Skip to main content

Telling Your Story: Communicating the Benefits of Your Infrastructure

Why Storytelling Matters​

You may have the most reliable IX or the most connected network in the region, but if you can't communicate its value, people may never realize it. Storytelling is how you make your infrastructure meaningful to both engineers and executives.

Analogy: Having great infrastructure but no story is like owning the fastest train but forgetting to publish the timetable. The train is impressive, but nobody knows why they should get on board.

The Two Audiences You Must Reach​

1. Technical Audiences (engineers, network operators)​

  • What they care about: latency, packet loss, routing policies, uptime, security.
  • How to talk to them: use data, graphs, dashboards, and concrete examples.
  • Example message: "Peering at our IX lowers latency by 20ms on average to Google Cloud."

2. Non-Technical Audiences (executives, customers, investors, policymakers)​

  • What they care about: cost savings, growth, user experience, resilience, reputation.
  • How to talk to them: use plain language, analogies, and focus on outcomes.
  • Example message: "By joining our IX, your customers stream video faster and your bandwidth bills go down."

The Elements of a Good Infrastructure Story​

1. The Problem​

  • Describe the pain point: high costs, poor latency, outages, lack of choice.
  • Example: "Enterprises in our city were paying too much for international transit, while local traffic left the region."

2. The Solution​

  • Explain what your IX or network does to fix it.
  • Example: "Our IX keeps local traffic local, cutting costs and improving performance."

3. The Benefits​

  • Quantify results (latency saved, costs reduced, partners available).
  • Show both technical metrics and business outcomes.

4. The Human Angle​

  • Infrastructure is abstract; make it tangible.
  • Example: "Because of our IX, gamers in the region enjoy lag-free play, and schools have faster, cheaper Internet access."

Tools for Telling Your Story​

Data Visualizations​

  • Live traffic graphs (like the classic IX dashboards).
  • Latency comparisons before vs after peering.
  • Savings charts showing reduced transit costs.

Case Studies​

  • Real-world examples from existing members.
  • Example: "ISP A reduced its monthly costs by 30% by peering with us."

Analogies & Narratives​

  • Translate technical terms into relatable ideas:

    • "Transit is like paying for a toll road. Peering is like a direct path to your neighbor's house."
    • "An IX is the Internet's marketplace - one port, hundreds of potential partners."

Communication Channels​

  • Technical: mailing lists, PeeringDB, GitHub, RIPE Labs, NOG talks.
  • Non-Technical: websites, newsletters, social media, press releases, community outreach.

Common Pitfalls​

  • Too technical for non-technical audiences: drowning executives in BGP communities and VLAN IDs.
  • Too shallow for technical audiences: giving engineers only marketing fluff with no data.
  • Inconsistent message: saying one thing in PeeringDB and another in your brochure.
  • Forgetting the "so what?" - features matter less than the outcomes they enable.

Historical Context​

  • Early IXs: relied mostly on word of mouth, "come join, it's cheaper than transit."
  • 2000s: IXs started publishing live traffic graphs, which became iconic proof of value.
  • Today: IXs and networks invest in branding, storytelling, and data-driven communication to stand out in crowded markets.

Best Practices​

  • Know your audience: tailor the same story differently for engineers vs executives.
  • Use data, but explain it simply: "This graph shows latency dropping by 20ms, which means faster video calls."
  • Keep it consistent: from your website to your PeeringDB record to your event presentations.
  • Highlight impact, not just features: uptime is important, but what it enables is more compelling.
  • Make it human: show how your IX/network improves real-world experiences.

Beginner's Takeaway​

  • Telling your story is as critical as building your network.
  • Engineers want data and details; executives want outcomes and impact.
  • The best stories combine facts, visuals, and human benefits.
  • A strong story makes your IX or network not just visible, but memorable.

✨ Great infrastructure sells itself to those who know, but great storytelling ensures everyone understands why it matters.