Esper’s Playbook: Converting MDM Searches into DevOps Customers

Creating a new category is a delicate balance: push too hard against existing understanding and you’ll alienate potential customers; fail to differentiate enough and you’ll blend into the crowd. In a recent episode of Category Visionaries, Esper CEO Yadhu Gopalan revealed their strategic approach to this challenge.

The Strategy Behind Category Creation

“People come to our website looking for an MDM, they leave with DevOps,” Yadhu explains, encapsulating Esper’s approach to category education. This simple statement masks a sophisticated strategy that’s helped Esper convert traditional MDM searchers into DevOps for devices champions.

The journey wasn’t immediate. As Yadhu shares, “Early on, we were kind of playing with, this is security, this is this, et cetera, a lot of different things.” It took about 18 months before they landed on “DevOps for devices” as their category. This exploration period proved crucial for understanding how to position their solution.

Meeting Customers Where They Are

Esper’s website prominently features MDM terminology, but with a twist. “If you notice on a front page, it says not just an MDM,” Yadhu points out. This strategic positioning serves multiple purposes. Beyond the obvious SEO benefits, it acknowledges the current market understanding while hinting at something more.

“No one’s searching for DevOps for devices. That’s not a thing,” Yadhu admits frankly. “So how do we make it a thing?” This pragmatic approach to category creation recognizes that change happens gradually, not overnight.

Education Through Value Creation

Rather than forcing customers to immediately embrace a new category, Esper focuses on demonstrating value within existing frameworks. They “balance features that we want to do that move the needle on kind of the category creation along with what the customer wants and customer needs.”

This approach has proven particularly effective with technical decision-makers. Their champion, as Yadhu explains, is typically “the chief product officer or the CTO or the engineering lead versus the IT person.” These technical leaders understand the limitations of traditional MDM and are more receptive to DevOps concepts.

The Power of Customer Success

Esper’s category creation strategy leans heavily on customer success. “Their success means our success,” Yadhu emphasizes. “The more devices they can scale and deploy without hindrance is better for us.” This focus on customer success creates powerful advocates for the new category.

The strategy has worked particularly well in specific verticals. “We have five of the top ten restaurant chains using Esper,” Yadhu shares, noting that each restaurant might have “15 plus devices… from the kitchen display to point of sale to their busing on their kiosks.”

Evolution in Messaging

A key insight from Esper’s journey is that category creation messaging must evolve. “What lands now will not be what lands in about six months to a year,” Yadhu notes. This continuous refinement ensures their message remains relevant as market understanding grows.

The goal isn’t just to create a new category, but to make it feel inevitable. Just as Tesla made regular software updates to cars feel natural, Esper aims to make DevOps for devices feel like the obvious next step in device management evolution.

For B2B founders creating new categories, Esper’s approach offers valuable lessons in patience, pragmatism, and the power of meeting customers where they are. Sometimes, the best way to create a category isn’t to demand immediate understanding, but to guide customers on a journey of discovery through demonstrated value and success.