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Solar Sales Representatives and Assessors

Under the title Solar Sales Representatives and Assessors, workers contact new or existing customers to determine their solar equipment needs, suggest systems or equipment, or estimate costs. One core duty is to prepare proposals, quotes, contracts, or presentations for potential solar customers. With a code of ECR, this is mostly a job for people drawn to leading, persuading and making business decisions. Conventional interests also help, rated 4.4 out of 7. Plan on one or two years of vocational training, an apprenticeship or an associate’s degree; O*NET labels this medium preparation. Strength in speaking, service orientation, and reading comprehension helps most here. It tends to suit people who want leading, persuading and making business decisions, and it offers little for anyone seeking creative work with room for original expression.

What they do

Contact new or existing customers to determine their solar equipment needs, suggest systems or equipment, or estimate costs.

Main tasks

  • Prepare proposals, quotes, contracts, or presentations for potential solar customers.
  • Select solar energy products, systems, or services for customers based on electrical energy requirements, site conditions, price, or other factors.
  • Provide customers with information, such as quotes, orders, sales, shipping, warranties, credit, funding options, incentives, or tax rebates.
  • Gather information from prospective customers to identify their solar energy needs.
  • Calculate potential solar resources or solar array production for a particular site considering issues such as climate, shading, and roof orientation.
  • Generate solar energy customer leads to develop new accounts.

Skills

  • Speaking
  • Service Orientation
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Persuasion
  • Social Perceptiveness
  • Critical Thinking

Who this career fits

May suit you if

  • You like taking the lead and making the call.
  • You like clear rules and getting the details right.
  • You are willing to put in a year or two of focused training.
  • You are comfortable relying on speaking and service orientation.

May not suit you if

  • You would rather not persuade, sell or manage other people.
  • You need creative expression to be a big part of your day. Artistic rates 1.4 out of 7 here.
  • You need to start within a few months, with no training period.

Interest profile

O*NET rates each occupation from 1 to 7 on six interest types. The code ECR takes the three highest, and Enterprising comes first here.

Preparation

Medium preparation. Expect vocational school, an apprenticeship, related experience or an associate’s degree, usually one or two years in total.

Most-reported requirement in the O*NET survey: Associate's Degree or other 2-year degree. This reflects what workers reported most often and is not a legal minimum. Licensing rules can differ by state or industry, so confirm what applies where you plan to work.

Also called

  • Energy Consultant
  • Sales Associate
  • Sales Consultant
  • Sales Representative (Sales Rep)
  • Salesman

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This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.