As energy prices increase and prospective homeowners gain an interest in solar energy, construction businesses must put plans in place for new construction solar. Here are just a few ways to prepare your business to deal with the burgeoning solar market.
Be Ready with a Marketing Plan
It’s no surprise to homeowners that solar is a significant added expense. When they’re looking at a housing market with already high prices for single-family homes, adding 15k to 40k onto the cost can be a bit much to swallow. That’s why you must have a solid marketing plan to help prospective buyers see the benefit, not just the cost of solar. What do you need to share with your prospects?
Potential Savings
If you’re going to ask home buyers to invest anywhere from 15k to 40k on top of a median price of 350k for a new single-family home, they’ll have to be shown why. Potential savings information goes a long way in helping them realize that, over the long run, their investment will more than pay off. Run the numbers for averages in the area with regards to typical lifetime energy costs.
Demonstrate the average monthly expense that can be saved, while being sure they understand that every household is different. Run numbers far ahead of your meeting with a prospective buyer so you can approach the conversation with facts and figures with concrete advice on their potential return on investment. If they can see that they’ll recoup that investment in six to twelve years, they’ll be far more likely to make the upfront payment and close the deal.
Resale Value
The resale value for solar is a huge selling point with potential homeowners, especially in markets with traditionally high energy costs. While many homeowners are looking for their permanent dwelling place, they also know things can change. At some point, most homeowners will want to move or downsize, requiring them to sell. When it comes time, every advantage they can leverage that will increase their asking price is seen as a plus. Solar offers a phenomenal ROI, not just during the life of homeownership, but during the resell process, as well. Emphasize this point to help potential homeowners see the long-term value in adding solar to new construction homes.
Environmentally Friendly
Not only does the option of solar appeal to potential homebuyers due to the saved expense, but it also appeals on another level – its eco-friendly nature. Going green and contributing to the health of our planet is important to a wide variety of home buyers, and millennials are leading the charge when it comes to living an eco-friendly lifestyle.
Make it a point that solar panels have a long lifespan, and once they no longer function, the entire panel can be recycled. The ability to save money and save the planet at the same time will hold a significant appeal to the next generation of home buyers.
Help Them Visualize
In addition to your marketing plan, you’ll need to be ready with information, brochures, and software that will help your interested customers visualize what their future home would look like with solar. As much as the cost savings and eco-friendly nature of solar panels will appeal to them, there is still a measure of vanity. Ensuring that their house will look just as beautiful as they imagine could be an essential part of the process with some clients.
Using 3D software, show them a rendering of their home, where the panels will be placed, and what their home will look like with the panels. You can also use 3D programs to demonstrate how much sun the panels will get each day, where potential shade issues will be, and the complete 360-degree view of their house from any angle. Give the buyer as much visual clarity as possible so they can make an informed purchase, and you’ll have a customer that signs on the dotted line with confidence.
