I’m going to sound like a broken record. In fact maybe I should just pull out one of my previous articles from the archives. It’s going to be a rant.
As Amber Rudd announced details of the government’s ‘consultations’ around changes to FiT accreditation and support for solar PV, the industry was already facing other challenges of our own making.
We are all aspiring for a mature, secure solar industry, with a backbone of quality and assured energy generation. We want PV to be recognised as a viable long-term option. Yet here I am, preparing for another pre-FiT degression boom because our industry sales teams just can’t help but create a panic and cash-in on the short-lived furore.
Have a good look at your sales people, because if you don’t have a contingency now, and they’re using one trick to win the business, then they’ll struggle to adapt to change and you will feel it.
The message should be that solar continues to be a much better option than money in the bank, that it enables someone with the right roof to take control of their energy expenditure and to join the many hundreds-of-thousands of solar homes who will benefit from quality installations for many years to come.
Your teams should be able to upsell quality products which suit a particular site, which offer long-term security and warranty support. If they’re selling on price alone, or on a finance deal, then they’re unlikely to be providing you with a sustainable business. I’m at the Renewables Roadshows through September and at SEUK in October, if you want to share your own experiences with me come find me on the Zenex stand.