The structure is extremely important for the close and getting signatures so you lengthen the process or lose a customer. Solar can have a lot of information and customers can feel very overwhelmed with the amount of information you are giving them if it’s not delivered properly. (Remember the KISS principle.) It is PARAMOUNT that you consistently practice the structure and revert back to your script as every detail has one purpose: closing more deals quicker. Practice the pitch, know it like the back of your hand.
Intro – Rapport and Authority (Build a relationship and set the tone)
Before the call, make sure you have checked the design, have the numbers accurately input, have any requests taken care of, have net metering/permitting laws, state/local incentives, and have all your notes. Few things are worse in a presentation than going in without any knowledge of your customer and their situation. Know your numbers before the call. Failure to plan is planning to fail.
- (Build Rapport, pick up from your last conversation – use the FORTS theory. It’s important to NOT talk about solar for the 1-5 mins so it loosens the customer up and brings down their defenses. You MUST establish a normal flow of conversation before getting into design, numbers, questions, etc).
Hey John, great to talk to you again! How has your day been? Hey Jane, I know we haven’t spoken yet, it’s nice to meet you! John said you guys got back from a trip last weekend, how was it? Any plans for the rest of the week?
- (Casually dropping these hints will show the Jones Effect, Fear of Loss, and Urgency while being very conversational and Indifferent – subliminal hints to gain impulse and desire to make a decision.)
- If the customer tries to take control of the conversation or rush you, be calm and direct them back. You have to own the start of the conversation, otherwise, it will seem weird when you try to take control later on. Tone and inflection are important.
My week has been busy! A lot of people in the area have been reaching out to reduce their power bills so I have a ton of appointments. Most of the state is tired of the utility company raising their bill each year.
Everyone is trying to take advantage of the state and federal money being given out while it’s here, so I’ve been booked! It’s good to stay busy, right?
Short Story – Summarize the call and build Urgency
- Urgency is also important from the very beginning. It has a snowball effect, and by the end of the call, the customer will really feel the need to make a decision now. If it’s not consistent throughout the conversation, it seems fake and salesy by the end. 3rd party stories are a great way to demonstrate and increase urgency without coming off too salesy or pushy.
Yeah, John and Mary, it’s been really busy, my phones have been going off non-stop, but I paused all incoming calls for you guys. I get people calling me up all the time all over the state ready to go solar after getting a massive power bill. Homeowners like you are saying, “My power bill’s increased 10%, I’ve gotta find a solution.” For example, I had a customer just the other day, we were getting his installation done for our program in his specific area where they just had a massive rate increase. We presented and showed him, he was gonna save a LOT of money. It was a great solution for him, but he didn’t go for it because he was too busy at the time. He called me a few days ago after he got another big power bill asking to go solar, but we had run out of permits in that area. Had to tell him we’d have to call him in another 6-7 months when we have those other jobs completed. Unfortunately, sometimes that’s how it goes, but I’m here with you guys now. Let’s take a look at things.
- Summarize exactly what you’ll be going over and what the goal is for the call, followed by a Pre-Close. If you don’t give them a structure, they will think it’s just a back-and-forth conversation and they will try to take control.
Okay, John and Mary, this is what I have for you. First, we are going to take a look at your power bill and do a deep dive into it to see exactly what’s going on and what the problem is. It seems like you guys keep getting hit with bad rate increases. You guys are paying $_____ per month and I just wanna show you if there is a problem there, and if so we’re gonna dive deep into it to see exactly what’s going on there. I’m sure you’ve had that bill sent to you every single month and you don’t even look at it or see all the different numbers, you just pay it and go on with your day, right?
So, First off, I want to highlight exactly what’s going on here, why you’re paying what you’re paying, and what you’re getting for it.
Secondly, If there is a problem, how can we solve it? How can we get you away from the utility company and get you more independence? What exactly would that look like, what it would come with, what assurance it would have, any warranties etc.
After that, If there is a solution, how are we going to build that for you? I actually have a predesigned solution for you guys, how we are going to build that, what it looks like, and educate you guys on how it works.
Then, once we have a solution we are going to take a look at the numbers in black and white. At the end of the day, it’s either you’re saving money or you’re not saving money. Or maybe you’re saving money, but it’s only saving in 10-15 years. So, we’re gonna dive into those numbers as well. Look, my goal ultimately here is that if we can find some really clear savings based on the bill we are going to go over and the numbers make sense to you, my goal today is to save you as much money as I can. Is that fair, John and Mary? Perfect.
The soft Pre-Close at the end gets a quick agreement, mentally preparing the customer for a decision.
Presentation – Create the Problem with their current Utility Bill and provider, then provide the Solution
- Brickwall Check – Check the engagement of all parties to make sure they are “with you”. Do this before EVERY new section. If you don’t do this, chances are you will lose one or both of the client’s attention, they will float away, or get distracted by something. What you are saying is important and very important they hear and understand it.
Okay, guys, I’m gonna jump into it now. Do I have your full attention? Mary, are you still with me there? John, are you still with me there? Perfect guys, if you put me on speakerphone, and grab a pen and paper we’re gonna really see what we can do for you. Can you grab that pen and paper now? Who’s gonna be taking notes, who has the better handwriting? Ok, perfect. Let’s jump into it!
Problem – Bill Shock and Conviction:
Bill shock is when you show them how much money they are actually spending on their utility. Not many pay attention to their bill and what they pay, so we are going to show them. DON’T focus on their last bill, turn their attention towards the future and what’s going to happen if they don’t go solar.
Conviction is in your energy and tonality, these must change when talking about the PROBLEM. The proper delivery of the problem is POWERFUL and CRUCIAL. If you just brush by this like it’s “no big deal” then they won’t register how big of an issue it will be in the future.
Use the Bill Analysis to highlight exactly what they are paying and what they are getting.
This is to show that you know your stuff and educate/teach them what’s really going on. People are more willing to give you something after they have received something from you first, so give them knowledge and help them understand (E.g. random charges, daily usage, how many kWh they use, variable monthly rates etc.) This increases your authority .
So, John and Mary, we are going to take a look at your bill here. Do you have that in front of you? I want to show you what’s going on here, take a look at the numbers because most people just pay it and put it aside. Let’s really take a look at this. First off, we want to see your monthly amount, but also how much you’re actually using. What are you actually getting for that monthly payment you are sending to the utility company and why does the monthly amount keep going up, but what you’re getting for it, the power, stays the same?
John and Mary, you see your bill there where it says “2000 kWh” for August?
Perfect, That means you’re getting 2000 kilowatt hours of energy for the month of August, and for the month of August, you paid $200 for that power.
So for that $200, you got 2000 kWh for that money. You can see how it varies throughout the month and year, but ultimately the amount that you’re using that month is roughly the same, year on year on year. You’re using about the same amount of energy, you have the same energy habits. It might fluctuate a little bit, but in general, you’re using the same amount of energy.
Therefore, you’re buying the same product from the energy company year after year, but as you both have probably noticed the amount you’re spending, the amount you’re buying that same product keeps going up and up and up. That could be from a lot of things, have you guys noticed it’s gone up?
(Get customers to engage, everyone knows their power bill is going up. DO NOT SKIP THIS – The customer MUST engage that their rates are increasing. Inflation alone is causing this to happen.)
Present a logical reason why Utility Companies increase their rates. Demonize the Utility Company, it’s really not hard to do.
They are a For-Profit company, not a charity. Over the years they want to expand, get more profit, get their cost down, pay their shareholders and board members, etc. What happens when people go solar and independent is these Utility Companies are losing customers. They still have the same infrastructure, and the same overheads to cover, but when someone goes solar they pretty much lose a customer because that customer is no longer paying nearly as much as they were or anything at all. But the Utility Company still needs to make a profit somehow. So, outside of inflation, they WILL BE RAISING THEIR RATES! We generally only see an increase of 4 to 6% during economic good times, but much, much high increases in the past few years.
Never assume the customer understands the full extent of rate increases and what that means for them. Bring this to the forefront of their mind, and engage with them.
Have you guys seen this happening? Were you paying this much 5 or 10 years ago?
Once they understand this and get on board with the energy rate increase, now can show them the scary figures.
PUT THEIR FUTURE BILL NUMBER IN FRONT OF THEM (See the Utility Inflation Calculator).
Do the math with them. If you’re paying $200 a month, here is what that will be in 10 years.
This means over the next 30 years, you’ll pay over $170,000 in energy to the Utility Company.
Okay, Mary and John, do you have that piece of paper and pen ready?
I want you to draw a line down the middle. On one side of that column write “No Solar” or “Utility Company”. On the other side, write “With Solar”.
John, can you please write down that big number for me so we know what we are dealing with? Wouldn’t you prefer to get as much of that money back into your pocket as possible? So over the next 10 years, you’ll be paying this amount per month and this much total over the next 30 years. Now below that, I want you right out what you’re getting for that. So, we can see on the bill that for what you’re paying you’re getting 20,000 kWh per year. So those two numbers are what you are paying for it and what you are getting. The goal here is to get as much of that money possible back into your pocket, while still giving you exactly what you need, if not more.
Do you think that’s a good goal, John and Mary? Perfect. (Have the customer write down the AMOUNT they are paying and WHAT they are getting for it)
The customer has engaged and agreed with everything and they want the Problem solved.
Now we transition to the Solution! But before that, BRICK WALL check!
Engage all parties, and squeeze out objections with what you’ve covered so far.
John, are you still with me? Does everything make sense? Mary, you see how I got those numbers? Got that? Perfect.
Once we get this consistent, this whole process up until now should only take 10-20 mins, and we haven’t even STARTED to talk about solar.
The foundation is key to lay out before the Solution.
Solution: Part 1 – Introducing TruPowur Solar and the Solution to the absolute basics – DON’T OVERCOMPLICATE THINGS (KISS Principle)
So, John and Mary, what do you both know about solar? (Customer engagement)
So, I’ll give you some Solar 101: What happens if we install a system that fully integrates into the electrical components of your property, Panels go on your roof. Do you know the band AC/DC? We swap it around, DC to AC! We take DC currents and invert them to AC currents, and AC is what your lights, fridge, and all your appliances use! That’s the food for your property, just to keep your lights on and keep living normally. And that’s as basic as solar is, John and Mary. People tend to make it really confusing, but that really is the basics and how it works.
STAY AWAY FROM BRANDS!
Bringing up brands of panels and inverters only fills the customer’s head with information that doesn’t benefit them and that they never asked for. If you rely on brands to get you sales, you better prepare better because what happens when those brands run out? (LG, a very reputable electronics brand stopped making panels in 2022, and TESLA CEO Elon Musk has publicly said his focus is on EVs and SpaceX, not on solar) Brands don’t get sales. Value gets sales, benefits get sales, and savings get sales.
Unless the customer asks, and a vast majority of customers won’t, don’t bring up the technical information that they don’t care about. Whether the customer knows about the features of the technology or not, they are still going to get them. As long as you have sized them properly, set them up correctly, and are saving them money, then you’re good!
All they need is to know about the benefits and what’s benefiting them!
Give them a BASIC breakdown of solar and then move on to the meat and potatoes of the Solution.
Solution: Part 2 – Peace of Mind and Calm Tonality (Very different from how we approached the Problem with the customer.)
Now we are going to calm them down. We are going to give them Peace of Mind and our Tonality is going to lower. We are going to help them now solve that big, bad problem in front of them and get them where they want to be.
Differentiate yourself from the competition to boost value.
So, John and Mary, what a lot of other companies do and what solar has been in the past was you’d have to put a lot of money down.
We don’t like that, we’re very different.
Here are 3 main reasons why we are different: our equipment, our warranty, and our service.
This is how the equipment works: there are different grades and different tiers. You have your Walmart panels, the panels that go on RVs and the DIY projects, and obviously, these are not meant for residential properties and powering entire homes.
Secondly, you have midgrade panels, and obviously, they will last for a bit, but if they are mids there will be issues down the road.
What we use are Tier 1, high-grade, commercial-grade panels for our installations. We do this because we don’t like to leave anything to chance, and we also give a 30-year warranty on production and everything in between. So, if we are going to give you that warranty, we better be sure we are giving you the best stuff, we are going to be losing out on warranty calls. The way your warranty works is, it’s a full production warranty. Your panels are guaranteed not to drop below a certain production over a certain period of time.
(Simplify and condense your offer – too many benefits can decrease the value of your offer as a whole. Don’t go too deep into warranties because it will bog down the customer – all they want is Peace of Mind)
As for our service, the last thing you want is some random guys getting on your roof. All of our installers are certified electricians by trade or engineers by career who really know what they are doing and are going to treat you right. (Throw assumptive phrases throughout your pitch to gear the customer towards already thinking about the installation).
When we do get your installation done, feel free to watch! It’s really cool to see the process of how they set it up, they’re masters of the craft!
They are there to set your system up to save as much money as possible and make your life as easy as possible.
So, John and Mary, do you have any questions about that equipment?
Squeeze out any objections after each section. Don’t backpedal later answering questions about a previous section.
The next step when talking about our Solution is showing them what we are going to be doing for them – the system and system size – and what it’s going to produce for them.
Present the basics of your solution – System Size and Production.
Ok, guys, what we have here is a predesigned system and this is what it looks like.
What it is is a 20-kilowatt system, and it has a certain amount of production that it’s going to be giving you every single year.
Now, John and Mary, you see how on your piece of paper there you noticed how your utility company is giving you 20,000 kWh a year. And that’s to keep your lights on, keep you guys happy, just to keep everything normal as to what you’re doing right now. The system that we’ve designed for you here, what it’s actually going to do for you is it’s going to be providing 21,000 kWh every single year.
Now in that 2nd column, Mary, could you please write down that number? So, besides that 20,000 kWh in the first column, write down the 21,000 kWh in the 2nd column.
Do you have that down there? Perfect. Now do you guys notice how solar is actually more than what the utility is providing? Do you guys know why that would be?
What we like to do is set you up for a cushion that allows for you to be covered, even on the worst days or when the inlaws come over and stay for a month or two. We want to make sure that we are giving you even more than the Utility Company, for that little cushion, so that way you don’t get hit with some nasty high utility bills when you have solar and you’re ALWAYS covered. And that is really the goal here. Now, do those numbers make sense, John and Mary?
Objection Squeeze – they have some numbers in front of them, but not all of them. We are about to get into them. This is important to set the infrastructure. They have 3 numbers written down on that paper now: The price they are paying the utility company, the product of what they are getting from the utility company, and now they have the production of the solar system. They can see clearly side by side that the solar system is giving them more. NOW they have Peace of Mind that solar is going to be good or better for them than staying on the utility company. In their head, they are wondering “Is the solar going to be more money? Is that why it’s producing more?” this is exactly what we want before going into the close and getting pen to paper!
But first, BRICKWALL check! Squeeze out any objections about anything you brought up to this point! REALLY IMPORTANT – Next thing you will go over is the nitty gritty numbers, go for the close. The ace up your sleeve is the monthly solar payment, and you DO NOT WANT any solar, bill, equipment, or problem-related questions muddying up that water.
You might have finance-related questions, but that’s fine.
HARD BRICKWALL – for yourself and your customers before transitioning into the close.
So, John and Mary, with everything I’ve gone over so far do you guys understand the production and see how that works?
Do you guys understand the equipment and all that?
Understand the warranty?
Any questions about the Utility Rate increases? Anything we have gone over up to this point?
LISTEN to their tonality and identify if they have any hidden objections. Once you’ve gotten out everything and addressed all objections, it’s time for the close!
The Close – When referring to solar, never use the words price, cost, or payments. Use the term “Let me show you what your monthly is going to be for solar.” Put the Cost and Price on the Utility Company, put the Savings and the Benefits on solar.”
Summarize – briefly go over all the numbers they have written down.
John and Mary, just to summarize what we have on that piece of paper and just so you understand everything: We have what you’re going to be paying to the Utility Company starting next month on average, and what you’re getting for that. Then, we have your solar over the exact same period of time, and now I’m going to be going over what that solar monthly is going to be. Before I do, I want you to know this includes everything we have gone over. Your warranties, your super high-grade equipment, this number NEVER increases, you’ll get amazing service, WiFi monitoring, and you have my beautiful voice to listen to every step of the way! So, just to remind you, you guys are paying your $200 a month to the Utility Company on average and you guys are getting 20,000 kWh per year. Your Solar is going to be giving you 21,000 kWh per year, but it’s only going to be $175 per month. (Silence. Listen to and read the customer)
John and Mary, do you see the difference here? You’re actually getting more power for a lot less money every single month. Do those numbers make sense to you?
Do you understand what’s going on there?
(Get an engagement and a “Yes” out of them. The customer might have questions at this point and that is fine, so long as you clear all the previous solar/equipment/problem, etc. questions out prior to the close.) So your utility bill right now is $200 on average, and that’s going to be going down to $175. Those savings are guaranteed for the next 30 years.
WHENEVER YOU SPEAK ABOUT SOLAR MONTHLY FIGURES – ALWAYS REFER TO IT AS SAVINGS.
You might get the objection: “How long do I pay this for?” It’s important to handle this properly. Focus on the savings and use apples to apples – whenever the solar amount is brought up, make sure to compare it to the higher Utility Bill in the same sentence. If you ONLY say the solar monthly when they ask you a question, they will start to think of it as an additional bill.
If you use the term “Cost” instead of savings, they will have more objections. “What happens if we move and the new homeowners don’t want it?” – This objection is because solar is being presented as a cost, and it’s stereotypical for customers to come back at us with that. If you use it as a “Savings” for 30 years, who wouldn’t want that?
They could try to bait you and ask, “Ok, so the solar is $175 a month?”
How do you respond? DO NOT say, “Yes, the solar is $175 a month.” They will see it as an extra bill, and that’s NOT what solar is. ALWAYS apples to apples in the same sentence. A great response is:
“So, John and Mary, currently on average you’re paying $200 and getting 20,000 kWh. Your solar savings goes down to $175, and you get 21,000 kWh. You get that savings right from day one, and that’s locked in so it NEVER increases. Does that make sense?”
Never answer an objection without following up with a question. If you stop talking, the customer will feel the need to ask another question even if they don’t have one. Get that “Does that make sense?” out of them. SQUEEZE OUT ANY FINAL OBJECTIONS – THEN Shoot for the close.
Go STRAIGHT for the close, no hesitation. No more wasting time, going over benefits, or thinking they need more time to make a decision. They’ve been Pre-Closing themselves the entire time, time to TAKE CONTROL.
Request them to do an actionable item that is attached to them going solar and implies they are moving ahead. Be assumptive. They have agreed multiple times through this call that they want to save money. Be assumptive with the close moving forward.
John, your name is on the deed and the title, is that right?
Perfect, John, do you have your Driver’s License on you? I just need your Date of Birth and I’ll get this sorted out for you right now.
Or
Mary, Your name is on the utility bill here, correct?
Great, does that match the name on the Home Owners Insurance? Perfect, Mary, I just need that and I’ll get this sorted out for you right now.
CLOSE SUMMARY – Present the number clearly as possible Squeeze out the objections
Repeat until all objections are cleared Request an actionable item.
No Soft Closing allowed! Soft closing stems from a lack of confidence and belief in your product or presentation.
We NEED sticky deals and happy customers. Don’t give them the reality in which they don’t want to save money. You have built up the value, the benefits, and the customer’s impulse.
This is the BEST time to close and for them to move forward. Not in 10 mins, not in an hour, not in a day or a week.
NOW! You, the expert, are there to help them make that decision.
THIS MUST BE PRACTICED!
MAKE SURE TO GET THE FOLLOWING:
- A Full Copy of the Utility Bill (the Customer can log into their utility account and download a copy)
- Signed Documents/Agreements NEM Signed
- Homeowners Insurance Declaration page Any other necessary documents
- Site Survey Scheduled
- Site Survey Pictures (If the customer does a virtual site survey)
Do not move on or disconnect with the customer until you have all of these, don’t leave anything up to the customer.
Rehash
Cool down the customer after the sale to make them feel comfortable with the decision they just made.
Use assumptive language and future talk on the installation. Listen to their tonality and engagement at the very end of the close to catch any last-minute objections.
When the installation happens the guys are great, you’re going to love them! We are going to take care of everything for you, all your permits and engineering. You just need to sit back and wait for the install. You can have a watch when they come and install the system, It’s Amazing watching them work! It’s really cool seeing them set up the panels and watching them integrate into your property!
Fall back into rapport building to make the customer feel comfortable with the close.