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Is Solar Sales a Good Job: No

is solar sales a good job, US SolarReport,

Is Solar Sales a Good Job: No, unless you like being free help. I know this isn’t what many people want to hear but it’s the truth. Solar sales is like car sales, except it’s probably worse.

Lets start out by acknowledging that it’s not a job in the traditional sense, it’s a business. Most solar companies’ use the same model which is all that sales reps and sales managers are 1099. Which by definition is an independent contractor, not an employee. So anybody considering working in solar sales business might want to read this entire article.

This article is based on my actual experience as a sales rep for a company that did in excess of 18 million dollars in 2018. I was also the company’s IT manager so I dealt with all the different departments.

As most of the sales reps, I was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed preparing for a bright future in the solar industry. That bright future turned dismal pretty darn quick. The following was my experience working as a home solar closer.

A certain amount of denial is involved because a salesperson knows they’re a 1099 contractor, not an employee. Yet many of us will behave like we have a job, but we don’t, we have a solar business. A successful business requires an investment to have a chance and selling solar is no different.

It doesn’t take long before you are facing a situation of how to pay your bills and on the job expenses? You need leads desperately and then they present to you how great the door to door reps are doing. I know, you didn’t sign up for door-to-door sales but the industry doesn’t thrive without leads. Many new sales reps have a little nest egg and so they are willing to buy leads, that would be me.

Buying Leads Is A Bad Idea

So how does buying leads workout? I got straight out ripped off for a quick $1000! You know what a solar lead is, a phone number to call, and nothing more and nothing less. Suckers buy leads! They literally send you contact information that’s recycled to every person that bought leads.

One lead has a pack of wolves calling them morning night and day. Then the guy that sold me the leads got mad at me for providing a less than a stellar online review. Literally the only phone-call I ever got from him was to tell me I was wrong for leaving a bad review! Lead generators can be bigger con-artists than solar companies are with few exceptions.

They’ll Hire Anybody Because You’re No Cost To Them

The reason why solar companies are so generous with commissions is that you are free labor. They don’t pay out one penny for the salespeople until after the sale. The salespeople, solar panels, and installation are not paid for until the finance company has funded the solar company’s account. After the money arrives from the finance company the customer is at a point of no return, they can’t back out of the deal.

The solar company is not paying for the salesperson, the customer is. Most solar companies operate using the same structure because they don’t lay out any money for anything until after the sale is final.
Many solar companies are a mouse on a wheel because they start out underfunded, but they create an aura of great success. Every salesperson wants to believe If the company is successful then I will be successful but we really do not know if a company is successful.

Solar companies make their money off of everybody else’s efforts with very little risk of their own. The owners are very good at making you feel like they’re doing you some kind of favor. The reality is they’re not doing anybody any favors and nor do they plan to. Why should they, when they’re making a profit from little effort of their own.

They Dangle A Carrot Because We Chase It!

Most solar companies have two carrots they love to dangle with one being quite obvious, Call In Leads! The other is more psychological, they use the biggest producers as an example of how rich you are going to get. What they don’t tell you is they are the very best in the sales industry and are fed the deals because they close! Then this seasoned professional twenty years in the making says you can do it too and we believe it!

Companies Use The Oldest Technique In The Book “Churn and Burn”

Solar Companies’ Salespeople Are Free Help because they don’t care if you come in or go. What I have described in this article shines a spotlight on one thing more than any other. Solar sales is a very stressful way to make a living but not for the solar companies. The system they use is known in the car industry as “Churn and Burn”. They know when they make you think you have a job you will push very hard in the beginning. They also know after somebody does get a good commission check, they might not show up for a while. But the thing they know better than anything is you will burnout!

In the beginning, they are looking for salespeople who are homeowners with a line of friends and family. Even if you don’t own a house your friends and family want to support you in your new job, so they are easy appointments to land. They send in their best to close the deal and give you half of the commission. These companies take advantage of every single situation you have from the beginning.

After they wash out you, your friends, and family they let you fade away like a sunset. So you know what it costs them to replace you, nothing, Next! At the end of the day, Solar Companies’ Salespeople Are Free Help!