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Ninad Pathak
Ninad Pathak

Posted on • Originally published at pathak.ventures

The 'Show Code' Rule: Why Your Hero Section is Failing

#developermarketing #cro #landingpage

There is a simple heuristic I use when auditing DevTool landing pages. I call it the "Time to <code>".

I scroll down. How many pixels do I have to travel before I see actual syntax?

If the answer is "more than one screen height," your conversion rate is artificially low.

"Show, Don't Tell" is Literal

For a non-technical buyer, a screenshot of a dashboard looks like "software." It feels tangible.

For a developer, a dashboard is secondary. They want to know the implementation cost. They are asking:

  • "Is this a REST API or GraphQL?"
  • "Is it a library or a binary?"
  • "Is the config YAML or JSON?"
  • "Does it support Typescript types?"

A beautifully highlighted code snippet answers all these questions instantly. It is high-bandwidth communication. It proves you aren't vaporware.

The Anatomy of a Perfect Hero Snippet

Do not just paste a random function. The snippet on your home page is a marketing asset. It must be curated.

  1. Self-Contained: It should look like a complete thought. import client, client.doThing(), print(result).
  2. The "Magic" Line: Highlight the one line of code that does the heavy lifting. The extensive boilerplate should be hidden or abstracted.
  3. Real Syntax Highlighting: Do not use a static image if you can avoid it. Use a shiki or prism.js block so they can copy-paste it. An image of code is a tease; text is a tool.
  4. Multi-Language Tabs: If you support Python, Node, and Go, show the tabs. It signals "We support your stack" before they even read the sub-header.

Vague Promises vs. Explicit Proof

Marketing Copy: "Seamlessly integrate authentications into your app with enterprise-grade security."
(Vague. Boring. Ignored.)

Code Copy:

import { auth } from '@your-tool/client';

const user = await auth.signIn({
  email: 'user@example.com',
  password: 'password123'
});
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(Concrete. Specific. Understood.)

The code snippet is the headline. It proves the claim of "simplicity" without using the word "simple."

If you are selling to developers, stop trying to be a copywriter. Be an engineer who respects their time. Open your IDE, copy the best part of your readme, and put it on the front page.

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