CASE STUDY

ADT Solar

Skedulo has enabled ADT Solar a leading provider of solar in the United States, to scale exponentially, with field representatives doubling their average daily appointments.

Overview

At a time when interest in renewable energies and solar was increasing rapidly, aging systems and manual processes were preventing ADT Solar from taking full advantage. 

Now a leading provider of solar in the United States, Skedulo has enabled the company to scale exponentially – with field representatives doubling their average daily appointments and booked appointments growing by more than 1000%, even in the midst of a pandemic. 

About ADT Solar

Formerly SUNPRO, ADT Solar is a leading provider of rooftop solar in the United States. 

The company was founded in 2008 and designs, installs and maintains solar panels on residential and commercial properties. It has a proven history and reputation for quality service, and was ranked #2 in 2021 by Solar Power World as a Top Residential Solar Installer in the United States.

ADT Solar prides itself on delivering an excellent customer experience from start to finish – with a highly skilled and friendly team of perfectionists who take the time to educate homeowners, and design custom solar solutions before completing a meticulous install. 

Appointment targets were always out of reach

Operating with highly manual processes involving spreadsheets, emails and countless phone calls, the leadership at ADT Solar knew something had to change. 

At the time, every field representative (rep) had their own scheduler and converting a single lead to an appointment took more than 10 minutes and multiple phone calls. Out in the field, reps were only able to see a maximum of 3 customers per day with a 90-minute gap between jobs. 

With interest in clean energy booming across the United States, the lack of efficiency and risk of manual errors were preventing ADT Solar from being able to scale and serve a greater number of customers in more regions.

“Our goal was to schedule 800 appointments per week through our call center, and we hadn’t met this in 2 years.”

A recommendation for Skedulo

ADT Solar’s Program Manager, Kristin Carroll, knew that technology could solve the company’s scheduling issues. 

After Skedulo came highly recommended, she began researching and found that Skedulo’s features and functionality provided exactly what they needed. 

Although other vendors were considered, it was Skedulo’s reputation and competitive pricing that led Kristin to champion the solution to leadership who ultimately selected Skedulo as ADT Solar’s new scheduling platform. 

“We did consider other vendors, but their reputation didn’t match Skedulo. We also appreciated how customizable the platform was so we could develop a solution that fit our needs.”

Rapid growth, higher retention and a life saved

Since implementing Skedulo, ADT Solar has experienced massive growth even in the midst of the COVID pandemic. They recently achieved 9,000 appointments in a single week where before Skedulo they struggled to reach 800. They have also increased their geographic footprint by more than 5 times.  

Scheduling is now automated and streamlined which has significantly reduced the scheduler’s workloads. They now have a full view of reps’ calendars and drive times to maximize booked appointments and minimize late arrivals which keeps customers happy. 

Optimization allows schedulers to quickly allocate jobs using a tier-based approach (5-star reps, then 4-star, and so on), and to marry customer needs – such as languages spoken – with appropriate reps.

In the field, average appointment visits per rep have doubled from 3 to 6 per day. And now, reps can adjust their own schedules based on immediate needs – allowing one ADT Solar rep to change their schedule live from the field and see 14 customers in a single day, of which they closed 8 sales. Because appointments made in the field are 60% more likely to retain a customer, results such as these make a significant contribution to the company’s bottom line.  

More efficient scheduling based on location has meant less driving time and allowed reps to regain their work/life balance. By taking on appointments closer to home, supported by Skedulo’s route optimisation feature, they can be there to pick-up children from school or get to personal appointments on time which in turn has boosted morale and retention.  

Skedulo is even credited for helping to save a rep’s life after they had a potential heart attack but weren’t sure where they were. By contacting ADT Solar’s internal Skedulo support team, staff used the geo-tracking feature to see the location and organize an ambulance immediately. When the rep returned to work, ADT Solar supported them by using Skedulo to only allocate appointments within 45 minutes of a hospital. 

In another instance, ADT Solar’s call center hadn’t heard from a rep in 3 hours and became concerned. Unable to contact them, Skedulo made it easy to pinpoint their location at a customer’s home, call the customer directly, and speak to the rep to confirm all was safe and well. 

For leadership, Skedulo has enabled full visibility of field operations as well as:

  • proof-of-service with digital signatures and drive data which provides legal assurance
  • greater visibility of operations with data to aid decision making (such as travel information, fuel costs,  and locations experiencing high demand to assist with hiring)
  • ability to determine lead costings and unnecessary costs to save money and boost profits
  • improved sales reporting (such as how many jobs are pitched and sold to identify high performers)
  • proof-of-work for reps which ensures accountability and empowers them to take responsibility for their work
“With Skedulo, we can play 5D chess! Our original goal of 800 appointments per week has grown to 1600 per day. We keep upping our goals as they keep being met and exceeded. In May we beat our best numbers at 9000 appointments booked in a single week. Before Skedulo we struggled to get 800! This is a growth of over 1000% even during the struggles of a global pandemic. With the help of Skedulo, we were able to expand from serving 4 states to 25 states with plans for another 5 in the next quarter. But it’s not just our huge business growth – we’ve made people’s lives better using Skedulo. It gives them back their work/life balance and helps us make sure our people are safe in the field.”
Kat Carroll, Skedulo Program Manager
ADT Solar

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