Podcast #18 - Tom Hacohen from Svix

How did you come up with the idea for Svix?
Tom's previous company kept getting requests for webhooks but didn't have the time or resources to build it well. He realized other companies likely had the same problem and saw an opportunity to build webhooks as a service.

Who is the ideal customer for Svix? 
Originally Tom thought smaller companies would benefit most, but Svix is used by companies of all sizes. The time-to-market advantage helps startups and enterprises alike. Ongoing maintenance and scaling benefits larger companies too.

How do you define developer experience and why is it important?
Developer experience is how developers interact with and feel about your product. Good DX makes your customers happy and is critical for an API/dev tool company whose customers are developers.

How does Svix ensure a great DX for its customers' developers? 
Svix focuses on the end user's perspective, not their own. They build easy SDKs, great docs focused on common use cases, and provide fast support from engineers to solve issues quickly.

What makes documentation useful?
Good docs focus on what users want to achieve, not just describing the product. They use the customer's terminology and perspective. Iterating based on user feedback improves docs over time.

How do you measure your developer experience?
Svix looks at activation rates, how quickly developers integrate and send their first webhook. They also track support tickets to identify ongoing friction points.

What friction do developers face with webhooks?
The core API is quite smooth now. Main friction is in how developers determine what webhooks to send and how to let their own users know about and manage webhooks.

What's your approach to simplifying the developer experience?
Tom is a strong believer in the power of simplicity. Svix limits exposed APIs, guides developers to common use cases, and provides opinionated support to simplify the path forward.

How do you create a sense of community? 
Svix uses a public Slack community for support instead of anonymous ticketing systems. This fosters more back and forth dialog and insight into pain points.

Tom Hacohen, CEO at Svix, sat down with me to share how they deliver webhooks as a service with a developer experience that places the customer at the center. Tom believes that when building developer tools, your perspective doesn’t matter; it’s all about the customer. Good documentation isn’t just about completeness and depth; it’s about simplicity and accessibility.