CASE STUDY · COMMERCIAL SOLAR INSTALLER · 4 MIN READ
Solar Sense: Why a 31-Year-Old Installer Wants Every Appointment Confirmed Before the Drive
- Solar Sense in business
- 31 years
- Solar Sense in business
- working with our team
- ~3 months
- working with our team
- most of the sites so far
- 30 to 50kW
- most of the sites so far
- how far his reps can drive
- 2 to 3 hrs
- how far his reps can drive
In short
Solar Sense has been in solar for 31 years. It started mostly in domestic and now focuses on commercial work, with clients that include Tesco, Windsor Castle and the Crown Estate, and a recently won schools tender in South Gloucestershire. Warren, its head of sales, has taken leads from TNW Marketing, the team behind Solar Surveys UK, for about three months. What matters most to him is that appointments are confirmed just before his reps set off, because they can be driving two or three hours. Most sites so far are 30kW to 50kW, and the volume has grown enough to bring more reps onto the leads.
31 years in, now focused on commercial
Warren is in his twelfth year at Solar Sense, which has "been around 31 years". It "started off a lot in domestic", and still has a small domestic division, "but our main focus is commercial."
The client list is wide: retail names such as Tesco, engineering, manufacturing and food businesses, systems of two to three megawatts, work at Windsor Castle and on the Crown Estate, and schools. In Warren's words, "We just recently won the whole South Gloss tender."
Confirmed before the drive
Solar Sense's reps cover a lot of ground, and a wasted trip costs most of a day. That is the difference Warren picks out:
our guys could be driving two, three hours to get to an appointment and get, then the guy doesn't know anything about it.
Our team books the appointment, gathers more information, then confirms it again just before the visit. His past experience of lead providers was the opposite: some wanted "money up front and promising all the leads", and "weren't really giving us genuine, proper leads and getting the correct information". Solar Sense dropped them.
If your own team travels far, the confirmation call and the detail on the lead do the same job as a pre-visit check. The commercial solar survey checklist lists what to confirm before you set off.
How the leads arrive: WhatsApp and the portal
New leads come on WhatsApp, and Warren finds them "quite explanatory". He also rates the support from our team online: "their response has been very good."
The portal helps the office as much as the sales team: "we know what's going on and that's really good if, for my lady in the office, she can control everything from the portal as well." For a company with several reps, one place for every booking keeps the diary straight.
System sizes so far, and adding reps
The sites so far have mostly been "between 30, 30, 40, 50, somewhere around there", with the occasional bigger one: "they're more sub sixties at the moment". Systems of that size need a G99 connection application rather than G98; our G99 application guide and G98 explained show where the line falls.
The volume has grown: "It definitely seems to be scaling up." Solar Sense started with Warren on the leads, then added "a couple more reps in as well."
On paying only for attended appointments, Warren said: "That's a much better approachable way for us to work." You only pay for appointments that are actually attended, and any that aren't viable we replace.
- Q: In terms of our sort of performance based approach, paying for the attended appointments do you think that's scalable for a company like yours?
- Warren: Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. That's a much better approachable way for us to work.
The full interview is in the video above. TNW Marketing's own write-up of Warren's interview is on tnwmarketing.com. More installers talk about their leads in our case studies and on the reviews page.
Solar Sense case study: FAQ
Who is Solar Sense?
A solar company that has been in business for 31 years. It started mostly in domestic and now focuses on commercial, with clients including Tesco, Windsor Castle and the Crown Estate, and a recently won schools tender in South Gloucestershire.
What size are Solar Sense's appointments?
Warren says most have been around 30kW to 50kW, with the occasional bigger one, and mostly under 60kW so far.
Why does Solar Sense value confirmed appointments?
Its reps can drive two or three hours to reach a site. Warren says confirming the appointment just before they go helps a lot, because the person they meet knows why they are there.
Does Solar Sense think paying for attended appointments works?
Yes. Asked whether it is scalable for a company like his, Warren said: "Yeah, absolutely. That's a much better approachable way for us to work."
Related guides
- Commercial solar survey checklist
What to confirm before, during and after the site visit.
- G99 application
Who submits it, the forms, the DNO steps, fees and timescales.
- G98 explained for installers
The 16A-per-phase limit, notify vs apply, the forms, and when you need G99.
- How to sell commercial solar
From booked survey to signed contract: process, proposal, objections.
- How much do commercial solar leads cost?
Pricing by system size, the maths on a lead and a buyer's checklist.
- All case studies
Installers on video, and what they got.
- Commercial solar leads
Survey appointments with business owners, booked for you.
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Commercial solar survey appointments with business owners near you. Look at as many as you like, and only pay for appointments that are actually attended.