the-homepage
Structure a dev-tool homepage that converts developers into champions. Use when the landing page is written for the buyer instead of the developer, reads as salesy, buries what the product does, or makes it hard to start. Pairs with the ShipReady homepage audit.
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/AIDevGTM/gtm-cofounder /tmp/the-homepage && cp -r /tmp/the-homepage/skills/07-the-homepage ~/.claude/skills/the-homepageSKILL.md
# The homepage
> Write your homepage for the person who actually reads it: the **end-user developer**, not the CTO who signs the check. The developer becomes your champion and sells it internally for you.
**Use this when:** your homepage speaks to buyers/ROI, it's clever but vague about what the thing does, or a developer can't tell in 5 seconds whether to care, and can't start in 5 minutes if they do.
## The core rule (Czakon)
**Address end-user developers on the homepage; put enterprise/ROI/buyer messaging on separate pages** (enterprise, pricing, case studies). If you write the homepage for the buyer, you've written it for someone who isn't there.
## Framework: the sections, in order (Czakon)
1. **Hook / core message**: immediately: what *is* it? Use a category ("CI for monorepos"), a known-incumbent comparison ("a Datadog alternative"), or a plain statement. **Headline = what it is · subhead = for whom / what job.**
2. **Hero**: a real product shot; two CTAs: **Get started** (signup) *and* **Docs**. Answer "what's in it for me?" up top. Lead with the **how**, not the why.
3. **Social proof, right after the hero**: recognizable logos are the fastest credibility you have. Impressive dynamic metrics (users, stars) if you've got them.
4. **Value prop & differentiation**: why you over the 10 alternatives (see `value-prop-that-converts`).
5. **Getting started**: a huge conversion lever. Free trial, **no credit card**, quick setup. Any hard barrier sends developers straight to a competitor.
**Design:** clean typography, breathing room, no "salesy BS," minimal heavy interactions. An embedded playground / copy-pasteable snippet creates an instant *aha*.
## Framework: what must be on it (Frankl)
Cross-check the copy has all six:
1. the **problem in the customer's language** (before the solution)
2. the **villain** / undeniable trend
3. **attributed proof** with numbers (name · title · company)
4. the **inciting event** / urgency
5. **social proof** (not anonymous)
6. a **low-friction path to try** (free tier · docs · GitHub)
## The MVP website (Czakon)
Don't build everything. Start with: **homepage · docs · pricing · navbar (login, signup, contact, GitHub) · About** (an About page builds trust for an unknown brand). Add later, deliberately: case studies → comparison pages → blog → templates → sandbox → enterprise page.
> **Transparent pricing.** "Contact sales for pricing" reads as "expensive and slow." Show a number wherever you can.
## Decision tree: hero CTA
```
Can a developer get value self-serve?
├─ YES → primary CTA "Get started" (signup/download) + secondary "Docs".
└─ NO → primary CTA "Read the docs" / "See how it works"; don't fake a signup that dead-ends.
```
## Mistakes that look reasonable
- **Writing for the buyer**: ROI language up top; the developer bounces.
- **Why before what**: three sentences of vision before you say what it *is*.
- **"Contact sales" pricing**: kills self-serve trust instantly.
- **No getting-started**: a beautiful hero and no obvious first step.
- **Puffery hero**: "The powerful, seamless platform for modern teams." Says nothing (run `value-prop-that-converts`).
## Your next 30 minutes
- [ ] Read your hero as a skeptical developer: in 5 seconds, do you know *what it is* and *if it's for you*?
- [ ] Confirm the five sections exist **in order**; move buyer/ROI copy to its own page.
- [ ] Put a **no-credit-card** getting-started step above the fold or one click away.
- [ ] Run the page through **[ShipReady](https://ship-ready.xyz)** for the full 10-point scorecard.
---
Built from real dev-tool GTM experience, with frameworks from Adam Frankl (*The Developer-Facing Startup*) and Jakub Czakon (*markepear.dev*).
When a framework can't make the call, that's what a human is for: [The DevTool GTM Company](https://thedevtoolgtmcompany.com).Interview the user once and write a docs/gtm-cofounder/founder-brief.md that every other skill reads first, so the advice is about their real business, not a textbook. Use this before anything else, or whenever the agent lacks context on the user's product, ICP, market, or stage, or is giving generic GTM advice.
After the founder brief, turn it into an honest diagnosis and a prioritized, stage-aware GTM roadmap saved as docs/gtm-cofounder/gtm-roadmap.md. This is the hub the user returns to every session to see where they are and the single next move. Use right after start-here, whenever the user doesn't know what to work on next, wants a plan instead of a one-off task, or is drowning in disconnected tactics.
Define a real ICP and the developer personas in the sale. Use when the user says the product is \"for developers,\" can't name who would say no, or is marketing to whoever holds the budget instead of who actually adopts.
Run developer customer discovery via a Technical Advisory Board (TAB). Use when the user has never interviewed a user who isn't a friend, is inventing messaging from a conference room, or is guessing at the roadmap instead of hearing the pain firsthand.
Build a positioning and narrative where the developer is the hero and a real trend is the villain. Use when the messaging describes the product instead of the problem, sounds like every competitor, or has no urgency because nothing is at stake.
Position an AI product when everyone claims AI and skeptics call it \"just a wrapper.\" Find the real wedge (data, workflow, trust, domain), make reliability the differentiator, answer \"won't the big labs just build this,\" and stop leading with \"AI-powered.\" Use when your AI or dev tool blends into a sea of similar demos, buyers doubt the accuracy, or you can't say why you win when the model is a commodity.
Write a developer value proposition that is specific, provable, and free of puffery. Use when the messaging leans on \"powerful,\" \"better,\" \"seamless,\" or \"best-in-class,\" when claims have no proof, or when the same line is supposed to reach both the developer and the buyer.
Turn a curious developer into an activated one: the docs, the quickstart, and the first-run experience that gets them to their first real win fast, and back again. Use when people sign up or star the repo but never get it working, come once and never return, or you're about to pour traffic into a first-run that leaks.