The good news for the consumer is the that the large national solar installer and sales companies have taken all the low hanging fruit customers and have found they are no longer competitive with their sales model in the subsequent market. Thus, better pricing, dependable installations and service after the sale.
Fact not opinion. Those large companies by nature produced less reliable systems. They subcontracted all the work, they had so much work so quickly that their vetting process, (of their subcontracted installers) became woefully inadequate. Their warranties and sales conduct were not first rate. Their customer service deteriorated as they did more business. Additionally, they quite often were looking to set a client up with a lease loan economic model whereby most of the profit went to them, and the homeowner was marginalized into just being a site on which they could install a money producing energy system!
To sell and install a solar installation to a residential customer is basically a job ideally suited for a medium-sized licensed residential home contractor. It is a construction project of medium-size, which must be individualized for each and every homeowner. It incurs a huge amount of responsibility, and thus requires intensive planning and oversight. Furthermore, the ongoing maintenance on one of the systems is minimal, but, it does require timely response from the installer/guarantor.(Making us the ideal vehicle for the implementation of the best economics combined with highest dependability and customer service).
So now this void can be filled by people and companies better qualified to do it. Residential installs in Massachusetts were down (, I believe it is around 25%), in 2017. Though it was a confluence of factors regarding incentives and availability of materials, one of the main reasons for this drop was that the large corporations bowed out. How will we reach these people who would’ve done solar when contacted through the (sun run or solar city sales model) marketing machine of those large companies?
How do we reach these numerous lucky consumers who will experience much improved economics now that they will be having their systems installed through more localized contractors?
And can we find all the castaways? People who were told that the economics of solar didn’t work for their property. That their roof was angled the wrong way or their socioeconomic factors weren’t good enough! (as we’ve all seen, the reason so many were “disqualified” for solar was solely based on the fact that those companies only wanted the ripest and lowest hanging fruit). Absolute tragedy/crime!!! (You all know my feelings that for once the government did everything right and they provided everything imaginable to get solar on peoples rooftop so they can receive a little respite from their hardships of living on fixed incomes. And then these guys decide that they can’t be bothered because the profit margins not large enough!.. sorry, I was going to leave that rant out… But let’s find those people and make this right.
We at Harvest Sun Solar have been and are continuing to fill this void as we go forward. We don’t just want to be successful and earn a good living. We are looking for precisely these kinds of opportunities because our mandate is to put up more and better solar in a way that increases the economic benefits to the end consumer.
The better the benefits, the more people who can take advantage of solar, and the more young families and others who are on fixed incomes can benefit from something that they should be able to benefit from! These are the people who need it the most anyway! Let’s work to find ways to continue to reach them and allow them to join in the economic benefits of free energy! We are in the age of Science Fiction! All the electrical power we will ever need is now free for our personal use! All anyone now needs is the equipment to capture it.
Once again, I want to look back on my year and see the people that have been helped. That makes my best way forward. I want you guys to experience this also. Seeing is believing, it’s amazing how well my life works when it’s based on good works…
