#api-strategy

Design APIs that drive product adoption and ecosystem growth. API strategy considerations: 1. Business model: free vs. paid, usage-based pricing. 2. Target audience: internal teams, partners, public developers. 3. Scope: core features vs. comprehensive platform. 4. Versioning: backwards compatibility, deprecation policy. Developer experience (DX): 1. Documentation: clear examples, interactive API explorer. 2. Authentication: simple setup, secure token management. 3. Error handling: descriptive error messages, status codes. 4. Rate limiting: fair usage policies, graceful degradation. 5. SDKs: libraries for popular programming languages. API design principles: 1. RESTful design: consistent resource naming, HTTP methods. 2. Idempotency: safe to retry operations. 3. Pagination: handle large datasets efficiently. 4. Filtering: query parameters for data selection. Developer support: 1. Community forum: peer-to-peer help. 2. Technical support: dedicated developer relations team. 3. Sandbox environment: test without production impact. Success metrics: API adoption, developer retention, applications built, revenue attribution.