One of the great aspects of residential solar is the people – people from all walks of life, careers, backgrounds and personalities. Anyone who owns a home with an electric bill over $100 per month could benefit by switching to solar. The opportunity to meet a diverse crowd of homeowners is always entertaining since every meeting is different. Choosing only 7 customers from diverse backgrounds was extremely hard to do. I’ve selected the following 7 customers to highlight because in my opinion they deserve an honorable, professional shout-out for their uniqueness and service to our communities.
THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE
One of my very first customers was, by far, one of the most interesting people. His name is Dr. Robert Wood, a retired engineer, to whom I initially explained he didn’t qualify since his electric bill was under $100. He was still curious as to the benefits of solar, so I ordered his roof top analysis and scheduling his solar consultation. At the meeting we got to know Dr. Wood, assess his solar needs, sign him up for aptly sized system that will offset his electric costs. After the meeting he insisted on showing us a couple of his books. Come to find out, Dr. Wood has written several books on ETs and UFOs (yes, extra-terrestrials and unidentified flying objects)! He explained that he had witnessed interesting things that inspired him to write these books and share his experiences with the public. He has included the official government documents in his books which discuss the cover up of ETs now known as EBE’s extra-terrestrial biological entities and reverse engineering of UFOs or more recently classified as UAPs unidentified arial phenomena. Everyone has their own opinions on the subject of whether we are alone in this universe or not, but The Truth is out there, he says!
UTILITY EMPLOYEES
Over my career I have helped several Southern Californian Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric employees. Through their dedicated work they quite literally keep the lights on for all of us. That said, this type of customer is interesting because it seems like a contradiction: Why would a utility employee go solar? Doesn’t solar challenge the Utility business model, or don’t they get free electricity or something along those lines? No, utility employees don’t get free electricity, but they do get a discount as a part of their benefits package. However, even with a discount, solar is still more economical than buying power from their employer. These customers are very educated on how Investor-Owned Utilities charge their customers with ambiguous and ever-increasing costs. Therefore, they require less education on solar and see the benefits faster than most. If that is not irony, I’m not sure what it is!
TEACHERS
I’m sure we can all remember some of our favorite school teachers. Teachers make huge sacrifices to devote their time and energy to the next generation, sometimes disproportionate to compensation. For them, solar is a way to reduce their monthly costs. I always enjoy meeting with teachers – they are always curious to learn, and it’s one of those rare opportunities to teach teachers something new. It’s my way of giving back to those that give so much to our communities!
POLICE & FIREMEN
These are our local heroes who risk their lives on a daily basis without enough recognition for their efforts. They deserve a shout-out of appreciation! Police and Fire professionals always have interesting on-the- job stories about saving a life or having a close call themselves. Being on government salaries like teachers, they are often looking to save money and stretch their budgets, too. I have the utmost respect for these individuals and it’s my honor to serve them for a change!
MARTIAL ARTS TANGO MASTER?
Have you ever met someone who claimed to have 20 black-belts? Well, meet Pedro Rabino who started martial arts before martial arts was cool. Pedro completely took over the solar meeting with colorful stories of his life mastering martial arts around the world. Once where he met Bruce Lee and accordingly to Pedro, Bruce actually asked to borrow one of his moves for a movie. This move was later used in Return of the Dragon. Another story he was studying a new style of martial arts down in Argentina. While he was there, he was introduced to the top Tango dancer at the time. They hit it off and he learned all the Argentinian Tango moves in one afternoon he said. He related it to martial arts katas or forms that can be hundreds of moves in sequences. So tango was relatively easy for him to learn. He now teaches both Martial arts and Tango at his school Tango Expressions. I was fascinated by all his stories and actually interested to learn tango from him. At the end of the meeting, he decided to hold off on solar for now. I haven’t given up on Pedro to go solar, but I have been to his Tango Class and he’s legitimately a master of his Arts.
HEALTHCARE WORKERS
A huge amount of gratitude to the healthcare workers for their sacrifices, hard work, dedication and compassion during the difficult times of the pandemic. These are people who live to serve others, they deserve our thanks and admiration. One of my customers who recently got a system is a nurse and during the first part of the Covid Pandemic said there was not sufficient mask or PPP to go around and worried about bringing the virus home to the family. I just so happen to have extra N95 Mask that I had purchased during the last CA Wildfires that I used for outdoor Marketing. Of course, I donated them to my customer. They were grateful and I was glad I was able to help them in more ways than one. They love the Solar savings and Kinetico clean water system.
ROCKSTARS
Referrals are the best compliment any professional can receive and a huge part of growing a successful solar business. This customer came to me as a referral from a customer I had signed up previously. Upon arriving at their home, I proceeded to set up at the kitchen table and got ready to explain the benefits of solar. I had noticed the dining table was very artistic with the inscription ‘LIVE’ on the corner of the table. This was such a statement piece in the room, I couldn’t help but to comment on it. The customer stopped the solar presentation and said, “follow me.” He took me down the staircase and showed me walls that were entirely covered with mounted platinum and gold records and pictures of him on the cover of Rolling Stone Magazine. He then introduced himself as Chad Gracey the drummer for “Live” one of the most legendary 90s rock bands. I told him I was a huge fan and had listened to his music a lot throughout high school. We hit it off and now he has solar on his roof. I was star-struck, and he deserves this shout-out for his talent and music that left an impact on entire generations!
Over the last 10yrs, it’s been an incredible journey and an honor to advise people on the benefits of solar energy. While I’m personally fulfilled knowing that I am part of the clean energy movement, the best part of it all is the connections and the relationships that I’ve built along the way.
If you feel you’re paying too much for electricity, we invite you to schedule your complimentary energy evaluation. We look forward to meeting you!
Written By Dan Nachreiner Founder Flex Advisers