Opening up my SaaS's API turned out to be one of the smartest growth decisions

6 usamaejaz 0 6/3/2025, 12:58:02 PM

I run a social media management SaaS called SocialBu, and a while ago, I decided to open up a public API. Initially, I just wanted to support a few power users who kept asking for it, but I didn't expect what happened next.

Once the API was live and documented, I started noticing something interesting:

- Technical users began signing up specifically for API access. Agencies, marketers with automation workflows, and folks using tools like Zapier or n8n. - These users converted to paid plans faster than normal users. - They barely needed any support: they just read the docs and started building. - Most importantly, they stuck around. Once someone connects you to their workflow, you're basically embedded in their system.

I didn't even promote the API much. Just quietly added docs and made it accessible. In hindsight, I should've done this way earlier.

Another reason to focus on API-first product development for us.

Interested in learning how it went for others having their product exposed through an API (or even Zapier/n8n integration). And, any strategies to promote the API further when your primary customer profile is not technical/API-consumer?

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Opening up my SaaS's API turned out to be one of the smartest growth decisions

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Opening up my SaaS's API turned out to be one of the smartest growth decisions

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