Should Your Company Sponsor a Hackathon

Hackathons are everywhere, even online. Whatever tech conference you attend, you can be sure to see this event included. Companies offer cash prizes to developers to build the best functioning solution using their products within a limited time. Developers form teams or work alone, and rush to program a champion application. These events are fun for developers, but the question is are they a good investment for your company? You can answer this by thinking through two important questions:

• What goal do I want my company to achieve by sponsoring a prize in a hackathon?
• Is my product ready to be used in a hackathon?

Hackathon Goals

As a company, you should attend a hackathon with a specific goal in mind. By setting a goal up front, you can ensure you’ll get the maximum benefit from attending the event. Here are some popular goals to consider:

Learn What Kind of Developer Experience You Offer

One of the top reasons to sponsor a hackathon is to learn more about the developer experience you offer. Often times B2B companies will write this off as something they don’t need to consider, but that’s a misnomer. Even if you don’t sell directly to developers, creating a good developer experience helps your product sell…