If you wait until your ideal customer needs your software or service before you talk to them, you may have already lost the sale. They'll go to your competitors, because they heard about them before they became your ICP.
That's one of the reasons developer relations is critical for tech companies: we talk to everyone, whether they need us right now or not. We build awareness of the product, directly and indirectly, so we're on their mind. Of course, that doesn't mean we can't focus or prioritize our audience!
The day they go from "not a fit" to a potential customer, because they moved to a new project or started a new job, they'll remember the people they connected with, and the product those people represent. Heck, they might even become an advocate and mention your product to a colleague in another department, or to a friend who is, right now, the person who could become a user and eventually a customer.
Everyone matters to us, and there's a method to what looks like madness to most!
ALT Series card for devrel hot take #1: a terminal window on a magenta background shows the command fred --topic "long-term". Below it, a black-and-white illustration of Fred's face sits next to the words devrel hot take #1.