Selling solar can be a very lucrative sales job. Once someone is trained, should they close even just one sale a week, they can be on their way to a $200,000 a year income. Therefore, many people are attracted to it. The problem is that the solar industry, specifically solar installation companies, have not completely figured out how to operate profitably and pay their salespeople accurately and on time. Anyone familiar with the industry knows that several dozen companies have gone out of business since 2022. This has led to a situation where salespeople are constantly moving from company to company to find stability and fair treatment for themselves and their customers. But there is finally a solution to this problem. You will learn here how to sell solar and truly develop a solar career.
One company has taken a step back and looked at the solar industry. The issues they focused on were the fact that solar sales companies are not able to operate profitably. Yet solar companies continue to sell residential solar at a price that is higher than necessary. Solar installation companies continue to have issues with installation times, supply chain issues, and retaining good salespeople. Salespeople are constantly trying to find a new solar company that will pay them more and pay them consistently. None of this is good for the solar industry.
Enter REACH Solar
Before REACH Solar was launched, the concepts that make up its core values and methods of operation were tested soundly for well over a year. The eventual founders of REACH Solar, Mike Fedick and KC Call, brought these concepts to Dave Bengel, owner of Apricot Solar. Apricot Solar mainly operated on the traditional methods of door-to-door sales and in home presentations. But apparently Mr. Bengel was open to the idea of learning how to sell solar differently. Within 6 months, those that were selling using the new ideas were out producing the door knockers. It looked like Apricot Solar had found a new, more efficient and effective way of selling solar and lowering the price to the homeowner. Except Dave Bengel didn’t quite grasp the culture and long-term goals of these new solar salespeople. He changed the compensation plan, and it all fell apart.
The concept ultimately failed when trying to insert it into a traditional solar dealer like Apricot Solar. However, given the initial success at Apricot, Fedick and Call knew it would work given the right management and company culture. So, they went out and built their own company. It was a blank canvas that they could use to paint the picture of the solar industry that wanted to see. It was time to show the solar industry how to sell solar so that salespeople could truly develop a solar career.
Objective #1- Lower the Cost of Solar for Homeowners
The cost of homeowners adopting solar in the United States far exceeds that of other countries. This is true even though the cost of solar equipment (solar panels, inverters, and batteries) has come down significantly. Fedick and Call realized that if they could lower the cost of solar to homeowners, they would make their company far more competitive in the solar market, and help their sales reps make more sales and get more referrals. So step 1 of how to sell solar better was to lower the cost to homeowners.
There are three main reasons why the price of solar is still more expensive than in other countries that are actively adopting residential solar. The first is the time it takes to get building permits from local AHJs (Authority Having Jurisdiction) and inspections from utility companies. In Australia, as an example, the permit and inspection processes are streamlined allowing for far faster installation times and near immediate granting of system operation called Permission to Operate (PTO). Although Fedick and Call knew that they could not make widespread changes in this process around the U.S., they did add a dedicated in-house Project Manager to oversee this process with the various installation companies they work with.
Regional Installers vs a National Solar Company
REACH Solar decided to work with the very best regional installation companies, instead of working with one national installation company. National companies might do a good job in some areas but have poor installation times and communication in others. In this way, REACH is better able to control the quality and speed of the installation and overall customer satisfaction. They searched the country and vetted the installers from Maine to California. They looked at install times, customer communication, internal processes, Better Business Bureau ratings and reviews, and Google reviews.
If an installation company isn’t performing at a high level for homeowners, REACH can simply switch to another installer in that region without interrupting the entire company.
Lower Customer Acquisition Cost
A large cost built into the price of every solar system sold is the cost of acquiring the customer. Traditionally solar companies have used two ways to acquire leads that could potentially turn them into customers. The first is door-to-door salespeople. This can be an effective method of finding a homeowner that might be interested in solar, but it is not efficient and is costly. The other method of lead acquisition in solar is online marketing. Ads on Google, Facebook and other online platforms that lead to a funnel and eventual form to be filled out by the consumer are very costly.
REACH Solar does it differently. Word of mouth advertising is the most effective form of advertising that there is and costs nothing. REACH Solar has an army of thousands of people associated with the company that they call Setters that talk to homeowners that they know about solar. Should one of these homeowners decide to go solar, the Setter is then compensated with a percentage of the sale. Setters can be people that are looking for part-time income or people that already converse with homeowners on a regular basis. Professionals in home improvement companies, real estate, and other such fields are great candidates to become a Setter with REACH Solar.
Company and Team Sales Reps are assigned to these homeowner leads. This prevents them from having to buy expensive leads and pass that cost onto the homeowner, or go door-to-door themselves.
Remote Solar Sales Versus In-Home Sales
REACH Solar Sales Reps work with homeowners and present to them through Zoom. Selling solar remotely eliminates the cost of maintaining a car and buying gas to drive to and from appointments. This helps lower the cost of solar to homeowners because Sales Reps get to keep more of their commissions rather than putting money each month into their car.
Traditional Solar Sales Rep Compensation
We’ve already discussed 2 of the 3 reasons why the cost of solar is still higher than it needs to be (AHJ log jams and customer acquisition). The 3rd reason is the way solar companies have traditionally structured their compensation plan. It is called the “redline model”. Basically, the solar installation company designates a price per watt (PPW) on their cost of installation and profit margin. Then the solar dealer adds their profit margin. The salesperson must sell above this PPW to generate a commission. In theory the system should work. But two outcomes typically happen. The overall PPW is so high that the salesperson can’t be competitive against proposals from other companies. Or, when they encounter a homeowner that doesn’t get competitive bids, they price the system much higher than needed to get the highest commission possible. This unnecessarily raises the price for homeowners.
The REACH Solar Compensation Plan
Let’s look at what REACH Solar has done. First, when negotiating the baseline PPW with solar installation companies they have some leverage that an individual salesperson does not have. The main reason is the number of installations they can provide the installer. So, they can typically start with a lower baseline.
Perhaps the biggest change that REACH has made is to allow their profit margin to flex with the PPW that the salesperson assigns to a sale. Instead of taking a fixed amount on each project, REACH takes a percentage of the overall profit from the sales. Therefore, if a salesperson lowers the PPW on a sale, REACH takes less too. In this way the salesperson can be more competitive in the market, provide homeowners with great pricing, and still make a fair commission.
Solar Sales Reps
Only those people who have a track record of successful solar sales can become Sales Reps with REACH Solar right away. The company wants to maintain a high level of professionalism amongst their sales team. Others that do not yet have that track record can prove themselves as a Setter and then learn how to sell solar by going through training to become a Sales Rep.
Sales Reps can choose up to 3 states or general areas around the country in which they want to sell. REACH covers approximately 45 states and Puerto Rico. They will be onboarded with the appropriate installation companies and learn the software and process of each installation company. There is a plan to create an in-house portal that will be integrated with each installer and finance company so the Sales Rep will only use one log in. But for now, each Sales Rep must learn the nuances of each of the installers they’ll be working with.
Solar Training
Training for Setters begins day one. REACH Solar has brought in one of the most experienced and talented people in the direct sales industry to train Setters on how to get leads from homeowners. Nick Odom was a record setting producer at LegalShield for many years. LegalShield is a membership-based service that provides legal assistance and protection through a subscription model.
REACH has also brought in two of the most experienced people in the solar industry to direct an ongoing training program for its solar Sales Reps.
David Williamson was the CEO and co-founder of Titan Solar Power, a company he started in 2013. Under Williamson's leadership, Titan expanded from its Arizona roots to a national presence. Williamson’s approach emphasizes teamwork and a focus on outcomes rather than traditional business structures. His leadership style aims to inspire employees to strive for high performance in both their personal and professional goals. David trains REACH Sales reps on a weekly basis.
Reed Peru is REACH Solar’s National Sales Manager. Reed has been one of the most successful sales reps in the solar industry for the last 8 years. He has also worked in all aspects of solar and brings a depth of knowledge to REACH Solar Sales Reps including his style of online presentation.
REACH Solar Company Culture
Company culture is one aspect that is often overlooked. But Fedick and Call, along with Operation Manager, John Busch and Trainer, Nick Odom strive for a positive, upbeat environment. They encourage input from the field and camaraderie amongst the team. They run contests for trips and other rewards that Setters and Sales reps can participate in. REACH Solar is an especially great environment for those just getting into solar.
How to Sell Solar and Truly Develop a Solar Career
If you are looking for a new home in solar, or perhaps you want to get into the industry and learn how to sell solar and develop a solar career, REACH Solar is a great choice. To learn more, visit Solar Sales From Home. There you can watch a detailed business overview video. If you like what you see, there's a link below the video to schedule a Zoom meeting with Company Sales Rep and Pro Bulder, Dale Guiducci. You can ask questions and get a great feel for what REACH Solar has to offer.
