The conventional playbook for EV charging companies is to build and operate your own charging network. ChargeLab took a different approach: they decided to become the software layer that powers everyone else’s networks instead.
The Platform Play
“We don’t build out a public network of chargers, but we provide the back end technology for the folks who are doing that,” explains Zak, CEO of ChargeLab, in a recent episode of Category Visionaries. This seemingly simple positioning decision unlocked access to customers that vertically-integrated players can’t reach.
Why Legacy Businesses Won’t Hand Over Their Future
ChargeLab’s most compelling insight came from understanding the psychology of traditional businesses facing disruption. Consider gas stations, which Zak explains make money on “two things. I make it on selling gas, and I make it on selling snacks and candy bars and cigarettes and water and Coke and alcohol concessions.”
This creates an interesting dynamic: “I’m not going to hand over half of my business to somebody else just because we’re making a fuel transition from petrol to electric.” This insight revealed a massive customer segment that vertically-integrated players like Tesla couldn’t serve.
The Market Evolution Strategy
Instead of trying to convince businesses to adopt EV charging, ChargeLab waited for market sentiment to shift. “Back in 2016, nobody in the legacy businesses were thinking about this. Now in 2022, I guarantee every gas station that has more than, let’s say, 20 sites… guaranteed is looking at and thinking about the future of EV charging,” Zak observes.
Finding the Right Customer Profile
ChargeLab’s key customers are “folks who are building large networks of EV charging.” But what makes this customer segment particularly interesting is why they choose ChargeLab: they can’t wait for vertically-integrated players to select them.
“When Tesla builds a supercharger, first of all, they pick your site, you don’t pick them. Second of all, they own and operate all the infrastructure,” Zak explains. This limitation creates an opportunity for businesses that need to control their own charging destiny.
The Property Management Revelation
Perhaps ChargeLab’s most valuable insight came from the property management sector. Rather than pitching charging as a revenue opportunity, they recognized it would follow the same pattern as other building amenities.
“Nobody wants to spend $800,000 on a condo in a building that doesn’t have a gym,” Zak notes. “And so it’s going to be a very similar dynamic where… the main reason they’re going to do it is so they can sell that $800,000 condo or they can rent that $2,000 per month apartment.”
The Hidden Pattern for B2B Founders
ChargeLab’s customer strategy reveals an important pattern for B2B founders: sometimes the most valuable customers are those who can’t use the dominant player’s solution, even if that solution is technically superior.
By positioning themselves as the Android to Tesla’s Apple, ChargeLab found customers who needed:
- Control over their charging infrastructure
- The ability to maintain their brand identity
- Freedom to choose their hardware vendors
- A solution that treats charging as part of their business, not the whole business
In a recent episode of Category Visionaries, Zak Lefevre shared these insights about building ChargeLab’s customer strategy. For B2B founders facing similar platform vs. network decisions, his insights reveal the power of choosing the platform path.