Transcript
Speaker: Welcome to the Solarpreneur Podcast, where we teach you to take your solar business to the next level.
Speaker: My name is Taylor Armstrong.
Speaker: I went from $50 in my bank account and struggling for groceries to closing 150 deals in a year and cracking the code on why sales reps fell.
Speaker: I teach you how to avoid the mistakes I made and bring in the top solar dogs of the industry to let you in on the secrets of generating more leads, falling up like a pro, and closing more deals.
Speaker: What is a solopreneur, you might ask?
Speaker: A solopreneur is a new breed of solopro that is willing to do whatever it takes to achieve mastery, and you are about to become one.
Speaker: Okay, what's going on, solopreneurs?
Speaker: I'm super stoked for today's episode because we have someone that has been on the podcast, not one, but he's coming on for a second time now.
Speaker: So we got the one, the only Matt Crowther on.
Speaker: Hopefully you remember him.
Speaker: Matt, thanks for coming back with us on the show here.
Speaker: Absolutely.
Speaker: Hey, solarpreneurs, are you sick and tired of spinning your wheels every month and not seeing your cells increase?
Speaker: Well, so was I. And the truth is, I was never able to improve it until I figured out what was going wrong.
Speaker: So that's why I'm excited to announce for a limited time, we are doing a free cells diagnostic.
Speaker: We'll break down your cells process.
Speaker: Figure out the holes in your business and see how we can help you improve.
Speaker: So at now, we have six bucks for this month.
Speaker: So book a call now.
Speaker: Don't miss out.
Speaker: What you're going to do is send an email to taylor at solarpreneurs.com.
Speaker: That's taylor at solarpreneurs with an S dot com.
Speaker: I'll send you out a calendar link and we will figure out the time that works best.
Speaker: So shoot that email and let's increase your sales.
Speaker: Yeah, I'm excited for it, and it's been, what, two years now, I guess?
Speaker: Yep, two years since the last podcast that we did.
Speaker: Yeah, yeah, well, hopefully we can one-up the first one, but the first one was pretty good, so we'll see what comes out of this, but I'm excited.
Speaker: So what's new in the past two years, man?
Speaker: You know, just life has been a little bit busy, a little bit crazy, but all good things, and I'm
Speaker: going harder at solar than ever before lately.
Speaker: Well, yeah, I've been seeing you close deals galore and out there in the heat and see your little office check-ins every day out there in the office on the doors, right?
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Well, you know, like the thing that's cool about door-to-door sales is that you're able to keep that consistency there.
Speaker: But then I also do quite a bit of referral business too.
Speaker: So I'm, you know, kind of doing half and half.
Speaker: And lately, especially the past year, like 2021, 2021, 2022, both years have been, you know, I would say pretty equal for the results that I've been getting even in the doors.
Speaker: you know knocking uh i'm in one zip code now for four years holy so i've just stayed there and it just keeps feeding more and more installs so yeah uh this year 20 out of the 40 installs that i'm at so far for this year are are from that little neighborhood wow that's crazy
Speaker: Yeah, that's something I've realized about you, Sunrun guys, is you tend to stay, is that kind of like a company thing, you think?
Speaker: Just stay in an area as long as possible.
Speaker: Well, it's like you stay put just because, especially with door-to-door, a lot of business is going to come later.
Speaker: It's going to come later on, like down the road, and so because of that, it's...
Speaker: It just, you become someone who they've never seen before if you're there six months or 12 months later.
Speaker: And in my case, like years later, I can say, hey, I was here before COVID and people are like, what?
Speaker: You know, so that's actually served me really well.
Speaker: And I'll have people that will finally just kind of say, okay, let's do it.
Speaker: It's almost like I just wear them down and tell them.
Speaker: The point where they finally say, okay, let's just do the solar thing.
Speaker: I remember, I can't remember me.
Speaker: We were talking about this at door to door con, but you told me someone that you had been to their house.
Speaker: I don't know.
Speaker: I think told me like six or seven times.
Speaker: You finally went back and you're like, look, man, almost every one of your neighbors have done this.
Speaker: I'll give you a thousand bucks.
Speaker: Let's just make this happen.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: The right story.
Speaker: Yep.
Speaker: That was that was on a cul-de-sac where literally nine out of ten of the neighbors had all gone with me.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: In the cul-de-sac.
Speaker: So the whole cul-de-sac except for this one guy.
Speaker: And I just went and said, hey, man, literally nine out of ten of these houses switched to solar with me.
Speaker: So it's time.
Speaker: And gave him a big cash incentive, and he finally did it.
Speaker: That's awesome.
Speaker: That was a good streak for me.
Speaker: Yeah, that's good stuff.
Speaker: Well, no.
Speaker: So today, last episode, we talked, you know, your background and everything we got in your story.
Speaker: So if you want to hear Matt's background and how he came from Cutco and all that, go listen to his first episode and hear that.
Speaker: But today, I wanted to dive into, you know, just mindset, referrals with you.
Speaker: And I know you've, you get, what would you say percentage of your business comes from referrals right now, Matt?
Speaker: At this point, I would say it's 60 to 70%.
Speaker: I think per year, it kind of fluctuates.
Speaker: I just got to 700 installs in my career.
Speaker: Nice, congrats.
Speaker: So that was between multiple companies, because I've been in five states doing solar.
Speaker: So, yeah.
Speaker: know started in colorado and then went to new york then texas then arizona then california so uh i just like ran the numbers just today and i'm just over 700 uh in the past 10 years my 10-year anniversary is january of this upcoming year wow man you're like a old man jenkins and silver now forever exactly
Speaker: Yeah, and it's cool having that background and having so much...
Speaker: of the history of just seeing solar evolve and doing it in different markets.
Speaker: I think that that's really benefited me over the long term.
Speaker: Yeah, for sure.
Speaker: And something I wanted to ask you before we jump into kind of your referral stuff and gem on that is when we first did the podcast, you guys were Vivint Solar.
Speaker: Now, obviously, you're Sunrun.
Speaker: So I wanted to hear your perspective on that.
Speaker: What was it like going through the big change?
Speaker: Just a vivid solar to sun running.
Speaker: Was it rocky or I don't know, you got any juicy details or what was your experience with that?
Speaker: Yeah, no, it was definitely a, it was a transition for sure.
Speaker: You know, it definitely, I would say it took a little bit of a toll just, just on getting everything situated.
Speaker: But, you know, I think that, you know, one of the things I've learned from going to door to door con and these different events where, you know,
Speaker: there's all these different companies there.
Speaker: I'm just a fan of solar in general.
Speaker: I just want to help people win no matter what company they're in.
Speaker: And I think that when you kind of find the right group or you find the right culture, stick with it.
Speaker: Stay there.
Speaker: Don't be jumping around from company to company.
Speaker: And I did that for a number of years, but now I'm coming up on
Speaker: five, almost six years here, Vivint Solar, now Sunrun Direct.
Speaker: And I think that that's been a huge benefit, just, you know, staying put and you're able to just build something and, you know, not have to feel the, you know, okay, well, am I going to be here a year from now?
Speaker: And I think that that also really throws off just...
Speaker: you know, your momentum and your, your mindset when you're not sure if you're going to be there longterm.
Speaker: So like, I know that's a little off topic, but I know a lot of people that they couldn't really handle the ups and downs and they ended up going to a different company or whatever.
Speaker: And that's fine.
Speaker: You know, there's,
Speaker: there's a ton of different solar companies and I think that there's a lot of successful solar companies.
Speaker: For me, I've loved the culture where I'm at and, and especially with my office, like building that team up and, you know, we've, we've got almost a hundred reps in our office in Riverside now.
Speaker: So it's, it's been cool, like helping that office grow and seeing it grow over the past several years.
Speaker: Yeah, 100%.
Speaker: And, yeah, like you said, I definitely agree with that.
Speaker: When you're jumping around, every time I've switched companies personally, there's always been this, like, usually two-, three-month period where I'm, like, kind of, like, on the fence.
Speaker: Am I leaving?
Speaker: Am I staying?
Speaker: What's going on?
Speaker: And every single time, my cells have suffered because of it just because it's, like, a mindset thing.
Speaker: It's like, I don't know.
Speaker: Like you don't have the full belief in the company you're selling with and all that.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: I did a training on this the other day.
Speaker: And I think that there's really just two things that it takes to be successful in solar vision and confidence.
Speaker: And, you know, like I think that's probably any sales job in general.
Speaker: But like.
Speaker: having a long-term vision as well as like a vision for what you want in your life, as well as confidence in yourself, in your abilities, and then confidence in your company and in the product that you promote and the company that you represent.
Speaker: Like all of that stuff adds up.
Speaker: And if you don't have those things completely dialed in, then you're never going to reach your full potential.
Speaker: You'll always be capped.
Speaker: Yeah, I agree for sure.
Speaker: So, yeah, I mean, for those listening, that's something to keep in mind either.
Speaker: I would say just probably we'd probably both agree on this, but either, you know, commit to the situation you're in and just make it better or, you know, get out and get in a new situation where you can have that full confidence and can go all in.
Speaker: Because if you're just sitting on the fence for months and months, I mean, I've seen reps do this for like a year where they don't know.
Speaker: totally like on the fence and they're not like confident in their company and then they barely produce so it's like either just leave and go all in and you know whatever opportunity you think is the best fit for you so yeah and there's also a ton that comes into committing right like when you're committed everything is easier your job is easier you
Speaker: your personal life, your life at home, all of that is easier because there's just not resistance.
Speaker: Where when you're kind of 50-50 and you're not fully committed to what you're doing and why you're doing it,
Speaker: that's where people start kind of thinking, oh, well, maybe there is a better opportunity or maybe this isn't for me.
Speaker: And solar is hard.
Speaker: Solar sales is very difficult.
Speaker: It's challenging.
Speaker: And even 10 years later, it still is hard.
Speaker: But it's one of those things that it's worth it once you figure it out.
Speaker: And I do quite a few interviews now where we're interviewing people, bringing people into our team.
Speaker: And I'll always ask people, like, you know, what's your long-term vision?
Speaker: Like, what do you really want?
Speaker: And then I'll say, well, this is probably going to be the hardest job you've ever had, but it'll also be the most rewarding job you've ever had if you can get to the good part.
Speaker: If you can push through the learning curve of the beginning to get to where it really starts picking up pace, that's where you get to life-changing money, life-changing opportunity.
Speaker: Yeah, I agree.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Definitely.
Speaker: Yeah, it's an awesome topic.
Speaker: You know, just sticking with it.
Speaker: And yeah, I think there's really, that I've seen, it's like anyone that fails is this.
Speaker: They're just the ones that quit.
Speaker: Exactly.
Speaker: And it's like, I mean, where else can you make this money besides selling drugs or something, you know?
Speaker: Literally.
Speaker: And I tell people that all the time.
Speaker: It's like,
Speaker: you know, it may not be this good forever, but I think that we've at least got three to five more years, maybe five to 10 more years where it'll be this good in California.
Speaker: And so,
Speaker: Not every state is going to have exactly what California has because California rates are just insane and they just get crazier and crazier with these rate hikes.
Speaker: But like anywhere that you're doing solar, there's opportunity.
Speaker: And anywhere that you really dig your feet into, you're going to be able to be successful.
Speaker: You just have to commit.
Speaker: Yeah, definitely.
Speaker: And something else.
Speaker: At the time we're recording this Q4 2022, you probably have heard, you know, rates going up with the lenders and all that.
Speaker: And I mean, I'm sure it's affected Sunrun a little bit, too.
Speaker: So what have you guys been noticing with that?
Speaker: Or have you had to adjust like sell higher or make any adjustments as these rates have been changing and everything?
Speaker: Yeah, yeah, a little bit here and there.
Speaker: Like, I'm primarily PPA for what I sell in the market.
Speaker: Like, I'll probably be about 20% loan and then 80% PPA.
Speaker: And I just, I think that the PPA in California is a great buy.
Speaker: And I think that it makes sense for people instead of taking on a loan, like a lot of times it
Speaker: really will fit what someone needs.
Speaker: And so that for me has been a game changer because I haven't really had to adjust much.
Speaker: Our escalator went up a bit just because of the rates and the Fed and all that stuff going up, but it wasn't anything drastic.
Speaker: So because of that, I didn't see this huge, massive change, which I'm super grateful for because I know that a lot of people did see that and they felt it.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: I guess that is kind of an advantage of PPA.
Speaker: You don't notice those things as much.
Speaker: Yeah, exactly.
Speaker: Not seeing 2% interest rate jumps.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah, cool.
Speaker: Well, Matt, and so let's jump into your referral stuff here.
Speaker: This is something that I want to be kind of the main nuggets here because you got some fire advice, some fire tips with getting more referrals.
Speaker: And I've personally used a lot of things that you've taught me just in our conversations.
Speaker: And so I'm excited to pick your brain on that.
Speaker: So do you want to lay it out?
Speaker: What is your referral process?
Speaker: Usually like how are you getting 60% of your deals as referrals?
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: So, you know, the thing that I always remind people about when it comes to referrals is that if you're not getting referrals, it's because you just haven't built quite enough trust.
Speaker: with the customer and probably it's because they don't really fully understand your program and what's in it for them.
Speaker: Like how that will actually, how that'll pan out for them and what it looks like because
Speaker: This is the main reason why my referral program is a little bit different than others is everyone knows that for most products, there's going to be a referral bonus, right?
Speaker: Everybody knows, hey, if you refer me to somebody, then you're going to get something.
Speaker: And it's almost with every product across the board, regardless of what it is.
Speaker: It might be a $50 gift card or it might be $200 or whatever.
Speaker: Like every company has something.
Speaker: And so I think that people are used to just, you know, they're used to getting a one-time gift.
Speaker: type of bonus, type of deal.
Speaker: So they know that that exists.
Speaker: They know that that's around.
Speaker: And so if your referral program is, hey, if you talk to someone, if they might be interested, then you'll get 500 bucks.
Speaker: So you'll get a thousand bucks.
Speaker: That's good, but not great because
Speaker: They're already used to that.
Speaker: Like my whole referral program is to find someone that I can work with long term over the next one to two or three years.
Speaker: And to build up really like a partnership together.
Speaker: So and and what I found is only about one out of 10 people that sign up for solar or that sign up with, you know, our program are really going to be interested in it.
Speaker: They're like only one out of 10 people will really run with me and really like want to get involved.
Speaker: But that means that I present the program to every single person.
Speaker: I plant the right seeds with people so that they understand, like, wow, if I send Matt 10 referrals, then I'm going to get a paid vacation.
Speaker: So that's, like, the biggest part of the psychology behind this is that,
Speaker: I don't want to get just one referral from someone.
Speaker: I want to get 20 referrals from someone to get to 10 installs.
Speaker: And I can build that up and really kind of like plant some seeds where I really go deep with people so that, and I do it with a vacation because it's something that everybody can relate to.
Speaker: And it's also something that everybody like
Speaker: Like think about it like this.
Speaker: I'll just kind of take you through my process.
Speaker: So when someone is, when someone's on an amazing vacation,
Speaker: they're usually in a better mood.
Speaker: They're usually kind of stress-free.
Speaker: They're not thinking about all their problems at home or whatever's going on in their life.
Speaker: They're just there.
Speaker: So what I'll do with people is I'll kind of just walk them through that.
Speaker: And for me, I love to travel.
Speaker: That's the reason I do solar and that's the reason I do sales.
Speaker: I've been to 38 countries now.
Speaker: Yeah, so 38 countries, I'm 34.
Speaker: So I try to check a couple off the list every year.
Speaker: My goal is to go to 100 countries before I die.
Speaker: So like, so like I'm on track, you know?
Speaker: And, and so I, and I'm not going to talk about the places I've been or the trips that I've been on with my customers.
Speaker: I'll basically just say, Hey, I love to travel.
Speaker: This is part of the reason why I created this program.
Speaker: But you know, the, the thing that I love about it and, and, and I'm cool with sharing this with anybody like with you, with, with, with anybody that really asks me because I,
Speaker: I believe in abundance.
Speaker: Like I would rather share all my secrets with someone and like see if they get something that really stands out to them and that they love so that then they can start implementing that and having more success.
Speaker: Because I think that creates good karma.
Speaker: I think that that sends something back to me.
Speaker: And so that's why I've always just shared whatever secrets I have.
Speaker: And so going back to kind of this process,
Speaker: I want to get people thinking about the best trip that they've ever been on.
Speaker: And maybe whoever's listening, you can kind of do this with me.
Speaker: So, and I'll actually role play with you.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: So, so that we can, you can like kind of feel the full effect of this.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: So, so Taylor, one of the things that, you know, is just a huge passion of mine is like traveling.
Speaker: And I love going to cool places, planning a really fun trip.
Speaker: Like that's, that's just a huge passion in my life.
Speaker: What, what are a couple of the cool places that you've been?
Speaker: Like, what are your favorite couple destinations that you've ever been to?
Speaker: uh yeah we went to cancun that was really sweet got to see the cenotes and stuff um uh i don't know my my cousin's house in texas it's got this sweet pool yeah nice yeah that's where we like going so any other places other than cancun
Speaker: We went Florida Keys.
Speaker: We went.
Speaker: That was really cool.
Speaker: Some key land pie.
Speaker: Tried 20 different key land pies.
Speaker: Nice.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: So tell me about Cancun.
Speaker: What made that trip so awesome for you?
Speaker: We stayed at this really cool resort.
Speaker: They just had all the food there you can eat and didn't have to worry about anything.
Speaker: And then also included all the retreats or whatever.
Speaker: We could go out to the cenotes.
Speaker: Did you do any snorkeling or anything?
Speaker: Yeah, excursions, snorkeling.
Speaker: Did you go to Chichen Itza?
Speaker: Yeah, yeah, that was cool.
Speaker: Saw those pyramids.
Speaker: Saw those pyramids.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah, and that's awesome.
Speaker: So that was one of your favorite trips.
Speaker: Where's a trip that you want to go to?
Speaker: I guess Europe.
Speaker: We've never been to Europe, so I don't know.
Speaker: That's probably something I'd want to do before I die for sure.
Speaker: Like a Europe trip maybe?
Speaker: Have you already thought about where exactly?
Speaker: Would it be a long trip, like a two-month trip, and you hit –
Speaker: five or six countries or something like that uh that'd be cool i've never done a trip that long but maybe like i don't know at least two weeks and hit quite a few places yeah and stuff in two weeks you could probably at least go to like two or three countries maybe four okay so you know yeah well and and the only reason i ask you that is because you know one of one of my passions is to like make a trip like that happen for you right
Speaker: Nice.
Speaker: And so, so with solar, you've seen so many people switch into solar, right?
Speaker: Like, have you noticed more solar in the past couple years?
Speaker: Oh, yeah.
Speaker: Just in your neighborhood.
Speaker: And definitely, they're kind of pushing that right now in California.
Speaker: And so basically, like,
Speaker: how this would work is if we start working together over the next year, the goal would be to help like one person a month to, to meet with me, talk about solar, see if it's a fit, if it looks good, if it's a good fit, then once they sign up and get their panels, um,
Speaker: then basically you're going to get a cash bonus for that.
Speaker: And then as we go at number 10, I'm going to pay for that vacation for you.
Speaker: Oh, that's pretty cool.
Speaker: Now, I won't maybe pay for the whole thing because if you're going for two or three weeks, but I'll pay, you know, basically up until about $5,000 for it.
Speaker: okay so and and and then i'll kind of talk about you know i've helped 13 people win one of these trips in california
Speaker: So out of hundreds of installs that I've had here, 130 came from 13 people.
Speaker: And actually even more than that.
Speaker: So that's the power of this process.
Speaker: Because like I said, only one out of 10 is going to really want to do this.
Speaker: Only one out of 10 is going to really be invested in it.
Speaker: But once you get them started,
Speaker: then it's almost like something you can't stop.
Speaker: And, you know, I'm happy to pay for that trip for them.
Speaker: Like, I'm super stoked for them.
Speaker: And, you know, I've got pictures from customers that went to Hawaii, to the Philippines, to Mexico.
Speaker: One went to Greece.
Speaker: you know, they've been all over like out of these 13 and and I've got two that are at number nine So I've got two more that they just need one more install to get to their trip So do you do you think that they're gonna stop?
Speaker: No Exactly and I remind them I say hey you got one more like let's let's we just gotta you know work with one more person, you know, so
Speaker: And that guy, his name is Paul, he has been working with me for three years, right?
Speaker: And we're still communicating.
Speaker: We're still texting.
Speaker: We're still, like, in contact because the power of this is that people will not forget about you if this is a real thing that you are offering to pay for their vacation, but also you're invested in it and they're invested in you.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: So it becomes more than just like, hey, give me referrals and you'll get a bonus.
Speaker: It becomes like, let me help you go on this trip.
Speaker: Like, let me help you make this a reality in your life.
Speaker: And I got this one guy.
Speaker: He's at number six.
Speaker: So I have a list, and I keep track of all this.
Speaker: So the one thing about referrals, you have to be super organized.
Speaker: Yeah, for sure.
Speaker: And I think that that's most people's mistake is that they're not organized with referrals.
Speaker: So they just lose track of people, and they lose track of referrals, and they lose track of, you know, just like –
Speaker: I can give you examples of people on my team that they got a referral and then they reached out, no one answered, you know, and then they kind of gave up on that person after a week or two of not getting in touch with them where, like, that's a solid referral.
Speaker: And maybe they changed their mind, who knows what happened, but, like,
Speaker: I'll get in touch with, like, for example, I got a referral earlier this year, back in May.
Speaker: And I texted him, kind of got in contact, and then they were just super busy.
Speaker: And it just kind of was impossible to meet.
Speaker: We finally met last week.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: Finally.
Speaker: And that was almost five months later.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: So that's because it's in my system.
Speaker: It's organized.
Speaker: Like I'm not forgetting about that.
Speaker: And I'm keeping track of who I'm working with as well as my list of how many people have been sent from each person.
Speaker: referral especially my top people okay so when someone gets to five referrals that they've sent to me i'm going to make them a spreadsheet and i'm going to share that spreadsheet with them okay like a google spreadsheet so that they have the spreadsheet it's in their email they can access it and then also i can see it and i can like
Speaker: just screenshot it and i can text it to them and say hey just as a reminder you know you sent over seven people three are installed that means we need seven more for you to earn your trip yeah that's money and then i'm talking about where the trip is going to be so it's not just like some random vacation it is the trip to europe
Speaker: So they tell you that like when you're in the home?
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Yep.
Speaker: When I'm in the house sitting down with them, we're talking about that.
Speaker: And I'm going pretty detailed into it.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: So we're going to talk about their first dream vacation that they've been on.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: puts them in a great mood, kind of gets them thinking about it.
Speaker: And then I'm going to say, what's on your bucket list?
Speaker: Where do you want to go?
Speaker: And this is what I've learned is it's not intrusive.
Speaker: So everyone will share this.
Speaker: Like everyone is happy to tell you where they want to go, what's on their bucket list.
Speaker: There's no weirdness.
Speaker: It's not like, whoa, dude, I don't know you like that.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: It's not like overstepping any bounds.
Speaker: It's pretty much just the right amount of information.
Speaker: And people want to tell you about their dreams.
Speaker: They want to tell you about where they want to go.
Speaker: And so that's why I found that this works like a charm.
Speaker: Some people, they don't want to give you very much, and that's fine.
Speaker: They're not the one out of 10.
Speaker: They're not the 10% that's going to really run with this.
Speaker: And you just know that like nine out of 10 people are not going to be super about it.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: But then you're going to find the one.
Speaker: And and I've got one girl.
Speaker: Her name is Cynthia.
Speaker: And she's almost at 20 referrals.
Speaker: Oh, so she gets two trips after that or?
Speaker: Yeah, I double it for for the cash bonus.
Speaker: It's eight thousand for a number 20.
Speaker: And I've only had a couple people ever get over 20 in my whole career of 10 years.
Speaker: But like Cynthia, she's working on this with me.
Speaker: We are partners.
Speaker: And so I call it my referral partner program because it's not just like some random referral program where they just get some money here and there.
Speaker: It's like let's partner together forever.
Speaker: multiple years.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Like, I don't want to just work with them once and then never hear from them again.
Speaker: I don't want to just sign them up, get paid, and then never talk to them again.
Speaker: Because guess what?
Speaker: They have solar on their roof forever.
Speaker: Like, as long as they live there, it will always be there.
Speaker: And so it's like this reminder and it's this billboard for us.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: So many people, they just don't even follow up after install ever.
Speaker: They never talk to their customers.
Speaker: Like,
Speaker: If you have 100 installs with solar and you're not getting 20, 30 referrals every year just from those 100, then you are missing so much meat on the bone.
Speaker: You're not fully utilizing the resources that you have at your disposal, which our customers and our clients, they are our best resources.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Well, and I think like for me coming from pest control, a lot of the other door to door, it's just like quick sell slamming in and then you forget about it.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: So for so many years, that's how I thought solar was too, is like just get a cell and then cross your fingers.
Speaker: They don't cancel.
Speaker: Don't talk to them after because it's like if you talk to them, maybe more objections will come up.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Right, and that's like the opposite with solar.
Speaker: And so I've done a couple things to make myself more available for people, and it is more time consuming for sure.
Speaker: Like people that get a lot of referrals,
Speaker: you don't understand how much time they're actually spending on those referrals as well as on the backend side.
Speaker: Because, so like for instance, my customer Cynthia, she literally has had a number of issues with her install.
Speaker: Nothing major, just little things that I've had to fix over the past three years.
Speaker: If I would have not actually fixed the problems,
Speaker: would I have ever gotten more referrals from her?
Speaker: No.
Speaker: No way, yeah.
Speaker: No way at all, never.
Speaker: So if you just ignore your customers and if a problem arises and you just say, I'm just gonna let customer service handle that,
Speaker: you're never going to get a referral from that person and it's not going to be long term and if you've started getting referrals then that stops right and so what i've learned is it holds my feet to the fire and it keeps me really honest so that i take care of my customers perfectly yeah any issues that they have i'm the one handling them nice and it's more time on my end but then
Speaker: more referrals come so it kind of like replaces the extra time that i'd have to spend knocking doors or whatever else to get those contacts to get the leads i'm able to really like work with just that one person handle their issues personally they never call customer service nice and then when they start getting checks
Speaker: that's where they're like, okay, this is real.
Speaker: When you drop off the first referral check to someone, that's when they're really gonna get excited to work with you.
Speaker: Before, it's all just like, okay, we'll see.
Speaker: And I tell stories, I tell first person and third person stories to help understand, to help them understand the program and what's gonna happen.
Speaker: So that builds a little credibility.
Speaker: But until I drop off the first check, it's just like, okay, we'll see.
Speaker: But once you drop off that first check and then check number two, three, four, five, as that happens, you're building more and more trust and credibility with every single time you pay that person for their effort.
Speaker: So that's part of kind of my process is like really build a strong relationship with the client and then it's almost like the vacation side of it, you kind of make yourself
Speaker: in irreplaceable part of their life.
Speaker: Like no one else is offering to pay for their vacation next year.
Speaker: Like no one else is doing that except for you.
Speaker: And so if you do it the right way, you'll become great friends with these people.
Speaker: And all of those customers that I've paid for their vacations, we really are great friends.
Speaker: And a lot of them, like I'll go golfing with them or we do dinners or whatever.
Speaker: like we i have a couple customers in my area that all stop by like and almost every week we're hanging out uh chatting like they're making dinner for me unexpected yeah i've seen that on your instagram and stuff yeah eating dinner people's houses yeah i post that stuff and it's just like it just happens it's
Speaker: It's random, but I want to stay a part of their life because people will forget about you if you don't stay on their mind.
Speaker: Definitely.
Speaker: And I've been able to learn how to stay on their mind and also like
Speaker: basically just stay as a part of their lives without overstepping any bounds and without like really making it weird just like it's like hey you know I want to work with you let's let's do this together it's it's awesome it's cool to see and then I tell stories about how it's happened with others and
Speaker: And so like someone that would maybe want to start doing this program, just you can use these stories, right?
Speaker: You can just say our customers, right?
Speaker: Or our clients, like solar as a whole, not even the same company, but like our customers have had this experience with this program, like that type of thing.
Speaker: And I'd love to see more people, you know, kind of utilizing something like this.
Speaker: I think it really,
Speaker: really does make a difference of how you view your business.
Speaker: And it also like keeps you more committed because I know that like there's not an amount of money that could be offered me to change companies at this point.
Speaker: Because if I did that, I would be violating the trust of all of these referral partners that I have where it's like,
Speaker: hey, you know, I thought that you were there.
Speaker: Now it's like a different company would happen.
Speaker: Like, so I want to have total consistency in my life and total consistency in my business.
Speaker: And that's where people and my customers are able to say, wow, okay, cool.
Speaker: Like I can trust this guy.
Speaker: Yeah, that's so cool.
Speaker: Well, yeah, no, it's so cool how you can just build this long-term relationship and really serve them.
Speaker: And if you ever had it happen where it's like someone wasn't a referral partner and then they had an issue come up, you solve the issue super quick, super efficient, and then after that they start giving you referrals after that.
Speaker: Has that ever happened?
Speaker: Absolutely.
Speaker: That is actually how a lot of my top people became referrals
Speaker: So what I call is my A-team.
Speaker: My A-team is the people that either are on track for getting to their vacation, to getting to 10 installs, or they already hit it.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: So, so I've probably got about 10, 15 people that are on the way that are over five installs under 10 installs.
Speaker: And then I've got a lot of people that are like less than five, but more than two.
Speaker: And so I have a list of all this that I keep track of, but my a team, I am constantly like, I'm constantly following up with the people on my a team.
Speaker: And the,
Speaker: And so, yeah, some people, they'll become part of the A-team because, so they don't send me a referral for a year, let's say.
Speaker: Or we're just not really working a lot together.
Speaker: And then something happens, I solve a problem, fix an issue, and then all of a sudden they send me five referrals because they're like, I can trust this person.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: That's awesome.
Speaker: It's all about trust, right?
Speaker: There's a great book, The Speed of Trust by Stephen Covey.
Speaker: And that book, it talks about just like how much power trust actually has in business and how much power, especially like in this type of business, because it's very competitive, right?
Speaker: There's a ton of competitors in our market.
Speaker: And so you have to stand out.
Speaker: You have to do something different.
Speaker: And that's kind of, and then the other thing is when you are referred to people, that appointment, you're getting all this trust just right from the get-go.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: If like people who are listening, you can think about an appointment or a sales presentation that you've been to that was a referral.
Speaker: When you walk into that door, it's a warm door.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: It's a warm appointment compared to like a cold door.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: A hundred percent.
Speaker: Ask yourself, what would you be willing to pay to have all of your doors warm?
Speaker: What would you be willing to pay to have all of your appointments as warm appointments or warmer at least?
Speaker: And that's where you're getting so much trust from the get-go just because their friend referred them to you.
Speaker: And then they're going to refer other people to you because that's what happened with them.
Speaker: So it becomes something that it just kind of cycles.
Speaker: Like I've got one person that I am like 11 layers deep where, and I can see if I can remember this, Lou referred me to Dion.
Speaker: Dion referred me to Andrew.
Speaker: Andrew referred me to Paul, and then Paul referred me to Joe.
Speaker: It literally goes about 11 layers deep, and then Joe referred me to 10 people.
Speaker: Right, so Joe's actually on my A team, and Lou is too, but like, it basically like, Joe's friends and family, they trusted me so much, those were easy sales.
Speaker: When I showed up, they were like, okay, sign me up.
Speaker: Like, Joe told me that I should do this, and that it's like a no-brainer, so just, yeah.
Speaker: And literally, one of those appointments was like 10 minutes.
Speaker: They didn't even want to hear anything.
Speaker: And they got installed a month later.
Speaker: And I was like, okay.
Speaker: And I usually would want to explain a lot more and still go into it just to secure the sale.
Speaker: So one more thing that I'll tell you is in the whole process, you're building credibility and you're building trust throughout this whole process.
Speaker: I'm going to get referral names the first time that I'm meeting with them, but I'm not going to even reach out to those people until after install.
Speaker: All right.
Speaker: Until after their friend is installed, and I'll say something like this, hey, I want to make sure that everything goes perfectly with your solar.
Speaker: No issues.
Speaker: Just make sure that it's all exactly what you want.
Speaker: I lived up to all the promises that I made and that –
Speaker: It's just an easy process, right?
Speaker: So I'm going to make sure that all of that happens.
Speaker: And then your mom, who you mentioned, was looking into solar.
Speaker: Let her know that I'll reach out to her a little bit later.
Speaker: And so then I'm going to follow up after install.
Speaker: Because I don't want to get 20 numbers on that day because there's nothing to do with them at that point.
Speaker: I want to follow up with them after install.
Speaker: their friend is installed so that they don't mess with that install.
Speaker: Because there's all sorts of stuff that can happen where their friend goes and says, hey, no, you should do it this way or this way.
Speaker: Or an uncle says, no, you definitely shouldn't do solar, solar, stupid.
Speaker: Like, there's just all sorts of stuff that can happen.
Speaker: And I want to protect everybody.
Speaker: that sale all the way up until install.
Speaker: So I'll get five names or 10 names, or I'll have a list that I make for myself during the appointment, but I'm not going to actually contact those people until after install.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Interesting.
Speaker: Because I want to make sure that everything is smooth.
Speaker: And then I'll call all five of them the week of install.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: Hey, just to let you know your friend, they just got their panels installed.
Speaker: Just wanted to reach out, give you some info, let you know kind of how this works.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Cause yeah, we were talking just before the recording and that's something that I've been doing is just getting the names and texting them.
Speaker: But I was telling you, I haven't had a ton of success sometimes just cause one night.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: I've even had it happen to where they like block the cell.
Speaker: We're like, Oh no, we went with this company.
Speaker: You check them out before you do anything, before you sign, right after they just signed.
Speaker: I'm like, no, you just signed.
Speaker: Don't be like... Well, and that's what I'm saying.
Speaker: That's kind of a rookie move with, and not saying that that's like...
Speaker: Most people with referrals, they just don't know the process of how to do it the right way, especially with solar.
Speaker: Because this is a one to three month cycle for solar.
Speaker: So because of that, you've got to be super patient.
Speaker: And the patience looks like
Speaker: hey, I'm going to do a great job taking care of you just to let you know there's a thousand solar companies out there, tons of different options that you can go from, but no one is going to take better care of you than I will.
Speaker: Nice.
Speaker: And so I'll say things like that to just, you know, and I'll even say, yeah, and even, you know, other companies will offer different prices, different programs, stuff like that.
Speaker: Just know, like, you're in good hands here.
Speaker: You're getting taken care of.
Speaker: This is a great program.
Speaker: and I'm going to be working with you long-term.
Speaker: You're not going to find another person like me out there.
Speaker: And there's a thousand different companies out there that you could choose from.
Speaker: I know that no one's going to be working with you the way that I will.
Speaker: So you say things like that to just build confidence in you because you,
Speaker: They can read a review of your company and then cancel because of a review, but that rarely happens with me because I'm letting them know, hey, you're working with me directly.
Speaker: You don't call customer service if you have a problem.
Speaker: You call me.
Speaker: This is my cell phone.
Speaker: I will always answer your call and take care of everything that happens.
Speaker: It causes for me to work a lot more with the customer service issues and those type of
Speaker: problems, but when I fix the problems, then I get more referrals.
Speaker: So it actually keeps the pipeline flowing and it keeps volume coming because I'm just constantly there for my customers.
Speaker: And like I said, it's one out of 10 that are gonna be my top key players, the people on my A-team.
Speaker: And so I don't need every single person to be like my dynamite referral partner.
Speaker: I just need one out of 10.
Speaker: So half of it's a numbers game, but just know when you wait to reach out until after.
Speaker: Because once people are installed, they're going to defend their decision.
Speaker: Right after they sign...
Speaker: with you they're still kind of like we'll see right maybe if you're really good they're they're totally set up and like there's no change in their mind but most people they're still a little skeptical right and so that's why i don't want any friends or any people talking to them about it other than what i'm already telling them to expect right
Speaker: So that's why I'm going to reach out after install because then if their friend says, hey, you know, you really shouldn't do it that way, they'll say, no, no, I thought about it.
Speaker: Like, this is how I want to do it.
Speaker: It's a great way.
Speaker: Now they're defending their decision because it's done.
Speaker: It's installed.
Speaker: They really, you know, they're just not going to go backwards.
Speaker: But if you do it before, that's where they're going to be like, oh, well, okay, maybe show me what you got with this other company or whatever.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: So be patient.
Speaker: Like, that's the biggest thing about referrals is you've got to be super patient with it and know that it's a long-term thing.
Speaker: But it's so cool seeing the whole thing play out where – because if this is your career, like, if solar is what you want to be doing long-term, this is your career path.
Speaker: then you can build this over your first two years.
Speaker: No problem.
Speaker: You build it for two years, and then you're set up for the next four to five years.
Speaker: It's totally worth those investments that you put into the referral business for what's going to come later.
Speaker: Yeah, that's fire.
Speaker: Yeah, and yeah, I love that, you know, sincerity you're talking about after the deal, just saying, hey, and like almost bringing up that, yeah, there are a thousand different companies, but I'm going to take care of you better than anyone.
Speaker: Just because I think at times I've just like tried to just push the side and tried to make them think, oh, we're the only company you can't get this from anywhere else.
Speaker: And then sometimes they talk to someone.
Speaker: They're like, oh, wait, other people are doing this type of program too?
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Then, yeah, maybe I should look into other options.
Speaker: Well, and this is the thing.
Speaker: Like, people don't buy your company.
Speaker: They buy you.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: And that's the thing is, like, you've got to sell yourself.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: And really be the only option because there is only one of you.
Speaker: And if you're real and authentic and people can sense that and they can feel it, now you're getting to a new level with them.
Speaker: Now you're going from the salesman.
Speaker: to human being you're going from the salesman and client to two friends yeah right and and you only get there by by breaking the you know basically breaking down the wall every person that you meet with uh in the beginning is going to have their wall up they're going to have their guard up and you've literally got to break through that wall by essentially really being authentic and
Speaker: being real and helping them feel comfortable working with you and talking with you and becoming friends with you compared to just getting the sale.
Speaker: So many people, they sell on a very shallow level.
Speaker: And I usually would prefer to go to a deeper level with people.
Speaker: And that's partly why I use this vacation model is because
Speaker: Like, that's kind of personal, but not that personal.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: So they're opening up about something personal in their life that they wouldn't tell most people, but they're totally fine with talking about it.
Speaker: For sure.
Speaker: So when you do that, you're going to automatically be able to start going to a deeper level with them.
Speaker: And people don't cancel on their friends.
Speaker: Definitely.
Speaker: If it's a friend and they really like you and they want to support you and it's not just like, oh yeah, this random guy knocked on my door and I don't even know who he is or whatever.
Speaker: It's not even about like...
Speaker: talking all about your family and about who you are in your life.
Speaker: It's just about being a real person.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Well, yeah, and I think that prevents canceling because, like, I don't know.
Speaker: I've worked for companies where sometimes they have negative reviews and all that, too, and it's like, okay, if you can make them look at you as a person,
Speaker: Like, hey, look, you see all these negatives?
Speaker: That was because it was a new rep or whatever.
Speaker: But if you're like, hey, you're working with me, it's not going to happen because, look, all those experiences were with someone else.
Speaker: They're not about me, right?
Speaker: Exactly.
Speaker: And so I think that's another thing.
Speaker: It's huge in preventing cancellations.
Speaker: And having personal reviews about yourself, right?
Speaker: So I have a few little reviews or references or, you know, little reviews
Speaker: things that were written from customers that they either sent me or they posted in reviews and and i'll show people hey this is this is what people have said about working with me yeah so it's not about the company it's about you and and when people can trust you now they don't have to second guess it because they're like oh well yeah he's going to take care of me and and you you really need to stand behind what you say yeah right and that's why like
Speaker: My process doesn't work for everyone because if everyone is not that dialed in and that committed to where they're going to be long term, then some of what you're saying might not be fully true.
Speaker: And you might be at a different company in a year, which isn't really fair to them.
Speaker: So that's why I always just tell people, like, stay where you're at.
Speaker: Be, you know, be committed and dig your feet in where you're at because you're going to thank yourself in five years or in 10 years.
Speaker: Because, yeah, the type of money that we make in solar is it's crazy money.
Speaker: it gets fun when when you get really good at this job i know well yeah and what about um so you talked about organization um and that's probably been my biggest struggle like you're saying and i know a lot of people struggle with the organization part so what do you do are you creating like a spreadsheet for each customer how do you like you're like putting it all in the notebook or how do you like keep track of all these and stay organized yeah
Speaker: So basically, I have a Google Doc, a Google spreadsheet for all of my top referral partners that have sent more than five people to me.
Speaker: Some of those people I haven't talked to for a year or two.
Speaker: And they're not my key players.
Speaker: And I'll text them and try to kind of light the flame again here and there just to kind of revitalize it.
Speaker: But...
Speaker: You know, I'm going to work with my top people.
Speaker: And right now I've got about 30 referring partners, 30 people that are referring business consistently.
Speaker: I would say that's every week to every month, 30 people.
Speaker: And then there's another, you know, probably 15 that are like here and there that have sent one or two.
Speaker: But yeah, so I'm nearly about 50, 55 total that are sending business to me.
Speaker: And they're just all in that Google spreadsheet and Google Docs is, or I guess it's Google Sheets is super easy.
Speaker: It does it by the last one that you opened.
Speaker: So like the ones that you're working with the most will be at the top.
Speaker: Okay, of that list.
Speaker: So each one has their own individual.
Speaker: Yep.
Speaker: So you have like hundreds of spreadsheets in there at this point?
Speaker: A hundred.
Speaker: A hundred?
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: And it's just they're there.
Speaker: And then the top most used ones, I'm going through them.
Speaker: And those are just at the top of the list.
Speaker: So there's that.
Speaker: And then I also take a note of all of the new referrals that come in every week.
Speaker: I have a week by week note of referrals received and appointments set.
Speaker: And that's on the doors and referrals.
Speaker: So every week I have a running...
Speaker: running list and that basically just helps me not lose track of people.
Speaker: And I write the date that I received the name and the referral and then I text them.
Speaker: So we were kind of talking about this earlier but
Speaker: Sending a text message, I have found, is the best way to reach out to these referrals.
Speaker: So after you receive a referral, or like in this case, after the neighbor is installed or the friend is installed, that week you're sending the text message to their friend.
Speaker: And basically I'll say something like this.
Speaker: Hey, Lauren, it's Matt from Sunrun.
Speaker: I'm friends with Dave, and he told me that I should reach out.
Speaker: Could we connect for five minutes for a quick phone call today?
Speaker: Does this afternoon work, or is it better after 6 p.m.?
Speaker: Nice.
Speaker: That's it.
Speaker: So you're not calling any people, just a single text like that?
Speaker: I'm texting them just that.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Because it's super easy for them to respond.
Speaker: You want to keep things incredibly easy, especially with brand new people that you're reaching out to.
Speaker: So I literally will typically get a, sure, tonight works.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: And then, like, and sometimes I won't get any response.
Speaker: And if I don't, I'll text them once more in three days.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: And then if I don't get any response, then the next week I'm texting the person that referred me to them.
Speaker: And I'm going to go back to him and say, hey, Dave, just to let you know, I reached out to Lauren.
Speaker: She didn't get back to me.
Speaker: Maybe just check in with her and just see what's going on and if it's cool if I reach out again today.
Speaker: Oh, okay.
Speaker: So I'm never bombarding my referrals or, like, calling or texting way too much.
Speaker: I have a system around that, and it's all – it's just, you know, it's in your phone.
Speaker: So you can see when you texted those people.
Speaker: And what this – and, like, even –
Speaker: even with Cynthia, she just sent me, she sent me someone who I was talking to at the beginning of this year.
Speaker: So that was almost eight months ago.
Speaker: And she kind of went back to her after a phone call with me.
Speaker: So me and Cynthia were like, hey, what's going on?
Speaker: What's new?
Speaker: Like, what are we working on right now?
Speaker: And so like, we're literally like, it's almost like I'm working with her just the same that I work with people on my team.
Speaker: Just kind of like, hey, what's in the pipeline?
Speaker: And so,
Speaker: She went back to her friend and got her on board.
Speaker: And that person that I texted months ago never responded.
Speaker: And then I texted her yesterday and she said, yeah, next week works for a meeting.
Speaker: And I was like, okay, cool.
Speaker: What day?
Speaker: Wednesday.
Speaker: All right.
Speaker: Wednesday could work.
Speaker: I I'm available after seven.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: 7 PM.
Speaker: Send me your address.
Speaker: Address sent appointment done.
Speaker: Wow.
Speaker: Like,
Speaker: And that was just, that was a 10-month wait on that referral.
Speaker: But, like, I wasn't stressed about it.
Speaker: I wasn't thinking about it.
Speaker: It was on the list for her spreadsheet.
Speaker: But it wasn't, like, something that was keeping me up at night.
Speaker: And so...
Speaker: The best way to do it is to really be, you know, having a good relationship with your referral partner.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Because that person is the person that's going to get them on board.
Speaker: I would rather just get one from them that's solid and responds to me and sets up an appointment than 10 phone numbers.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Right?
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Because then I can start with the one, get that one done.
Speaker: They trust me as I'm going through the process.
Speaker: Once I meet with them, hey, Dave, just to let you know, I met with Lauren.
Speaker: It went awesome.
Speaker: She signed up.
Speaker: I'll keep you posted on the next couple steps.
Speaker: So then Dave is like, I can trust this guy.
Speaker: I'm confident in his ability to do this.
Speaker: And then they'll either start, you know, either sending more people over or after it's installed and they get that check, then they're like, okay, this is a process.
Speaker: Like he is good at doing this.
Speaker: It's organized where most people, they like, they don't even like text their referral person back.
Speaker: They don't even like let them know what's going on.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: I let my people know every single step of the way.
Speaker: And so it's not annoying.
Speaker: It's like, hey, let me go to work for you.
Speaker: That's how it feels.
Speaker: That's the vibe.
Speaker: It's not like, hey, I am excited to get paid for getting these referrals installed.
Speaker: It's like, no, let me go to work for you.
Speaker: I'm going to be doing all the heavy lifting and then you're just going to get the checks once they sign up.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: So you're not just asking for like, hey, give me all your friends, neighbors, phone numbers.
Speaker: You're like just saying, hey, only send me someone who you talk to and it's like, exactly reaching out to him.
Speaker: I would rather them have a list for themselves first.
Speaker: And they're working their own list without sharing it all with me.
Speaker: I don't need that.
Speaker: I'd rather them have a list of 20 people that they're working on, and then they send me one when they're ready.
Speaker: And every time they send me one, that person is golden.
Speaker: And so instead of me getting 30 phone numbers from somebody, I'm just going to get one solid name, which turns into an appointment that day.
Speaker: And then, like, they trust me and the trust and credibility just keeps building.
Speaker: And then from there, now they've sent 10 people to me.
Speaker: And now we're in business.
Speaker: Now we're working together.
Speaker: And now they're going to start opening up more and more opportunities in this referral partnership.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Yeah, that's really cool because, yeah, I mean, I was telling you I've been doing the opposite and just getting the names, phone numbers, taking it down.
Speaker: Hey, most people do it that way.
Speaker: And it's not horrible and sometimes it works out, but this is just so much more effective because it's your time.
Speaker: Way more efficient.
Speaker: Way more efficient.
Speaker: And I would rather not even think about someone that isn't ready to meet with me and me chase them.
Speaker: I don't want to text or call someone 10 times when they really aren't even interested in it.
Speaker: And they don't even know what they're interested in.
Speaker: And that's why the process of what you're actually going through with people, it's more like
Speaker: You're basically just letting your referral partner know, hey, don't give them a ton of details.
Speaker: You don't have to go into all the ins and outs of how this works.
Speaker: All that you have to do is say, hey, meet with my guy.
Speaker: I trust him.
Speaker: It's a really cool program.
Speaker: He'll explain everything to you.
Speaker: That's it.
Speaker: That's good.
Speaker: So I'm coaching them to know exactly what to tell their friends so it's not like a weird...
Speaker: well, how does this work?
Speaker: If someone asks that type of question, I'll tell my referral partner, hey, if they ask you something specific, how does it work, all those details, just say, hey, I don't work for the company.
Speaker: Talk to him, he's super laid back.
Speaker: He'll answer all your questions.
Speaker: No pressure.
Speaker: Like if you like what you see, great.
Speaker: It's easy to sign up.
Speaker: Like it's not a hard process.
Speaker: And then if you don't, no worries.
Speaker: Then you've got a bunch of info and he's laid back.
Speaker: Like zero pressure.
Speaker: Nice.
Speaker: And that's exactly how I tell him.
Speaker: And that's exactly how I am.
Speaker: Like because if someone isn't ready, like after I meet with them, then it's fine.
Speaker: They've got more info and they might call me back later.
Speaker: And yeah.
Speaker: I value the referral relationship.
Speaker: That, for me, is more important than the person that I just met with because that person is going to keep sending more business.
Speaker: So even if one doesn't pan out, but I get 10 more from that person, I would rather...
Speaker: Really value and respect.
Speaker: I'm treating everybody with respect that I meet with, but I'm never going to be pushy with someone that I get referred to because that can come back to the person that referred you.
Speaker: like that referred, that that can come back to the referral partner.
Speaker: And they're like, exactly, I'm not gonna keep sending business to him because he's way too pushy.
Speaker: Right, so you have to be extra careful and extra like chill with it.
Speaker: And even, you know, I have,
Speaker: Couple referral meetings that I did earlier this week that I didn't close on that day.
Speaker: And they're thinking about it for a week or whatever.
Speaker: And so many people, they never, ever will get those sales where I'll get them like 50 plus percent of the time.
Speaker: Because there's already trust in the referral relationship.
Speaker: And because I let them know, hey, just to let you know, this is laid back.
Speaker: No pressure.
Speaker: I usually give people a little bit of time to think about everything because it's
Speaker: And this is the other thing.
Speaker: I only care about the install.
Speaker: I don't want to just sign up someone for the program and then them cancel in one week or three days or two months.
Speaker: Like I would so much rather just not even sign up that deal in the first place.
Speaker: Because all that I'm worried about is the install.
Speaker: And so that's why I'll give people more time.
Speaker: And you'd be surprised.
Speaker: I've got quite a few people that they'll call me even a week, two weeks later and say, hey, I'm ready now.
Speaker: Wow.
Speaker: That's awesome.
Speaker: Because, yeah, that's completely backwards.
Speaker: What most industry thinks they're just like throw it against the wall, push them as hard as you can.
Speaker: And then it sticks, it sticks.
Speaker: Like most people are like, yeah, they don't sign right now.
Speaker: I'm never getting this deal.
Speaker: And it is opposite for me.
Speaker: And that's because my whole process has been about like being laid back.
Speaker: and being patient with the program and patient with people because you just got to trust the process.
Speaker: We sell a product that everybody needs.
Speaker: Everybody needs and wants to save money.
Speaker: And every single person we sign up is going to save money.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: And especially in California, other states, not quite as much savings.
Speaker: But, like, that's the beauty of solar is that the product itself is a no-brainer.
Speaker: And so you just have to be the right person, help them get through their own objections, get out of their own way, and kind of, like, be the person that's kind of helping nudge them along in a very chill way.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: I don't know.
Speaker: I think that being laid back is something that's undervalued in this business.
Speaker: And...
Speaker: you know, even when I'm door knocking, I'm pretty laid back and I'll have multiple touches before I'll even get someone signed up, but I don't have very many cancellations from signing to install, but I give people a ton more space before.
Speaker: So they're so comfortable working with me.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Well, another benefit to that too, I think it's just mentally.
Speaker: Cause like, if you have all these cancels, like I h ad a month a while back where I had five cancels in a row and
Speaker: And I was like beating myself up over it and just like, you know, affected everything.
Speaker: So sometimes I think that definitely is, there's something to be said about just doing more touches.
Speaker: And that's the whole, you know, 50 doors a day.
Speaker: Like I always preach this.
Speaker: And it doesn't have to be 50 doors.
Speaker: It can be 50 text messages, 50 pitches, whatever.
Speaker: Like, whatever you're doing, you need to be doing enough of it so that the volume is there.
Speaker: And that's why, like, when someone is...
Speaker: really enjoying the flexibility and the autonomy of this job too much i think that they're missing it yeah because consistency is what creates real success and high level success not just like middle of the pack success but number one in your company type of success yeah and you know i my biggest install year was 97 installs
Speaker: Haven't broke 100 yet.
Speaker: I know you did 130 that one year.
Speaker: Yeah, I was getting a lot of leads, though, too.
Speaker: Yeah, you were getting leads.
Speaker: You did 97 all, door knocking.
Speaker: Yeah, that was 97.
Speaker: Which is fine, but I'm excited to break 100.
Speaker: That's my goal, and really 130 is my goal to break.
Speaker: And I think I can do it this upcoming year.
Speaker: It's just the job is all about consistency.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: One more door.
Speaker: That's all you need to knock is one more door.
Speaker: Like at the end of the night when it's 7 p.m.
Speaker: and you're tired and you haven't had any sales like one more door.
Speaker: And a lot of times that last door is a sale.
Speaker: It's like it's crazy how that happens.
Speaker: And it's because like that's the law.
Speaker: of consistency like there's literally these universal laws and when you put you know i always say you can't cheat the grind but the grind always pays right like it always pays the the grind sees your effort and you're going to get rewarded for that in some way
Speaker: Yeah, well, I don't know if you follow Ed Milet, but he just wrote his book, Power One More, and that's like the whole book.
Speaker: It's just based off of that concept.
Speaker: I'm like, man, this might as well be a book about door knocking because it's like especially in our job.
Speaker: Yep, One More Door.
Speaker: So much applies for sure.
Speaker: Yep.
Speaker: Well, Matt, I know we spent a lot of time on referral, and that's my fault because I have a ton of questions around it.
Speaker: No, that's awesome.
Speaker: But, yeah, so before we kind of start wrapping up, I know we didn't get a ton of time to jam on, like, the, you know, the...
Speaker: self-discipline and some of the other things you're really good at as well.
Speaker: But here, last question I had with referrals, and then we can kind of start wrapping up here.
Speaker: Sure.
Speaker: What's your system around just like following up with your people that had given you the referrals?
Speaker: Like, do you text them once a week?
Speaker: Is it every day you're reaching out to someone?
Speaker: Do you have like a time block every single day you do this?
Speaker: Or what's your system around that?
Speaker: Yeah, I would say it's once a week.
Speaker: And there's not really any specific time.
Speaker: Like, my system is kind of silly, but, like, I literally will just throughout the day I'll write down –
Speaker: in my text messages, I'll just, I'll have drafts that are just saved that I won't finish.
Speaker: And then at the end of the day, I go back and I, and I send all of those text messages that I made drafts for.
Speaker: So like if I had 15 people that I was following up with for referrals, either referral partners or like people just, just kind of checking in if I don't hear from a referral for a week or something like that,
Speaker: basically I'll send those text messages at the end of the day.
Speaker: So I take about 30 minutes to like send all of those messages between probably 8 and 8.30 just to be up to date for the day.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: And that's like once a week you said or every day?
Speaker: Well, it's pretty much every day that I'm sending those, but like it's on a weekly rotation, right?
Speaker: Like I want to be –
Speaker: on my customers minds yeah and so i'm following up with my top people weekly yeah and and even if it's just checking in like you never want to be annoying you never want to be someone that is like just pestering people but for me it's always worked just to just to follow up and just i know quite a bit about these people which
Speaker: I take a lot of notes in my appointments, so I'll go back and revisit it and follow up on things they're interested in.
Speaker: Even just chatting about sports and stuff like that.
Speaker: I'm not huge into watching sports, but I know enough to be conversational about it.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: I'll follow up with people, hey, how's your team doing this season, dot, dot, dot, like whatever.
Speaker: Just whatever I can do to stay on their mind, I'm following up and touching base with them, and then I'm keeping them on track with their list.
Speaker: So I'll remind them, hey,
Speaker: Just to let you know, I talked to your friend, dot, dot, dot.
Speaker: I didn't hear back from this person this week.
Speaker: Might be time to just check in with them just to see if they're ready to talk to me.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: So it's kind of like something you'll send in just...
Speaker: conversational type thing and then this second or third text will just be like a little check in on how their referrals are going with them yep okay and and and this builds with time right like this is something that you're going to build these relationships over time with people yeah okay that's awesome and then like um say someone um has told you in the deal you close the deal and then they're like oh yeah i'm at i want to win this trip that'd be awesome i'll send you some people after you know they install
Speaker: So how do you just go to, how do you go to like getting referrals?
Speaker: Do you show up to the install and then get them then?
Speaker: Or like when do you start actually getting names from them typically?
Speaker: That's a really good question.
Speaker: So basically I'll start getting names from them actually during the sit down.
Speaker: And I do it as part of my process to help them understand that they are excited to go solar.
Speaker: And I help them understand that by
Speaker: When they're giving me names and talking about friends that don't have solar yet and starting to really think about that, that means they've already decided to do solar for themselves.
Speaker: Yeah, true.
Speaker: So I let them kind of think about it and all ask questions like, who do you know that has a huge swimming pool?
Speaker: Who do you know that has a really high electric bill?
Speaker: Who do you know that is like the social butterfly that knows everybody?
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Like that's the person that I really want to meet with.
Speaker: And that's the person that is going to really benefit from this program, especially.
Speaker: So I'll ask those questions.
Speaker: I'll write down the names.
Speaker: So I usually try to get three to five names per appointment.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: And then I'm going to be reminding them like throughout the process, then after install, I'll
Speaker: I'll stop by, I'll talk to them and I'll have the names like that I already looked at on the drive over.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: So I'm not even like pulling open my phone and saying, Hey, tell me about, uh, Denise.
Speaker: Like I'm just, just naturally while we're talking during that check-in during the install, I'll say, Hey, so I remember there was Denise, there was, uh, there was Jim and then there was, you know, whoever, um,
Speaker: Did you have a chance to chat with them about the solar yet?
Speaker: Okay, cool.
Speaker: So let's do this.
Speaker: Why don't I reach out to them?
Speaker: I'll shoot them a text message either today or tomorrow, and I can just get in contact with them to start setting up something, you know, in the next week or so.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: And then you'll tell them, so, hey, can you let them know I'll be reaching out to them?
Speaker: Yep.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Yep, exactly.
Speaker: And if they haven't talked to them at all, I'll say, reach out to them first, and then I'll follow up with you about this, like, tomorrow or the next day, just to check and make sure that you talk to them.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Because I never am going to reach out to someone that has not already been prepped by their friend.
Speaker: Because, like I said, I would rather wait for a month for that person to be fully prepped than to just, you know, basically...
Speaker: not have that extra advantage.
Speaker: One other thing I wanted to add on the referral side is for people that are just starting, they're just getting into solar, they're just either starting door knocking or they're starting with a company and they're like, I have zero installs.
Speaker: Just know you can build this pretty quick with two, three, four, five installs with your first deals.
Speaker: And it just comes to planting seeds.
Speaker: That's the key is like plant a ton of seeds and tell a ton of these stories, even stories that you like heard from me or that you hear from your manager, whoever, like just share those stories with people to help them understand.
Speaker: And even if you're brand new, still say, yeah, I do a lot of referral business.
Speaker: Like that's, that's the main way that we get business.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Even if you're kind of like faking until you make it, you're going to get so much more response from people where they're like, oh, wow, okay, cool.
Speaker: So this is like a referral thing.
Speaker: Exactly.
Speaker: Tons of people are looking into solar right now.
Speaker: If you talk to 10 people, guaranteed half of them either already have solar.
Speaker: or they're thinking about it right now.
Speaker: So, you know, this is a hot topic right now.
Speaker: And that's why I get a ton of referrals.
Speaker: You know, I'm actually going to be able to help you make extra money, you know, and then I'll add one other thing.
Speaker: I'll calculate how much their bills are gonna be with us per year, right?
Speaker: Whatever their monthly bill is, I add that up over 12 months.
Speaker: So let's say it's 2,500 bucks for the full year.
Speaker: And it's a, you know, whatever, they're saving 50% or they're saving 40% off their bills.
Speaker: I'll say, hey, so just so you know, you know, once you have your panels, that's about what you'd pay per year.
Speaker: We can cover all of that with referrals in the next year easily.
Speaker: That's two or three people.
Speaker: That's just two or three people that sign up.
Speaker: Do you think that in the next year we could find a couple people that want to save money and are also open to looking into solar and would meet with me?
Speaker: Most likely, yeah.
Speaker: So I'll help them understand, I want to cover all of your electric bills.
Speaker: I want to cover all of it and pay for your vacation coming up in the next year.
Speaker: Wow.
Speaker: So I could kind of layer those couple things to help them understand, like, we're going to be working together long term.
Speaker: This is going to be something that is going to be a real huge extra benefit in their life.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: You know?
Speaker: And I'm not, like, shoving it down their throat.
Speaker: It's just, it's casual and it's,
Speaker: you know it's polished i've practiced it so many times that it just sounds like oh okay cool yeah that three people for sure i could definitely come up with a couple people that that would at least sit down and talk with you yeah yeah it's super powerful i love that
Speaker: And what about, like, do you ever do, like, add-ons?
Speaker: Because I know, for example, I had a deal just a few weeks ago.
Speaker: They gave me all these names, which I wasn't obviously not doing it your way yet.
Speaker: But they gave me all these names of people, and then we did the whole group texting.
Speaker: They introduced me, and it was like six or seven of them already said they had solar.
Speaker: So for you, I don't know if you get that a lot where, like, oh, I can think of some people.
Speaker: They might have solar.
Speaker: They might not.
Speaker: Do you encourage them to still reach out and then do you try to do add-on systems?
Speaker: Because I know about you, but out here, a lot of people have had solar for a while, but they need more panels up there.
Speaker: So is that part of your referral business right now?
Speaker: Yeah, no, I'll for sure do add-ons, but...
Speaker: you know, like I kind of said, on the group texting side, that's just like adding too many variables.
Speaker: You know, we talked about that a little bit.
Speaker: I just think that the one person text and just keep it simple to get a short call on the schedule.
Speaker: That's the easiest way to do it.
Speaker: When you add the extra variables of like a group text, even referral partner,
Speaker: you and the person that's referred over can kind of like just get a little weird.
Speaker: If they don't respond and then like the person's like, hey, did you see this message?
Speaker: It's like, it's just a little bit weird.
Speaker: It's best to just get the one message that you're in control of and then you can go back to the referral partner to get them to respond to you.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: So it kind of works a little bit better.
Speaker: But for sure, add-ons, and if they have solar already, I'm going to become their solar guy.
Speaker: Nice.
Speaker: Unless they are, like, working directly with someone that they are talking to all the time.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Which is, like,
Speaker: like hardly hardly ever hardly ever so all the mac brother exactly i'll become their new solar guy which is like now i can generate a referral relationship with that person and they already have solar for years so like i'll kind of do it that way and i i've actually had quite a few people that became like referral partners yeah not top partners but like they for sure started sending business over and
Speaker: That was something that they just kind of fell in my lap as a referral that already had solar.
Speaker: Yeah, that's awesome.
Speaker: Well, cool, man.
Speaker: Well, I know we went super long on referrals and yeah, I love all the values shared with that.
Speaker: Awesome.
Speaker: And so just to wrap up, we won't dig too deep just because we've already gone over time here, but I know we were going to talk about kind of mindset.
Speaker: You've done Ironmans.
Speaker: You've got a ton of mental toughness.
Speaker: One of the toughest solar guys I know for sure in the industry.
Speaker: So just as we wrap up here, can you share some, I don't know, advice for that?
Speaker: Maybe people are struggling with having like positive mindset or pushing through doing that one more door.
Speaker: anything you've learned that's super valuable as you've done, like your Ironmans and, you know, speak on that.
Speaker: Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker: So the one thing that I'll share just kind of as we wrap up is you've got to understand that everything worth doing is going to be hard, right?
Speaker: Like,
Speaker: I honestly don't think that there are very many people out there that are super successful that had an easy journey to get there.
Speaker: I think that maybe a couple people just got really lucky, but as a whole, 98% of the people that are very successful that you'd want to be at their level of success, they had a very hard journey to get there, and they had to overcome a lot of obstacles.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: And so for me, and I did that full Ironman about two years ago.
Speaker: It was a crazy experience.
Speaker: It was in Cozumel, Mexico, and 13 and a half hours for that Ironman, for the full Ironman.
Speaker: And that was actually like a pretty good time for someone's first Ironman that they did.
Speaker: And I had a mantra that helped me through that race.
Speaker: And even while I was training for it, and I use this actually in my job, I use it on the doors.
Speaker: It's something that literally I think about all the time.
Speaker: So you've got to have positive affirmations that help you push through the hard times, especially because in solar, it's a hard job, right?
Speaker: And especially if you're knocking doors, it's a job that you have to be hungry and you've got to have that right mindset.
Speaker: So I say four things, and it's these lines that really helped me through that Ironman race, especially like the last few hours of it, just when my body was just done, as you can imagine.
Speaker: And it's this, anything is possible.
Speaker: I am unstoppable.
Speaker: I can do hard things.
Speaker: Never give up on my dreams.
Speaker: Wow.
Speaker: And it's like this affirmation helped me, and I just said it again and again for hours.
Speaker: Anything is possible.
Speaker: I am unstoppable.
Speaker: I can do hard things, never give up on my dreams.
Speaker: And it's like...
Speaker: never let yourself like just give up on what you really want in your life.
Speaker: Like understand that you're capable of anything.
Speaker: And you know, that belief, like that internal belief that you can do anything really will give you the strength to go for it.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: And, and you know, I can do hard things.
Speaker: I say that all the time.
Speaker: If I'm going through something hard, it's like, I can do this.
Speaker: I can do hard things.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: you know, I made for this and like, never give up on your dreams.
Speaker: It's so important to never, ever like justify why you can't do something.
Speaker: Like there's anything is possible literally.
Speaker: And, and this,
Speaker: This has kind of become a mantra of my life, and it's like that I am unstoppable, that unshakable spirit.
Speaker: It's so important to understand that, like, you've got to have a bulletproof mind, you know, no matter what.
Speaker: It's like – and I watch a lot of the Avenger movies and superhero movies.
Speaker: I love that stuff.
Speaker: Even, like, Shazam, and he's, like, bulletproof.
Speaker: And, like, the first time that he, like, realizes that he's bulletproof, you know, it's just –
Speaker: getting to that point where mentally you're bulletproof.
Speaker: Nothing can penetrate that mindset.
Speaker: Nothing can penetrate that belief that you have in yourself.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: And if you can really, like, create that and then nurture that mindset, it's game changer, right?
Speaker: And you do it through a morning routine.
Speaker: You do it through, you know, really having positive thoughts that are going through your head, getting rid of the negative thoughts and focusing on the positive things.
Speaker: And then on top of that, like,
Speaker: watching the right type of material, reading good books, listening to audio books.
Speaker: All of that stuff adds up.
Speaker: Everything counts.
Speaker: And it all adds up to something that creates this person.
Speaker: You know, I love David Goggins' Can't Hurt Me.
Speaker: Like that book was game changer for me.
Speaker: I read it a couple years ago.
Speaker: And, you know, that book like just really showed me that, you know, no matter what you want, you can do it.
Speaker: And, you know, you're way stronger than you even think you are.
Speaker: And you learn that through practice.
Speaker: And then you learn it through repetition.
Speaker: And then you learn it through affirmations, saying the right stuff to yourself, having the right mindset.
Speaker: And then all of that really creates this person, this unshakable, bulletproof mindset.
Speaker: So that's...
Speaker: I guess that's my final thought about it.
Speaker: I love that.
Speaker: Well, yeah, and you were getting coached by Iron Cowboy himself, right?
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: James Lawrence.
Speaker: Yeah, I did.
Speaker: No, yeah, no, I agree 100%.
Speaker: Like, just by following people like that, you know, listing the books.
Speaker: Yeah, I watched the Iron Cowboy documentary, all that super inspirational.
Speaker: And, yeah, I mean, when I'm out there on the doors, sometimes I'm sure you're the same.
Speaker: Sometimes you just got to repeat it over and over because you got five rejections in a row.
Speaker: I'm just out there saying I like your little mantras you do.
Speaker: But, yeah, mine is like I like myself and I love my job.
Speaker: You know, just like repeat as I'm going.
Speaker: Yeah, that's a good one, too.
Speaker: So, yeah, I think for those that haven't done that, I mean, that's sometimes the only way I can make it through a day of knocking.
Speaker: I'm just out there like repeating these little affirmations, things like that.
Speaker: So, yeah.
Speaker: Yeah, love that.
Speaker: Love it.
Speaker: Well, Matt, we appreciate you coming on the show.
Speaker: And we weren't planning on going this long, but it was just too good to stop, man.
Speaker: So no, I love it.
Speaker: Thanks for having me, man.
Speaker: So yeah, we appreciate you.
Speaker: And then just to wrap up here, people, I know we probably did this in the last podcast, but I know you've been on social media a little more active and stuff.
Speaker: Really cool to see your journey.
Speaker: So where can guys follow you and connect with you more if they want to do that?
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: You can find me on Facebook or Instagram, Matt Crowther Solar.
Speaker: And yeah, feel free to reach out.
Speaker: I'll get hit up here and there just from people.
Speaker: I enjoy, you know, helping other people.
Speaker: And so, you know, that's partly why I like doing these podcasts is just to kind of help give some ideas to help people to get to the next level that they're going for.
Speaker: Yeah, love it.
Speaker: Well, you've shared a ton of value with us today.
Speaker: I know it's going to come back to you hopefully tenfold.
Speaker: Hopefully we get ten referrals right after we walk out of this podcast today.
Speaker: Awesome.
Speaker: But appreciate you coming on, man.
Speaker: And we'll have to do a follow-up episode, hopefully not two years later, but even sooner.
Speaker: Sounds good, man.
Speaker: Okay, appreciate it.
Speaker: Thanks.
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