API-as-a-Product is the concept of serving up an Application Programming Interface (API) as a business. In API-as-a-Product, we've collated some of our most helpful insights to help you begin your API-as-a-Product journey.

At Nordic APIs, we've been tracking the emergence of many API trends throughout the years. On our blog and at our conferences, contributors have time and time again described new ways to generate value from APIs. However, few subjects encapsulate as much interest as the API-as-a-Product concept. By opening up specialized software functionality through an API, companies can commoditize data and operational components on a per-call basis. Many startups are beginning to treat their API as a core offering due to its potential for scalability and explosive growth. Some API-first companies have even IPO-d in recent years. 

However, it takes substantial effort to build and maintain a functional, self-service API-as-a-Product. You must balance openness with charging for access. Providers must find their secret sauce of freemium, rate limiting, charging per call, or subscription pricing. You must support standard protocols and track emerging communication styles. It also helps to know your developer users well, monitor platform use, and optimize to find the correct model.

And, designing the program is only the beginning. API-as-a-Products require unparalleled developer experiences and high stability. The provider may also experience unexpected challenges, such as identifying spam users and thwarting black hats. Or, the API may struggle to get off the ground and attract a developer foothold necessary to sustain a business. 

Throughout the years, Nordic APIs has featured many writers and contributors as we explore the API-as-a-Product subject from many angles. As a result, our community has produced a ton of knowledge on treating an API as a product. 

In this eBook, we've included some of our most helpful insights to help you start and sustain your API-as-a-Product. From nitty-gritty details, like calculating API-as-a-Product maintenance expenses, to optimizing your self-service developer portal, we cover hot tips to get the most out of your API-centric SaaS. Even if your API doesn't adopt a public model, it still helps to consider how you can benefit from taking a product perspective to integration.