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An enthused and encouraging golf caddie taught a solar business owner everything he needed to know about exceptional customer service.
Trevor Sumner, co-founder and president of Milwaukee-based Sun Badger Solar, said the young man walked alongside him and shared his enthusiasm. "That's the gold standard for customer service," he said. "I was excited to be out on the course and had a good time. But I was more excited because he was also enjoying himself."
It crystallized the experience Trevor aims to provide his customers: one in which they feel supported, heard, and confident about their purchases.
It's working: since Trevor and his brother-in-law started the company in 2018, Sun Badger has evolved into a full-service solar installer offering what customers describe as a "perfect blend of performance, quality, and return on investment."
"The 'set it and forget it' myth is a big one for me," Trevor said. Solar products are no different than anything else, and "stuff breaks."
He said it buys the company credibility to acknowledge that reality and explain its commitment to post-installation excellence. When a problem arises, he said the company's partnership with Seattle-based Omnidian delivers a plan to fix it.
In this fourth episode of our Beyond O&M: The Future of Solar series, Trevor talks about how Sun Badger leveraged its relationship with Omnidian to grow his company from four employees to 112 in five years.
Omnidian enables Sun Badger to be proactive. "Rather than say 'don't worry about it,' we say, 'Here's what will happen when something breaks, or there are issues. These are the steps Sun Badger will take' or 'This is the process to make things right,'" he explained.
Sun Badger provides solar photovoltaic (PV) systems and "the best customer experience," including education, design, and application for state and federal rebates to commercial and residential customers in Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
The company got its name from the mascot at Trevor's alma mater, the University of Wisconsin-Madison. "We knew that we would have a Midwest focus. So from a brand recognition perspective, it seemed like a good fit," he said, adding the mammal is also known for its strength and intelligence.
A big part of intelligence is the ability to recognize your weaknesses. "Sun Badger isn't good at service work — not really. It's not our focus, and we'd be doing customers a disservice to try to make it our priority," he said.
Traditionally, there's a lack of focus on post-installation customer experience in the solar industry. Sun Badger wanted to improve it, so it partnered with Omnidian to provide a structured process with a Performance Guarantee.
Omnidian operates software platforms that monitor and remotely diagnose problems relating to the performance of solar assets.
"Omnidian provides consistent, easy-to-digest reports on fleet performance and supports our organizational valuation," Trevor said. The partnership enables Sun Badger to keep its promise to monitor its customers' solar arrays consistently and proactively.
Trevor said the company didn't have the resources to do it alone.
"From a process business standpoint, Omnidian provides a buffer between Sun Badger and its customers post-install. If I can be frank, it allows us to separate or gain some distance from the responsibility to provide post-installation service and support," he said.
Sun Badger contracts with the customer and provides a quality solar installation. "That is our primary focus. We want to have a positive customer experience and maintain relationships. What that buffer from Omndian does is allow us to set ourselves off to the side, give ourselves some breathing room or some leverage that if a service issue comes up, we're not the ones who are going to take the flack, so to speak. We're not going to be the first call, and the customer is first going to call Omnidian," Trevor said.
Trevor thinks post-installation services and support will be
differentiating factors for The Future of Solar. Expanded consumer options will lead to more customers, which he sees as incredibly exciting.
I invite you to listen to the full podcast to learn more about how Sun Badger is leveraging its relationship with Omnidian, which is partnering with SunCast to bring you this six-part series. You can check out the series and the experts who comprise it at: www.mysuncast.com/futureofsolar.
ABOUT THE HOST OF SUNCAST:
Nico Johnson is the creator and host of SunCast, consistently rated a top solar podcast in the clean energy sector. The content of the show is geared towards listeners looking for insights on where the markets are headed, how to position themselves or their companies, and what today's market leaders do to stay ahead of the pack.
Nico is an Investor, Executive Coach, and 16-year veteran of the solar industry, having led development in the US and Latin America for global companies like Trina Solar and Conergy.
You can connect with Nico Johnson on Twitter, LinkedIn or email.
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