Start with the bill, not the roof
Usage history defines system size, savings, and credibility. Annualized kWh, seasonal shape, and the actual rate schedule (especially time-of-use) let you size to reality instead of to the biggest array the roof fits. Showing a homeowner their own January and August usage side by side is also the moment they start trusting you over the last door-knocker.
Model production transparently
Use real shade analysis and show the assumptions: azimuth, tilt, soiling, degradation, and the utility's export rules. Net-metering changes in many states mean export value ≠ retail rate — building the proposal on the correct tariff is the difference between a happy reference and an angry review eighteen months in.
The money conversation: three honest frames
Different buyers need different lenses, so put all three in the proposal:
- Bill replacement: financed payment vs. current average bill, crossover labeled.
- Payback: net cost after the 25D-style federal credit divided by year-one savings, with the escalator assumption visible.
- Asset framing: 25-year production warranty, what's transferable at sale, and the inverter replacement reality around year 12–15.
Pre-handle the three deal-killers
Roof age: if the roof has under ten years left, propose the reroof-solar bundle now — one crew sequence, one financing package — rather than letting another contractor discover it later. Batteries: present storage as a tier, sized to outage priorities, not as a forced add-on. Moving: explain transferable warranties and the appraisal literature honestly. Each pre-handled objection is a follow-up call you never have to make.
Then deliver everything in a portal the household can study: production model, assumptions, financing terms, and signature in one place. Solar is a two-decision-maker sale; the spouse who wasn't home decides from that link.
