“Growing Pains”: The 5 Footfalls of Growing a Solar Company

The solar industry is growing, and yet for anyone who has been paying attention, solar companies continue to fail. Although the reasons vary, for those who are struggling to survive, there are five common footfalls that each fall into. In this article, we are going to look at these five common footfalls and showcase how you can avoid them to foster a growing solar company.

1. Subsidy Reliance

Solar subsidies have been the crutch of the solar industry for years, and for solar companies, reliance on these subsidies has been a huge footfall. Governments come and go, but solid business and succession planning is necessary to ensure your company will be able to grow even without residential or commercial subsidies driving business. With proper marketing and an attentive business plan, your company will prosper with or without the aid of subsidies to the end user.

2. Financial Dependence

No matter if you are looking at your next project, or currently finishing up with one, the finances that surround solar investment are often cited as one of the greatest footfalls. Financial companies are more than willing to help with investments, but without proper financial planning and a solid backing, you could run out of the very money that is driving your investment. Make sure to have your money sorted with a proper budget and fall backs if needed, and your company should be able to flourish.

3. Inexperience

The solar industry is ripe for investment, but often the men and women who are running solar companies lack the business experience to prosper in today’s competitive world. Bringing in an experienced hand can do wonders for overcoming this footfall. Whether it is assisting in dealing with accounting or simply helping with your business planning, this hired help will help foster your company’s growth over years rather than weeks.

4. The Struggle to Scale

There is no perfect recipe for scaling a company, but many growing solar companies struggle with scaling and face a massive footfall in this regard. Scaling is important as it means your company can move from serving single homes to servicing an entire community of solar homes. Business planning and proper recruitment practices will help smooth out scaling growing pains and should alleviate any potential footfalls.

5. Source of Supply

The solar industry is always adapting and innovating, but that means that your company always needs to have the latest and greatest to offer to clients. Many solar companies struggle with footfalls in terms of their source to supply, and this is completely avoidable. First, you should invest in supply chain management training or software, to track your suppliers, and ensure that you have access to the very panels or equipment you need. Secondly, you should look at diversifying your suppliers to ensure you are not reliant on only one player in your area. With diversication and supply chain management tools, you will be well on your way to avoid the footfalls that come with struggling with the source of supply.

The possibilities are endless, and the solar industry is leading the innovation charge in solar generation, batteries, portable energy, desalination and transportation.