How to Promote a Dev Tool

The fastest, cheapest, and most effective way to start promoting your dev tool is through strategic directory submissions.

Launch directories are platforms where developers actively browse to discover new tools and solutions. Think Product Hunt, Hacker News (essential for dev tools), DevHunt, GitHub topic pages, and hundreds of developer tool directories and tech platforms.

Why directory submissions are critical for developer tools:

Immediate developer visibility: A successful Hacker News post can bring thousands of developer eyeballs and valuable feedback in a single day. Product Hunt attracts tech-savvy early adopters who love trying new developer tools and sharing discoveries with their teams.

Technical search rankings: Developers heavily rely on Google to discover tools. When you're listed on 100+ directories, your domain rating jumps from zero to 30+ within weeks, helping you rank for searches like '[problem] developer tool' and 'best [language] [tool type]'.

AI Assistant visibility: Directory backlinks make your tool visible to AI assistants. When developers ask ChatGPT, Claude, or Perplexity for developer tool recommendations or how to solve technical problems, these AI systems crawl authoritative directories and platforms to provide answers.


Technical credibility: Being listed on recognized developer platforms signals legitimacy and makes developers more comfortable trying your tool.

GitHub synergy: Directory backlinks to your site improve overall domain authority, which helps both your documentation pages and GitHub repo appear higher in search results.

Permanent results: These listings stay live permanently. Unlike paid ads, directory backlinks keep working 24/7, driving developer traffic for years without ongoing costs.

This is probably the single best way to start promoting your dev tool because it builds compound growth in technical communities. LaunchDirectories maintains a comprehensive database of 100+ best platforms for launching your developer tool. We also offer a done-for-you submission service where we handle all the manual submissions, save you 70+ hours, and get your dev tool listed across the most impactful directories in just 3-5 days.

Before heavily promoting your dev tool, ensure your documentation is exceptional. Developers evaluate tools primarily through docs. Include quick start guides, API references, code examples, use case tutorials, and troubleshooting sections. Make your docs searchable and SEO-optimized - many developers discover tools by googling specific problems and finding solutions in documentation.

Consider open sourcing parts of your tool or building in public on GitHub. Developers trust open source more than closed alternatives. Actively maintain your repository: respond to issues quickly, accept pull requests, and engage with contributors. A well-maintained GitHub repo becomes a powerful marketing channel - developers browse GitHub looking for solutions and share interesting projects with their networks.

Write in-depth technical articles solving real problems developers face. Publish on your blog, Dev.to, Medium, and Hashnode. Create video tutorials for YouTube. Share code snippets and examples. Don't make everything about your tool - provide genuine value first. When developers see you understand their problems deeply, they're more likely to try your solution.

Participate actively in Stack Overflow, Reddit (r/programming, language-specific subs), Hacker News, Discord servers, and relevant Slack communities. Answer questions genuinely, share knowledge, and build reputation. When appropriate, mention how your tool solves specific problems. Developers appreciate authentic engagement and punish obvious self-promotion.

Developers expect to try tools extensively before paying. Offer free tiers generous enough to build real projects. Make onboarding frictionless - no sales calls required. Once developers experience value, many will upgrade to paid plans. Free tiers also encourage organic sharing and word-of-mouth growth within development teams.

Developers love tools that integrate into their workflow. Build CLI tools, IDE extensions, and integrations with popular developer platforms. Make your tool scriptable and automatable. Developer experience is your marketing - if your tool saves time and 'just works,' developers will evangelize it to their teams and communities.

Connect with developers who have audiences on Twitter, YouTube, or Twitch. Many tech influencers review tools, create tutorials, or do live coding. Partner through sponsorships, affiliate programs, or free access. A single authentic recommendation from a respected developer can drive thousands of qualified users who trust that developer's judgment. Developer influencers who promote through affiliate programs typically create detailed technical content - tutorials, integration guides, and comparison reviews - all with dofollow links that strengthen your domain authority. For managing developer partnerships at scale, Affonso simplifies affiliate tracking and commission management.