Door-to-Door Solar Sales

How did you obtain this internship and what type of work did you do?

I was looking for an entry-level sales position and applied through Indeed. I was eventually offered a position after a phone interview, and one in-person meeting.

Trinity solar is a door to door sales position, but there is also a partnership with Home Depot to do on-site sales. When selling door-to-door, it’s your job to make homeowners aware of a program they’re already paying into through utilities and taxes to receive a no out-of-pocket cost solar equipment and installation, which would lock in their electric bills and prevent them from ever going up again while they live in the home. At Home Depot, it was the same thing. The goal was to make customers aware about all the incentives to go solar. We would spend time at both sites, having meetings in the morning to improve our pitches then spending the rest of the day out in the field.

What was a lesson you took from this experience?

I chose this position because I am interested in pursuing a sales career. I thought my skills would be a good fit because I can talk to people and start conversations easily, so I imagined sales would be all daisies and roses. It didn’t end up turning out that way; there is a lot more rejection in sales than you might expect, but the amount I’ve learned that comes along with sales is more than I had ever imagined. From being nervous to knock that first door, scared to hear an objection, or encountering someone who’s just mean, every interaction is an opportunity to learn and grow in your confidence and sales approach. That’s just a life lesson that goes beyond sales too. It’s not always going to come easily, so what a stepping stone this job was to learn this now at a young age.

What was your favorite part of your internship?

The culture and the people was my favorite part about the job. The culture was friendly and comforting, with so many different types of people in the office and such a wide range of ages. There were so many different stories, life experiences, and friendly, caring co-workers that allowed me to learn from them, and get better at the same thing they were once doing. It’s sad to think I’ll only be able to work with some of these people for a bit longer because they’ll go their own ways and I’ll go mine, but I now know I have the capability to meet someone in a short timeframe, and be able to identify a friendship or bond that I can carry with me after I leave.

What new knowledge or skills did you learn and practice in this internship?

The most valuable new knowledge and skills I developed were all about people and sales. I also developed some technical knowledge about solar technology and how solar panels work, how they’re funded, how to qualify, and the benefits to the installation.

I practiced transferable skills like negotiation, customer education, persuasive communication, adaptability, and customer relationship strategy. I learned more nuances in communication like how important tone of voice is, when to take a pause, when to look down at your notes on your phone, when to take a back seat, and when to be more bold. I also definitely developed perseverance. To be successful in this role you had to practice not backing down when you had a bad day of no sales, and not let bring any negative feelings with you the next day.

How has your internship experience influenced your plans for the future?

For the future, or time being, I have decided to get out of sales for a little bit and take a data analyst position with the NJOHSP in New Jersey. Sales experience was great, but the solar field is a tough position to be in. Having more of a financial salary guarantee is more important to me at this time in my life. I will not be intimidated when it’s time to go back into sales though, because I do want to have a career in sales, and the experience I gained here will come with me when that time comes. The skills and knowledge I learned will not only help me in sales, but this next job, and in life.