When it comes to commercial solar, many market leaders are believing that the space is too folded, the industries too varied and the application process is too complex to get mass acceptance. They are wrong. Stimulate COmmercial Solar is indeed a challenging transition, but it can be done with the help of the success of residential solar energy as a model to be followed.
To be clear, even residential solar energy was not always easy or popular. For years, traditional banks offered loans for home improvement for solar investments, but the recording was slow. Banks had neither the expertise nor the sales focus. What is worse, when homeowners showed an interest in investing in solar energy, the loan application technology was so slow and dated that many potential buyers were simply deposited.
Momentum shifted around 2010 when homeowners started to see that the monthly financing costs of solar energy could actually be less – in most cases, 20 to 40% less – than their current utility bill. The sales pitch became as simple as: “Do you want to save money every month?”
Silicon Valley FIntechs took the following critical step by introducing well -considered platforms with which homeowners could enter their personal information and received a safe approval of the loan within a few minutes. No more paper documents, no long waiting and a real game changer.
Commercial solar energy can benefit from the same lessons. The market opportunities for commercial is clear and huge. Less than 5% of the commercial roofs currently have solar energy. Just consider all naked, sun -drenched roofs of every shopping square or industrial complex. And just like residential, commercial solar -solar offers large cost savings to business owners – stimulating both profit and margins for users. Which company does not like to save money?
But that’s where the comparison ends. Nowadays, the standard commercial financing process is far too awkward. It was built for a small segment of commercial developers, not most solar installers. For example, the process requires that business owners detect extensive financial documentation – from profit and loss declarations to balance sheet and tax returns – to get financing approval.
Between the regulations, taxes and finding talent, owners of small companies have no time to chase documents that go back for years. Even the smallest amount of homework can derail a transaction.
That challenge is the chance of the industry.
Commercial solar
In contrast to residential, commercial projects are not a cookie cutter. The commercial landscape includes everything, from a local small company to developments in the field of utilities, from production facilities to community farms for the community. That is why the industry calls it the ‘messy center’.
But if we segment projects in pre-defined measurements, industries and business types, lenders can develop tailor-made, out-of-the-box financing solutions for each group. Owners of small companies could quickly see the investment and savings without having to jump through a million hoops – and an approval wait for them.
In other words, the owners of small companies could buy solar energy, just like a homeowner.
To make the process even easier, commercial solar lenders must start to endorse solar generals based on the personal credit of business owners. This step would drastically reduce the headache of the loan application for everyone. For example, Unethos is already in line with the endorsement of loans up to $ 350,000, simply based on the personal credit of the business owner. This amount includes a huge strip of the addressable small commercial solar market. And the approval process is almost direct and paperwork free, just like residential.
This logical approach becomes a blessing for the commercial solar industry. It will have all the right market -friendly incentives to take tangible steps in the fight against climate change. And the most important thing is that owners of small companies will save money on their utilities and have more resources to invest in growing their business. It is a win-win.
The tree in residential solar energy did not happen at night. The same applies to the approaching growth of the commercial. But by simplifying the process and introducing smart financing technology, we can hang a new sign on the door for commercial solar energy: now open to things.
