In our last blog post we wrote about what jobs exist in the solar industry and introduced to you the 3 job positions and professions that we think are the “core” of every solar business that focus on selling and building solar systems for private and commercial use.

With this new Blog-Post, we would like to introduce you to the 3 more jobs we think could be interesting to help you to decide if there is something that fits your interest and skills.

The three jobs we would like to introduce to you a little bit more detailed are:

    • Sales
    • Costumer Support
    • Solar Design / Solar Drafts Man

But as these Jobs need some deeper and longer explanation, we decided to divide them and will upload every week one job discription for the next 2 weeks.

Lets start with the position in Sales

We know that the solar industry is a growing market as in the future many people will invest their money in a solar system to become either more eco-friendly or being more independent from electricity providers. So, we think that becoming a sales person or targeting a career as a sales person within the solar industry is a very attractive position with high potential of growth in the near future

 

As Dimitri Akhrin has written in his Forbes online article from 27th of January 2021:

“ Sales roles in the solar industry are often advertised with salaries at more than $100,000 per year, and it is quite feasible to get to this kind of salary, even in a remote setting.“

Even, if his article is related to the American market and a prediction of yearly wages over there, it is not unrealistic to say, that if you like doing sales and you are successful you will get bonus payments (in addition to your regular monthly salary) in Small and Medium sized companies as well.

 

And if some of you are saying to yourself right now: “Oh no, that is nothing for me. I don´t want to sell things to people” or “I am not good at selling things to people” – take one thing in consideration: you are not selling stupid stuff that nobody needs. You are playing your part in energy transition, contributing to battle climate change and also, bringing electricity to areas where there is no electricity at all. Dimitri Akhrin wrote more about this point in his article, so I would like to refer to him, when I say: You do something that has a value and contributes to a wonderful bigger goal.

 

But let’s dive in on what hard and soft skills you need to have, or you must develop to become a successful sales person in the solar industry.

Hard-Skills

When it comes to hard skills it is not easy to give you the one true information here. We won´t tell you that you need a Bachelor or Master Degree in Finances or Marketing to get a Sales position within a solar company – of course these things can help and give you a higher chance to get you job position in big companies but the one thing that counts most is your inner and deep conviction that you do something that is rewarding, that you love selling solar systems to people and that you love doing sales overall. Of course, when it comes to bigger companies in the solar industry, they often request that you have an B.A. or M.A. in Finances or Marketing to get a job in the Sales department. But if you have very good knowledge about the products and technical data – you can also consider a lateral entry into the sales department.

So, when we speak of hard-skills the one thing you really need is an overview of the solar industry itself and deeper knowledge about the products you will sell. Therefore, you should join trainings or classes that give you information on these topics or research on products by searching the websites of the producers yourself. It is important that you can speak with confidence (and profound knowledge) about the products you will sell.

 

Soft-Skills

When it comes to soft-skills it is much easier to tell what you need. There are many websites you can research on the top tips of skills you need to be successful in sales so we only will name some, that we think are very important when it comes to the solar industry:

As the day of a sales person is fast paced and you have to talk or write very much and sometimes it can become also hectic and stressful for example when potential customers are very close to buying but at the end you are not able to close the deal, then this job can be frustrating as well. Therefore, you need a cool and relaxed mind and the ability to not take things personally.

Also, great interpersonal skills are a must have when it comes to Sales. This not only means that you are able to easily get in touch with people – here you need to be able to listen really carefully to what your costumer wants. And then you have to be a “quick thinker” because sometimes you need to change the offer you were working on to the costumer as he or she suddenly changes his mind to a bigger or smaller product.

Next to that you must be able to translate difficult technical terms to the costumer who has no idea of a solar system. Here you need to be able to advertise things that are related to investing in a solar system such as: becoming independent from unstable and very expensive electricity providers as well as that the costumer can save a lot of money in the long run when he/she decides to buy the solar system etc.

Furthermore you must be very good in written and oral languages, either your mother tongue or the language you will do the sales in. It is not only that you need to know how to write and speak correctly but also that you know how to articulate yourself very well.

 

There are much more Skills you need or should consider to acquire; therefore, we would like to recommend to have a look at the following blog called sales blog, who gives you even more information all around the sales topic.

 

One thing that is important to mention though: If you are thinking of becoming and Entrepreneur and start your own solar business – you shouldn´t be shying away from sales.

 

As always, if you have any questions please write to blog[at]maxx-energy.co.za and let´s talk about it!