The Tough Realities of Marketing and Sales in Green Tech Businesses
Download The Tough Realities of Marketing and Sales in Green Tech Businesses and learn:• How to build a business that transforms your customers’ lives• What’s involved in identifying your true target market• Why the existence of the Internet doesn’t imply all markets are mass-markets – and that targeted, rifle-shot marketing is no longer valid
• How to identify the 1000 people in the world that are most influential for your business
• How to position your business around an idea that is beneficial to your customers’ lives
• The proper role of database development and customer relationship Management (CRM)
• Cost-effective methods for generating demand
• Understanding the ideal sales process, and generating revenue<
Be sure to leave your comments below about “The Tough Realities of Marketing and Sales in Green Tech Businesses.”
Craig,
You’re spot-on; the company I work for licenses and develops run-of-river hydro, the process to get a FERC license is arduous and expensive however considering the rush to incorporate renewables in our energy portfolio and considering the current economy, RoR is an excellent option. Marketing this generation source is very difficult due in part to the nexus thay comes with suggesting that folks mess with their water supply even though it’s a non-consumptive use.
The company has tried mass mailing with no results; since I’m an independent consultant working on commission only I’ve taken on the task of marketing RoR and culinary micro hydro myself, though I’ve not seen your outline before it is very similar to the approach I’m taking.
Food for thought: There is the potential for 50,000Mw’s of small hydro in the U.S. without building any new dams; in fact in many cases the inclusion of hydro on a facility improves the aquatic live. This figure (50,000) does not include the numerous opportunities for communities to take advantage of their culinary water systems where they may have tremendous head pressures that have to be reduced with PRV’s (pressure reducing valves) which could be exchanged for micro-hydro generation technology without harming their systems. Even better is the fact that this energy is quite stable base power and can back-feed the grid.
Thanks for your insight on marketing; I will present this to the bosses and hopefully they will see the light.
Garth
We heard of Banks looking to lend business money to create the products.Yes now I wonder something.If a business comes up with a new idea and it works how many people can buy the product. If it is a savings to the consumer with our banks not truly lending to B-C-paper how will we do business as usual?
If our business to business clients are to depend on monthly payments from consumers.
If we no longer come up with a new concept of lending to b c d paper how will products be made?
Just a thought?
I thought the report was very valuable in recognizing the changes in Marketing and Sales that have occurred over the last several decades and the way to reach the targeted audience. I agree with the shifts identified as a marketing and sales professional for the last 30yrs. Please continue with your work. Thank you, Steve
Would certainly like to understand the difficulties in marketing / selling any Renewable Energy Device.
Hello Craig, your title mentions sales, yet you only briefly mention sales on the last page of your article. This is not to chastise you, but to point out the pervasive neglect of strategic sales management among many, many green energy firms. (This neglect pervades even at leading business schools, who frequently bundle marketing and sales together, when in fact they are quite different skills and professions.)
Sure, the VCs and angels won’t fund anything without a demonstrated sales plan, but the many smaller firms that are not equity funded tend to upgrade (at best) their marketing collateral without taking a serious look at their sales activities, or lack thereof. Companies (even clean tech start-ups) develop a compelling technology, create a great website, and expect sales to roll in. These well-intentioned founders and managers believe simply in the ‘if we build it, they will come’ business philosophy. Yet, as you elude, in the ‘old days’, you could ‘hang out a shingle’ and launch your business. I suggest that Web 2.0 ‘shingles’ are no more effective (or marginally at best) in closing energy sales as ‘brick and mortar’ signage.
Sure ‘Web 2.0’ methods may help in prospecting, getting leads, and providing information, but what real impact do they have in the consultative sales relationships required for complex sales such as green energy solutions? Marketing in any form is an important part of the supporting collateral for sales, but even the best Web 2.0 strategies will not close complex sales.
Example: We recently did a needs analysis and proposal for a prospective customer that installs solar systems on residential and commercial buildings. Their website is decent enough, as is their printed collateral, yet the company has no sales management system. Reps are hired without any assessment, training or ongoing (weekly) sales management support and coaching. There is no sales culture, and no practice of proven sales techniques. Scattered research, No sales ‘funnels’, no appointment setting tactics, no closing skills. At best, 15% of their sales reps are performing (that is closing sales). The rest are BROKE (and living at their parents’ homes). The company is missing out on great sales opportunities.
Using proven sales management techniques, this company could easily double their sales and build their business.
Our solutions: Create a sales culture and drive performance by using proven sales techniques. Their options: (1.) Hire a sales manager, or (2.) Hire our company to Assess, Train, and Manage their outside sales reps.
In closing, perhaps we should write a short article that addresses sales management needs and opportunities for renewable energy and energy efficiency companies? Thoughts?
Excellent points. I do have some work from earlier in my career that I could update and publish on this subject. In particular, my team and I did a great deal of “sales process consulting,” helping clients develop proposal templates, pull together case studies and customer testimonials, crete sales planning guides, shoot effective videos, and perform “win/loss” analysis, understanding the various elements of the process that may be particularly strong or weak.
I’d also be happy to publish your stuff. Please feel free to post anything you feel may be of service to readers.
Thanks again for the astute and well-written comment.
Craig has done a good job. I have some other comments. First of all, marketing and sales are multi-dimensional. First, you the founder, need to do a marketing and sales job to convince people around you, that you have something. Then with a small team in place, you need to market and sell your ideas to potential investors while at the same time start your marketing work on your product and understand what your potential customers have to say about it. You must LISTEN, not just talk to them. Then you must go back and re-examine your product concept, critically. If your customer does not want it, then you must change it to meet their needs. Or even redefine your customer if what they want is not possible. But even with all of this done. we are in tough economic times. Most alternative energy products are hard sells since the current status quo is often lower cost than what you are offering. If the Government steps in and offers incentives to buy it, that is only a short term correction, because once the Government decides to stop subsidies, your business will dry up. Investors should understand and know that.
Another item that I face in my customer data base is that my customers are typically older adults, whether they are fleet managers or retirees and do not use the Internet as much as younger people. They want to see the real product, touch it, feel it, drive it. This is old school for sure, but that is what they want. Listen and learn from your customers, because they are who you need to write you a check.
Nice and concise. No disagreement with your points.
The database of contacts is a trickier proposition these days. Most things of interest will immediately fall into regulatory territory. FInding the exact nature of the process and the bureaucrats that must be wooed is becoming somewhat magical these days. How many times have we heard the story that all the paperwork was filed, but it is somehow in regulatory limbo, or even worse, has been denied by the Office of XXX that you didn’t even know existed?
Second point is more of a reminder. One might identify one’s market with precision, but then always ask the question if this is a true market, or merely a hopeful launchpad. To use your chicken eggs example, there’s about 200 in the entire country that matter, and then you are done. Not a market. Just a good start.
Good to hear from you, Arlene. But I’m not so sure you’re right here. If I had 7- and 8-figure capital equipment deals with a large number of the top 200 chicken farms in the US — plus maintenance contracts and a small percentage of the energy off-take going forward, I would consider that quite an exciting business. That, btw, is what I’m trying to engineer for them (and me).
Craig-The Green economy is growing in a lot of desperate pieces and a core need is still lacking. That need is the ability to store intermittent natural energy, once converted to electricity, so it can be concentrated and released at a later date. Batteries, flywheels, pumped water storage, compressed air storage etc have been successfully developed at certain locations and in small sizes. HySolGenics, Inc. is developing low cost electrolyzers (EL series) and portable hydrogen refueling stations (M2-HFS series), which will enable anyone who wishes to store solar or wind or micro-hydro generated electrical energy as hydrogen and recover it through hydrogen fuel cells. Currently there is no “hydrogen economy” for a simple reason, there is no readily available hydrogen. People don’t want fuel (do you sleep with a gas can under your pillow?) They want the benefits that fuel can produce, such as heating, cooling, lighting, communications, mobility and power assist. We market our hydrogen fuel generators along with a fleet of hydrogen fueled devices so that the customer can enjoy h,c,l,m,c & pa with the added benefits of quiet, zero pollution and zero green house gases from consuming low cost hydrogen fuel. We are trying to find those 1,000 critical people, both investors and customers, that can make this idea grow into a profitable business and one which can contribute to the planet instead of detract from it.
John Gotthold-CTO
HySolGenics, Inc.
7011 Realm Drive, Suite A4
San Jose, CA 95119
TEL: 408-224-5100
email: john@hysolgenics.com
web: http://www.hysolgenics.com