Company Sells Solar Door-to-Door
LEHI, Utah—An unusual strategy to sell solar panel systems has proved to be a path to riches for at one startup. In 2011, Vivint, an alarm company based in Utah, decided to get into the solar business. Now its subsidiary, Vivint Solar, has become the second-largest panel installer in the country. The company relies on a simple business model to overcome solar power’s problem of high initial costs: a power purchase agreement (PPA). Under a PPA, Vivint Solar owns the panels, while homeowners put no money down and agree to buy the output of the panels for 20 years, generally at a fixed price that is 15% to 30% percent below the typical market price. However, the company stands out in how it conducts its actual sales. Each summer, Vivint dispatches a few thousand college students, mostly from universities in Utah, to sell alarm systems door to door, on commission, Many of Vivint’s salespeople already have experience as Mormon missionaries. Therefore, says the company, they’re comfortable peddling new ideas to complete strangers and dealing with rejection.
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