Popular Power named Top 10 Startup at RE+ 2024

Popular Power exhibited at RE+ 2024 in Anaheim, an annual event that brings together over 40,000 professionals from the renewable energy industry

Last week, we got to officially introduce Popular Power to the industry at RE+ 2024 in Anaheim. It's inspiring to work collectively, with purpose, on the greatest challenge of our time: the energy transition. This excitement and ambition were palpable at RE+ 2024. The event brought together over 40,000 professionals from the renewable energy industry, fostering collaboration and innovation. As we reflect on our experience, where Popular Power was recognized as a Top 10 Startup, we'd like to share some key insights that stood out. Here are our main takeaways from this year's conference.

Takeaway #1: Healthy environment for growth and M&A in the $40Bn solar PV software space

Lots of opportunities for M&A and partnership opportunities in the $40Bn solar PV software space, whether for or with established companies or smaller startups. I predict there will be significant consolidation in the solar PV software industry in the next 5-10 years. It was also great to see the AI developments in the solar software space. I sensed potential customers (solar companies) were curious about AI solutions. I found it refreshing that AI solutions weren’t overhyped as they are in other industries. Solar companies are hyper-focused on deployment and growing their installed capacity (plus, it’s a competitive industry), so I predict they will be smart about choosing AI solutions that affect topline KPIs or significantly automate current manual processes.

Takeaway #2: Specialized software tools proved more effective at demonstrating their value

Software solutions with a more narrow focus (at least in marketing & communications) stood out more because they could more clearly communicate their value to solar companies. In 2024, I'm not sure how relevant “one software to rule them all” is, especially in a world where software can be compared to tools in a toolbelt. Yes, some tools are more universal than others-- but you also need more specialized tools to get certain jobs done. Several solutions marketed as the CRM or ERP for solar cos (at all market segments: residential, C&I, and utility-scale) struggled to stand out in my opinion. Unfortunately, saying you can do "everything" is too ambiguous-- so, the potential customer is left thinking the offer is "nothing."

Takeaway #3: Post-sales is the next big thing in the solar industry

The post-sales problem is about to be a way bigger problem, aka opportunity. What is the post-sales / O&M problem? Right now, as an industry, we are hyper-focused on everything that happens leading up to the sale: lead generation, design, proposal, quoting, installation plan, etc. This hyper focus on pre-sales / sales means that solar companies often (unintentionally) forget about the world of opportunities that exist to generate value once the solar asset is installed. Installed solar assets will generate a lifetime of value and data– plus, they need maintenance. Post-sales is everything that happens once an asset is installed– such as Operations & Maintenance (O&M), upselling, REC & other incentive generation, and end-user reporting.

I saw confirmation of my thesis that post-sales (everything that happens once an asset is installed) is going to be a much bigger focus next in solar. To date, software solutions have focused on pre-sales because that’s where the money is (I sell solar = I get paid). Several factors are leading to the higher focus on post-sales and O&M:

1. Sunpower going out of business and leaving 100k+ homes without a service provider in the USA

2. Several solar sales scams uncovered in the past 3 years, meaning customers are wary of companies with post sales service and O&M plan

3. We are coming up on the expiration date of service for many initial PPAs in the industry in the USA, which means PPA customers (C&I) are analyzing what to do now for O&M

4. Due to the general growth of distributed solar in the USA (and worldwide), it’s natural that many companies popped up to sell, install, and make a quick buck— and are now out of business.

These are just some examples of factors that have contributed to end users of solar being left with no service provider. It’s so common that we now have a word for it: solar orphans. Today, solar companies providing solar should be paying attention to post-sales in order to stay competitive and relevant. Especially because it’s something that end-users of solar will be looking for in a service provider.

Takeaway #4: The post-sales software space is growing and is a space to watch

While there may be clear winners or dominating players in the “pre-sales” (lead gen, design, quoting, proposals, etc.) software space (OpenSolar, Aurora Solar, SOLO LLC), there are no clear winners in post-sales– especially due to takeaway #3 (this is a new problem / opportunity). This is a space to watch.