Product bundling is a marketing strategy combining multiple products or services in a single package, often for a discounted price or another benefit.
Think: flights + hotels, meal + drink, phone + internet plans.
Now, what about solar panels + a battery?
The benefits of installing multiple energy-efficiency equipment types – for installers
There are many benefits of bundling, both for you and your customer.
For installers, selling multiple products in one transaction means increasing the average order value of a single deal.
Increasing the average order value of each deal saves precious admin and marketing costs on securing and servicing new customers. It’s estimated that upselling or cross-selling products – i.e. bundling – is 68% more cost-effective than acquiring a new customer1.
Offering multiple equipment types is also operationally efficient and makes project management easier. Coordinating installation and logistics for more than one energy-efficiency equipment type minimises labour duplication.
Finally, by offering integrated energy solutions, you can position your business as a market leader and specialist. Customers typically appreciate convenience, and offering them a one-stop shop will ultimately result in higher customer satisfaction.
The benefits of installing multiple energy-efficiency equipment types – for business customers
For customers, buying two items at once is a welcome convenience, especially when there’s a cost or other benefit. Commercial customers are busy – avoiding the hassle of dealing with multiple vendors and contracts means fewer disruptions to their business and quicker project completion.
The potential to maximise energy savings and ROI can also be increased by using complementary technologies. For example, adding a battery to a solar system can help business owners store energy during off-peak periods and use it when rates are high, or adding a smart thermostat to efficient HVAC can optimise overall energy savings.
Customers will ultimately experience improved comfort and cost management with systems designed to work together.
5 steps to effective bundling
While bundling is a fairly simple concept, for it to be effective, there are a few core principles that installers should follow.
1. Offer a compelling benefit
Simply put, bundling multiple equipment types needs to be more attractive than buying two or more types of equipment separately. You need to sweeten the deal.
While discounts may lower your profit margins, they can also effectively drive more sales volume. Working out the best way to maximise the latter while minimising the former.
You could also offer a non-discount benefit. For example, a gift with purchase or an additional service.
2. Understand your customer
Learn what you can about your customer before quoting the job. Find out what their industry is, what kind of sites and plant they use, and whether they have any specialisations that they market to their customers. These details are a gold mine – they can tell you a lot about what type of equipment bundling would be suitable.
For example:
- If your customer is a dairy farmer, they might be most interested in a HVAC system to go with their solar system. (Fun fact: The comfort zone of a milking cow is 6-18°C.)
- If your customer is a catering company, they will likely be interested in energy-efficient refrigeration to go with their solar system.
3. Bundle and market popular equipment types
You might find that customising equipment bundles for every customer is too labour-intensive.
A simple approach is to use industry data to inform your bundling strategies. What type of energy-efficiency equipment is on the rise? Where is consumer interest pointing?
Right now, the answer to these questions is clear: heat pumps, EV chargers and batteries.
4. Keep it simple
Don’t overengineer your bundling package.
If you decide to offer complex bundles, with multiple options and combinations, customers may feel overwhelmed. Don’t risk them losing interest – stick to tried and tested combinations.
5. Limit the benefit
Creating a sense of urgency is a powerful sales strategy aimed at encouraging prospects to act quickly.
It shortens your sales cycle by reducing the time prospects spend deliberating or comparing options, and shifts the focus of the conversation from the cost of the purchase to losing the benefit offered if the customer waits.
Get started with bundling
If you’re new to bundling multiple equipment types, we’ve created an offer to get you started.
For Smart Ease’s 10th birthday, we’re giving your customers the gift!
By using a Smart Ease Payment Plan to fund 2+ types of energy-efficiency equipment between 28 October and 6 December 2024, your customers are eligible to receive a Visa gift card*.
- $250 Visa gift card for 2 equipment types
- $500 Visa gift card for 3 or more equipment types
*Usual credit criteria apply. Installation must be complete by 1 April 2025. For full terms and conditions, see https://smartease.co.nz/offer/.
Simply print out the flyer and hand it your next commercial prospect.
