Do you remember the first time you used Uber or Lyft and some random person drove up in their unmarked car to pick you up? How did you feel? Were you totally comfortable or did it take you a few rides and hearing about your friends doing the same thing until you were more comfortable? What about your first Airbnb stay versus going to a hotel? And, of course, it may be hard to remember the days before Amazon and online shopping. But putting your credit card in on a computer and having to wait to see if what you bought was going to show up was a little different too. Just as those companies revolutionized their respective industries, we are revolutionizing the solar industry with a team of people doing solar sales from home.
By doing solar sales from home, we mean that the entire sale is being done from a home office. No appointments at the customer’s home. It’s all done via Zoom. If you’re a solar sales veteran this may make you feel uncomfortable because you’re used to that face-to-face interaction. But just know that your potential solar customers are indeed comfortable with using online conferencing. In fact, they may be more comfortable than allowing a salesperson into their home.
Before the pandemic, Zoom had about 10 million daily meeting participants. However, as of June 2020 when the pandemic was in full swing, the number of people that were using Zoom rose to 300 million a day. In general, people are very comfortable using this technology. And those that maybe are not, are fine with giving it a try because they realize the benefits. They don’t have to clean the house or entertain a stranger in their home. Which has become a bigger concern since the pandemic.
Our Technology
If you’re not familiar with the technology used by solar companies today, then you might question how a solar system can be designed by someone that doesn’t physically visit the house and measure the roof planes. It is true that once a homeowner wants to move forward with a solar system installation, our crew must do a site survey to check out the condition of the roof from above and from the attic. They also check the main electrical panel and electrical system in general.
However, prior to that point, the software that we use requires only an address and information from the homeowner’s utility bill. The software detects the home, and the roof, and measures the roof including offsets dictated by the city or county. We can then choose panels, place those panels, and work within the utility company guidelines to build a system that is the most financially impactful for the homeowner.
Our Solar Advisors can sit in our home office and build a system for a homeowner that lives in another state. Then we can present that system to the homeowner via teleconference. It’s faster and more efficient, and homeowners appreciate the convenience. Solar sales from home will be the norm in the solar industry very soon.
The Advantages of Selling from Home
The traditional sales model for solar is for solar salespeople to walk neighborhoods and knock on doors. This solar sales method is hampered by factors such as the number of people that are home at that time. And the number of people that will come to the door for a stranger. And the number of people that will open the door for a salesperson. There are significant factors when calculating how many homeowners a solar salesperson can talk to on any given day or week. When marketing solar in this way, the salesperson is also losing time by driving to and from an area and walking the streets. It’s also costing them money for gas and wear and tear on their vehicle. Isn't it time for a new way to sell solar?
Time, Opportunity, Safety, Speed
Solar sales from home are far more time efficient. A salesperson can also build systems proposals and perform other tasks during this time. The point is that they can get more done without having to drive and walk the streets.
The traditional solar sales model also limits your territory and the number of homeowners you can talk to. With solar sales from home, the U.S. is your territory. Technically it’s just 29 states at the moment but there are plans to expand to all 50 states by the end of 2023. Now think of the people that you know. Where do they live? Do they own a home? Do they know homeowners in their area or state? Referral business can grow very quickly.
Referrals are the key to our business model. It is far easier, more comfortable, and even more fun to sell to people that have been referred to you. Before you even talk to them you know that they are sincerely interested in seeing how much money they can save by going solar. They have already seen a video explaining the benefits of going solar and provided us with their utility bill. You simply need to present their specific solar design and the positive financial impact a solar system will have on them. It doesn't get any better than this!
The opportunity to sell solar from home provides more security, especially for women. We have all heard stories of female real estate agents being attacked in a home. This doesn’t happen when you’re working from your own home. Even if someone were never attacked, it may be quite uncomfortable walking into certain homes with the intention of spending an hour or so there.
Our sales model also has a faster ramp-up time. When you get started you can simply call homeowners that you know and share the benefits of going solar with our promotional video. You would then work with one of our certified trainers to present the analysis to that homeowner. You could literally be selling solar in a matter of days.
What Our Advisors Are Saying
The best barometer of what it's like to work for a solar company is to hear from people already working there.
Want to Learn More?
To get the full picture of how solar sales from home might be the best career choice you’ve ever made, watch our solar business overview. If you like what you see, click the icon below the video to schedule a phone appointment with us to get all your questions answered. You could be selling solar by this time next week!
To Get Started with Home Based Solar Sales & Apricot Solar
Click the link below to register with Apricot Solar
Home Based Solar Sales Founder and Apricot Solar Junior Partner, Dale Guiducci