Could “Solar Shingles” Make Green Products More Attractive to Customers? (Watch)





About a million households around the U.S. have solar panels attached to their roofs. But the technology hasn’t taken off with more consumers due mainly to high installation costs.

So what can solar companies do to make more people consider using solar panels? How about ditching those panels altogether.

SolarCity, a solar company that’s merging with Tesla, wants to replace five million roofs with solar shingles. So instead of adding extra panels to existing roofs, the shingles would serve as both the roof and the solar panel in one.




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The company hasn’t said much about the actual cost yet. But Chairman Elon Musk said that the solar shingles look better and last longer than traditional shingles. And they shouldn’t be much different to install.

What this does is solve some other consumer problems while offering solar energy as a sort of additional benefit. Consumers tend to like this idea of using renewable energy sources, but they don’t want to pay exorbitant prices for it.

However, if you have people who need to replace their homes’ roofs anyway, they might be more likely to consider this option due to the durability and aesthetics, in addition to the solar power benefits. And since the company is merging with Tesla, it could potentially package the solar shingles with Tesla products like the home battery to make purchasing even more attractive.

Can You Create an Up Selling Strategy?

Can you think of some ways to implement up selling in your own business? Deliver something that customers want anyway but may not be willing to pay extra for by wrapping it in with another product or service.



Image: Newsy via SolarCity


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Annie Pilon Annie Pilon is a Senior Staff Writer for Small Business Trends, covering entrepreneur profiles, interviews, feature stories, community news and in-depth, expert-based guides. When she’s not writing she can be found exploring all that her home state of Michigan has to offer.

2 Reactions
  1. It is nice to think about it. However, I don’t think that electric companies would just give up what they have invested on just for a green alternative. That’s the main barrier.

    • I’m sure that is a barrier, but if customers like the idea and it catches on, that could force some more businesses to try out alternatives.





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