5 key roles social media plays in developer engagement

How to use social media to connect with developers.

How do you feel about social media in the marketing department at your tech company?

Feelings of frustration are likely rising now… 🥵

Perhaps you feel it’s not consistent enough. Or diverse enough. Or, it doesn’t have the right tone/story/meme.

It’s just not doing enough for the business… as it should!

Back when I was the editorial lead for Opensource.com, the blog as the channel for our messages and stories was everything. Social was not even a second thought…it was the last thought. It was the “I suppose we gotta do this” task that was always given to the new guy on the team. Sorry, Alex. 🙃

But that was then.

I like something Elena Verna said about company blogs being way down on the priority list these days and social channels being way up.

Social is where we’re generating authentic engagement, technical trust, and community building.

But, despite this level of up-ness and influence, social is still often considered to be so easy to do^* that it’s not given the respect, support, and resourcing it needs to be consistent, diverse, and strong in tone, stories, and yes, memes.

^* Doing social = strategy creation and adjustment, copy creation and revisions, graphic creation/coordination, calendar planning, posting, and 👂 meetings with Engineering, DevRel, Product, Events, Partners, and everything in between.

Here’s what you need to know about social for developers, and how to do it right.

Developers are on social media but they engage differently

Unlike traditional consumers, developers don’t want to be “marketed to.” They value genuine conversations, useful content, and peer recommendations over promotional messaging. This means that for brands looking to connect with developers, social media isn’t just a distribution channel—it’s a two-way street for engagement, learning, and support.

The key roles social media plays in developer engagement

1. Building trust through technical content

Developers want relevant, high-quality technical content. Platforms like X, Bluesky, LinkedIn, and YouTube serve as hubs for sharing:

• Tutorials and how-to guides – Helping developers solve real problems builds goodwill
• Product demos and feature highlights – Developers appreciate seeing a tool in action
• Open source updates and contributions – Transparency strengthens credibility in the open source software (OSS) space

🛠 Example: Docker, Inc consistently shares developer-focused blogs, product updates, and community highlights—keeping its brand relevant in daily developer conversations.

2. Engaging with developer communities

Developers naturally gather in online spaces—whether it’s Reddit, Discord, Mastodon, LinkedIn groups, or X (Bluesky) threads. Successful brands don’t just broadcast messages; they listen, contribute, and provide value.

• Participate in relevant discussions (without forcing sales)
• Respond to developer feedback to show your team is listening
• Support community-led initiatives like open-source projects or meetups

🛠 Example: GitLab‘s engineers engage in conversations on Reddit, answering technical questions and sharing model updates directly with developers.

3. Leveraging developer advocates and influencers

Developers trust other developers more than corporate messaging. That’s why companies invest in developer advocates, internal experts, and industry voices to amplify their message authentically.

• Collaborate with influential engineers to showcase use cases
• Highlight internal developer voices to humanize your brand
• Encourage employees to share insights organically on their personal channels

🛠 Example: MongoDB‘s DevRel team regularly shares technical deep dives and best practices, making their brand synonymous with thought leadership.

4. Providing real-time support and crisis management

Developers expect quick responses when they run into issues. A strong social media presence can turn a frustrated user into a long-term advocate by providing:

• Real-time troubleshooting for product issues
• Direct access to engineers for deeper technical discussions
• Proactive communication about downtime, releases, or security updates

🛠 Example: Amazon Web Services (AWS) Support actively monitors social media for customer issues, responding with guidance and linking to documentation.

5. Driving product adoption and growth

Social media plays a key role in turning interested into adoption, especially for freemium, open source, or developer-first products.

• Highlight success stories to show how real users benefit from your product
• Encourage community contributions by featuring projects built with your tech
• Offer incentives like exclusive beta access for social engagement

🛠 Example: Apollo GraphQL s working on building a strong social presence by sharing customer-built projects, reinforcing its role as a leader in open source and commercial GraphQL technologies.

The bottom line: Be present, be helpful, be authentic

For companies trying to reach developers, social isn’t about direct selling—it’s about relationship-building. Developers engage with brands that provide real value through content and support, respect the developer mindset (no hard sells, no gimmicks), and actively participate in conversations that matter to them.

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• How Cody AI can supercharge your development workflow
• Why open source matters in your project management tool
• 3 LinkedIn strategies every developer needs to optimize their profile
• Why AI won’t replace developers
• What is OpenTelemetry?

This article is adapted from “Get real: How to do social for developer audiences” by Jen Wike Huger, and is republished with permission from the author.