tactics and prioritized a product-first approach—focusing on functionality over mere aesthetics.
Just as Dua Lipa's lyrics served as a guide for setting boundaries and demanding self-respect, B2D companies have established a new paradigm for engaging developers. Their strategies champion a developer-centric ethos, fostering vibrant communities and prioritizing user feedback. They've mastered the art of resonating with developers by offering robust, functional solutions, akin to Dua Lipa's magnetic resonance with her audience through authentic and relatable storytelling in her music.
One Kiss - leveraging partnerships
Consider Twilio, the 'One Kiss' equivalent in the world of B2D companies. Just as Dua Lipa's collaboration with Calvin Harris resulted in a chart-topping hit, Twilio's technology partnerships have significantly contributed to the company’s success. While there might not be the one big alliance equivalent to Dua and Calvin Harris, big partnerships between Twilio and the likes of Zendesk, Salesforce, Nomorobo, among others, stand as a paragon of successful collaborations. Meaningful and synergetic collaborations can be a great way to piggyback on the trust, interest and eventually the rise of adjacent technologies. Often, such partnerships can also span beyond one’s original cosmos, like with Dua (Pop) and Calvin Harris (Techno Disco) or Twilio (Communications) and Salesforce (CRM).
At your service - fan engagement beyond the core product
If there is one thing Dua is mastering beyond the evolution of her infamous “lazy” dance is engagement with fans. Now interestingly this engagement goes beyond interactions through live concerts, social media presence and the rest of the typical procedure. With her podcast “At Your Service” in collaboration with the BBC, started in Feb 2022, she’s not only bringing her fan engagement to an additional channel. She also expands her brand way beyond what she is known and loved for - Pop music - to other aspects of her fan’s lives, through interview guests that are unrelated to her core product. Some of my personal favorite episodes count her latest conversation with Apple CEO Tim Cook on AI, climate change, philanthropy and more, or with TV star Penn Badgley on defining oneself.
There is a tendency from B2D companies to start their communication efforts very narrow with what their product is about - e.g. code review best practices if you are building tolling for this very step in the software development cycle. This automatically narrows your audience to people looking for hints around code reviewing though which might make you miss out on your total addressable user group - software engineers globally. It therefore can make sense to break out of this territory and publish insightful content about all aspects of software development (but also beyond: think product, design, productivity) and guardrail the audience towards what you stand for at your core later on.
Atlassian is one company that comes to my mind that skillfully adapted this strategy. Beyond content around product management, team collaboration, they stretched their sphere of influence by also publishing content on things such as “Company Culture”, “Bouncing back from a burnout”, “Leadership principles” and more through their “Work Life” blog.
I could go on like this forever and also write about Dua’s ‘Hallucinate’ and LLMOps, ‘Pretty Please’ and the importance of good DevX, ‘Scared to be Lonely’ and the importance of community, ‘No Goodbyes’ and how to keep up retention, …you get the point.
But instead, approaching the winter holiday break, I am going to “Houdini” for some time to be back in full freshness in Jan!