Maximizing the ROI on your API

When the team here at ProgrammableWeb first started brainstorming the idea of this API University series on maximizing the ROI on your API, we called it “the Decision Series.” In fact, we were calling it that up until the very last minute because of how it covers so many decisions that must be made once your API journey begins.

Even as we “went to print,” we debated as to whether this was really a series about API strategy more than it was about return on investment. But, as you can see from the list of chapters and case studies below, while this series covers some strategic issues such as which service to open up first and picking business models for your APIs, it also covers key decisions that have to be made once the strategy is in place. For example, how to best engage developers and support them with great documentation and portals. And how to measure API outcomes.

Taking the plunge into APIs is not a decision to be taken lightly. One point we make in this series and elsewhere on ProgrammableWeb is how important it is to treat your APIs like you would any other product. Any time you launch a new product, it’s a major undertaking which is why no stone should be left unturned when it comes to maximizing its chances of success. In other words, driving the most return on investment. The decisions covered in this series are the ones that stand between, the success of your API, and maybe even the success of your company.

We also realize that when reading about APIs here on ProgrammableWeb and elsewhere around the Net, much of the prescriptive advice can come across as theoretical. We’re often reminded of the old saying that “those who can’t do, teach.” There are a lot of experts out there who aren’t doers but they’re somehow knowledgable enough tell others how to do it. That’s why this series also ushers-in a more formal ProgrammableWeb effort to publish case studies that use real world stories to bring home many of the core recommendations you’ll find in API University. This series includes four case studies covering Dixons, Dun & Bradstreet, Intercom, and Ziggeo, a company that was literally zigging when it decided it had to zag. Another one of our API University series on real world business strategies contains eight other case studies and, if case studies are all you want to read, ProgrammableWeb is searchable by content type; one of those types being “case study.”

Finally, like most of the articles you'll find on API University, we take the “living content” approach. In other words, we view our educational content as content that lives and evolves over time. As such, we fully expect to be updating these articles as new API approaches, ideas, and techniques for maximizing success come to light. If you feel we’re leaving out some important points, we welcome your feedback and suggestions on how our content can be improved for the betterment of the entire API community.