Claiming Your Time in the Sun: How to Embrace Solar Energy as a Contractor

By Cass Jacoby, RCS Reporter. 

Increased demand for solar energy allows contractors to enter a completely new market get ahead by entering the solar market early. 

There has been much buzz surrounding the opportunity solar energy presents for contractors to diversify business and bring in new revenue. Offering solar energy is a great way to scale your business while at the same time setting it apart from your competitors.  

Demand for solar energy has been steadily increasing over the years, with interest in solar installations jumping to 21% in the first few months of 2020, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BloombergNEF) research. Yet, a wide-scale leap of faith into offering residential solar photovoltaics (PV) installation still hasn't happened.   

This shift is taking place so slowly because the average asphalt roof will need to be replaced sooner than the solar system that it lies under. The installer does not complete 20% of residential solar energy jobs because, at the time of install, the home needs a new roof. The average life of a residential PV system is 20-30 years. At the same time, most asphalt roofs only have a lifespan of 20 years. Hence, a roof often needs to be redone entirely before putting on solar panels. A roofing contractor is much more capable when it comes to these aspects of the solar install process because a roofer knows how to determine the roof's age. Most solar companies can't undertake a project because they don't have the specialization to age the roof or repair it to complete the install. This is why selling and installing solar yourself is a more efficient and simpler process.  

Here is how to enter the solar market and create a solar company in small steps according to Pete Cleveland, VP of the solar business, EagleView. 

Starting small: selling leads  

Start within the solar industry by selling leads to a partner. Ask the homeowner if they have considered solar, then sell that lead to a solar installer. As a roofer, you know the age of the roof, which makes your lead more valuable than any other to solar installers. You can sell these simple leads (roof age and customer contact information) to generate additional revenue and create multiple new leads.    

Likewise, you can sell a convinced homeowner to a partner by securing a qualified lead. In this instance, you would ensure the homeowner is in an excellent position to go solar, and the homeowner has expressed interest. A qualified lead is more thorough, including information like their qualification for a solar federal tax credit, buying motivation, electric utility name and some amount of usage info, and the age of the roof.   

A benefit of bringing solar leads to solar installers is that, in turn, they will bring roofing leads to you. Both companies benefit and work on improving the relationship even further. Building relationships will be a crucial part of your strategy to gain the experience and connections necessary to adding solar as a part of your services.  

Starting to sell PV systems  

Here, you can start selling actual PV systems and letting a third party do the installation. This will gain you more revenue while developing a close partnership with a solar installer.   

The big overhaul: selling and installing the system yourself  

You will have built your solar company at this stage, which is a huge undertaking, but highly profitable. As you learn more and become more experienced in the industry, you will start to gain more significant revenue streams. Consider educational programs and certification from the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners to guarantee the safe installation, operation and maintenance of solar panels. 

A contractor can offer the homeowner a new roof plus a PV system while offering a financing plan covering both, streamlining the process of the customer having solar installed and scaling your business.  With so much clear opportunity and the apparent need for roofing expertise in solar installs, more contractors should be entering the solar market.   

Stay up to date with the latest roofing industry news when you sign up for the RCS Week in Roofing e-news.