October 11, 2021
The fall season heralds a return to everything Pumpkin Spice, but here’s what those autumn months provide for electrical contractors and distributors: a business opportunity they might not have realized existed. That’s right, football season is also Bonus Program season for utilities … and rebates!
Randy Young, Marketing & Operations Manager for BriteSwitch – a New Jersey-based company that helps electrical distributors find, estimate, and file rebates for their customers – outlined the financial opportunities during a recent webinar sponsored by Retrolux software.
Bonus programs typically occur in 3Q when utilities are in danger of falling short of their energy-saving goals. “So they’ll offer extra money for a short period of time; it could be 10%, 20%, or up to double the amount of the rebate,” Young explained.
According to BriteSwitch research, bonus programs are available in 15% of the U.S. right now.
Find out if the areas you do business in are offering bonus programs and what those deadlines are. Then, reach out to customers you approached earlier in the year who didn’t pull the trigger on a retrofit, said Young, suggesting, “Your message could be, ‘When we talked back in February, the rebate was X and right now it happens to be double if we do the project by the end of the year. Would you be interested?’” The bonus program’s deadline is an effective call to action.
“Update your quotes and proactively send them out to old jobs that didn’t go anywhere and mention the bonus program deadline,” he advised. “It’s a great time of year to reach out since some companies have extra money they’re now allowed to spend. Get in touch with them and show your value.”
Create a Purposeful Campaign
Bonus programs present a perfect opportunity for a timely marketing campaign. “Tailor as much as you can to that specific area to make it a strong offer,” Young advised. “If you have a contact in the ComEd territory of Illinois, send out a mailer saying there’s a $5 per tube rebate available [that could save them a significant amount of money] and have them contact you.”
If you are a utility program’s “trade ally” – which Young noted is becoming increasingly popular in many regions – put those logos and trademarks on your marketing materials if it’s allowed (some programs don’t permit it). “You want your offer to look as official and enticing as possible to get people to interact with you,” he said.
Explore Additional Savings
Projects in the Mid-Atlantic region (i.e. Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and other surrounding areas), can qualify for “capacity incentives.” These are offered by electric grid operators to help reduce demand and prevent blackouts and are often on top of their utility rebates. Both retrofit and new construction projects qualify and the capacity incentive can be filed retroactively.
Take Action Now
With roughly 74% of the country covered by commercial lighting rebate programs and the year-end approaching, this is an ideal time to double-check whether you have inadvertently left money on the table. If you don’t have the manpower to do the research and calculations, there are convenient tools available from BriteSwitch and Retrolux that can do the work for you.
A great way to close more lighting business at the end of the year … and perhaps coordinate marketing efforts with lighting manufacturers that have quick ship programs and/or you can confirm have local inventory!
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