Supplier Relationships and Business Operations
Closing Your Solar Business? Outstanding Job Obligations
What solar installers owe outstanding customers before closing: deposits, warranties and CEC obligations under Australian law.
Blog
Running a solar business in Australia.
Solar Business Software & Tools
Call Recording Software for Solar Sales Compliance
Call recording software for solar sales compliance: what CEC Code of Conduct and ACL evidence rules actually require, not generic call-center features.
Solar Business Software & Tools
Best E-Signature Software for Solar Contracts in Australia
A solar-specific guide to e-signature tools that handle disclosure statements, cooling-off notices and STC assignment forms, not just generic contracts.
Supplier Relationships and Business Operations
Solar Installer Goes Bust: Protect Your Deposit
What happens to your solar deposit if the installer goes bust? ACL rights, chargeback options, and how to limit upfront risk in Australia.
Solar Business Software and Tools
Solar Enquiry Auto-Responders and Instant Booking for Australian Installers
How Australian solar installers can set up enquiry auto-responders and instant booking tools to convert more leads faster.
Solar Business Software & Tools
Best Digital Business Card Apps for Solar Sales Reps
Compare digital business card apps for solar D2D reps on offline reliability, CRM fit and pricing, not just vendor marketing claims.
STCs, Compliance & Accreditation
Public Liability Insurance for CEC Accredited Solar Installers
What public liability cover CEC accredited solar installers actually need, tied to accreditation renewal and state licensing rules.
Equipment and Products
What to Look for in a Solar Supplier (Beyond the Unit Price)
Unit price is easy to compare. Freight reliability, tech support, credit terms, and how fast someone answers the phone when you have a problem on-site are not. A framework for evaluating solar suppliers on what actually affects your margin.
Solar Business Software & Tools
Digital ID Verification Apps for Door-to-Door Sales Reps
Why solar door-to-door reps need digital ID verification apps to prove licensing and trust, a gap every top-ranking sales app roundup misses.
Solar Business Software & Tools
What Your Consent App Must Record for Cooling-Off Compliance
Every ranking result for this search is a CRM sales pitch, not a compliance answer. Here's what a consent app actually needs to capture under consumer law.
Supplier Relationships & Business Operations
Director Liability for Insolvent Trading When Closing Solar Co
What s 588G insolvent trading and director liability mean for a solar installer winding down, mapped to STC clawback, deposits and subbies.
STCs, Compliance and Accreditation
Home Warranty Insurance: Is It Required for Solar Installs?
Home warranty insurance and product warranties are not the same thing. Here is what Australian solar installers and homeowners actually need to know.
Equipment and Products
Why I Stopped Relying on a Single Solar Supplier (And What It Cost Me First)
Relying on one distributor feels efficient until stock dries up, prices spike, or the relationship sours. Why solar install businesses need at least two qualified preferred suppliers, and how to set that up without creating admin chaos.
STCs, Compliance and Accreditation
Door-to-Door Solar Sales: What Compliance Rules Actually Require
What solar installers must disclose, document and avoid under Australia's unsolicited consumer agreement rules for door-to-door sales.
Equipment and Products
Will This Solar Brand Still Exist When the Warranty Claim Comes In?
A 25-year product warranty is worthless if the company that issued it has folded. How to read the signs of a solar brand that might not be around — and why cheap equipment can quietly kill your reputation years after the install.
Operations and Scheduling
What to Look for When Hiring Solar Apprentices
An apprentice is a multi-year investment. Here's what to look for beyond the application form — and the early signals that tell you whether the training investment will pay off.
Operations and Scheduling
How to Find and Keep Solar Subbies Who Are Worth Keeping
Licence and price are table stakes. Here's what to actually look for when vetting solar subcontractors — and how to spot the ones who will cost you customers before they cost you money.
Tools and Software
Solar Business Management Software: What Australian Installers Actually Need
There is no shortage of solar software. There is a shortage of software that manages the whole solar business — not just design, not just invoicing, but the full job lifecycle from lead to certificate.
Operations and Scheduling
Always Spot-Check Your Solar Installs: Here's What I Found When I Did
A post-install customer check-in is standard. Sending someone to actually look at the work is not. Here's what happened when Rodney's install manager went out to inspect a job, and why it changed how he ran quality control permanently.
Supplier Relationships and Business Operations
Solar Deposits in Australia: What's Fair and Your Rights
What's a fair solar deposit in Australia, what does ACL say about refunds, and what red flags should you watch for before signing?
Solar Business Software and Tools
Solar Defect Rectification Job Management for Installers
How Australian solar installers can manage warranty callbacks and CEC defect rectification jobs with a proper audit trail.
Equipment and Products
How to Vet a Solar Brand's Warranty Process Before You Commit
Every brand claims a great warranty. The ones worth stocking can tell you exactly how many claims they've had, what the process looks like, and how long it takes. Here's what to ask before you lock in a product.
Sales and Quoting
How to Get Referrals From Your Solar Customers (Without Awkward Asking)
Referrals from happy customers are the cheapest, highest-converting lead source a solar business has. Most installers never build a system to generate them. Here's how to do it without it feeling like a favour-ask.
Sales and Quoting
How Any Company Handles Things Going Wrong Is Everything About That Company
Any solar company can give you five stories about jobs that went perfectly. The ones worth trusting are the ones who can tell you exactly what happened when things went wrong, and what they did about it.
Operations and Scheduling
Why Australian Solar Businesses Run Three Software Tools (And Still Have Gaps)
Pylon for design. ServiceM8 for jobs. Xero for money. Most Australian solar install businesses use all three, and re-enter data between each one. Here is what that costs and why the gap exists.
CRM and Operations
OpenSolar Is a Design Tool, Not a CRM: What the PVsell Migration Leaves Behind
Hundreds of Australian solar businesses are migrating from PVsell to OpenSolar right now. OpenSolar is an excellent design tool. But it is not a CRM, and it does not lodge STCs. This article explains the gap and what a purpose-built workflow looks like.
Sales and Quoting
Fast Solar Quotes vs. Accurate Solar Quotes: Why You Have to Pick One (Until You Don't)
Pylon testimonials cite '2 minutes to punch out a proposal' as a reason to switch. Speed matters. But a quote that's fast and wrong costs more than a quote that's slow and right. Here is how to get both.
Operations and Scheduling
Why Your Subcontractors Can't Use Your Solar Software (And What to Do About It)
The most common complaint about solar field software in Australia is that it only runs on iPhone. Your subcontractors use Android. Here is why that gap exists and what it means for your business.
Administration and Compliance
STCs Aren't a Rebate: How Australia's Solar Certificate Scheme Actually Works
Everyone calls STCs a rebate. They are not. Here is how the small-scale certificate scheme actually works, and why understanding the real mechanism protects your cashflow.
Sales and Quoting
Speed to Quote: Why the First Solar Business to Respond Usually Wins the Job
Most solar installers lose jobs not on price but on response time. Here is what the data says about speed to quote and how to build a process that responds before competitors even call back.
Operations and Scheduling
Managing Solar Subcontractors Without the Chaos
Subcontractors make a solar install business scalable. They also introduce every type of communication and scheduling problem that slows jobs down. Here is how to run subbies without the chaos.