The clock is ticking on incentives that support solar developers as well as solar customers, causing installers to pivot to new ways of doing business. ReVision Energy, New England’s number one residential solar installer based on kWs installed, is a story of evolution and growth over time and dedication to its unique mission.
ReVision Energy focuses on building “a just and equitable electric future,” and considers itself an energy transition or an electrification company. It is not just the company’s mission that has brought success, but its approach to marketing, customer support, education, workforce training and equitable treatment of its employees.
The story of ReVision dates back to 2003 when Bill Behrens launched EnergyWorks, a small, residential solar installer in Belfast, Maine. Three years later it expanded south when Fortunat Mueller and Phil Coup approached Behrens about opening an installation company in Portland, Maine. In 2008 the company rebranded as ReVision Energy.
Growth and change accelerated. By 2014 ReVision had installed 7 MW of solar; in 2015 it became a certified B corporation; by 2016 it opened ground screw division; in 2017 the company converted to an employee stock ownership plan and in 2020 had grown to become the top residential rooftop solar contractor in New England. Today it has installed 325.16 MW, boasts 400 employee-owners, and installs batteries EV chargers, and heat pumps. Furthermore, in addition to serving the residential sector it also serves commercial and member-owned community solar customers.
A company that’s been growing and changing for more than two decades has weathered a lot of policy changes and political storms, and the current climate is no different, according to Mueller, co-founder and CEO. ReVision has offices in Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts and also does business in Vermont. These states have varying clean energy policies, which Mueller describes as both a challenge and opportunity. Serving customers in New Hampshire, for example, which has a 100kW net metering limit as well as customers in Maine, which had a 660kW limit, means the company has had to tailor its approaches to the market. “We can take what we learn from working in one state and apply it to another, and when the market changes, we can shift.”
Policy changes over the years have also created an ebb and flow in demand, as evidenced now with the residential tax credit about to end. Mueller said that like the rest of the industry, they’re “running like crazy trying to meet our obligations to residential customers looking to take advantage of the tax credit.” He said they’ve also seen an uptick in urgency for commercial installations because the commercial tax credit expires in two years.
Building relationships
ReVision Energy’s success is rooted in a long-term approach that prioritizes relationships over short-term, transactional marketing. Becoming a certified B corporation is an example of relationship building. Mueller contends that it was not a marketing ploy but was done with the intention of running an exceptional company for both employees and the communities the company serves. The “B” stands for benefit, and certification, verified by B Lab, is achieved by meeting standards across three pillars: social and environmental impact; legal accountability and public transparency
Customer care is another important focus for ReVision. Bridget Sprague, vice president of marketing told pv magazine USA that when she joined the company, 68% of its sales came from paid leads like digital ads and events. “Today, that number is closer to 30%” she said. “The majority of our business now comes from who we call Solar Champions – customers who trust us enough to recommend ReVision to friends, family, and colleagues, or who return for additional products and services.”
Sprague called the shift “transformative,” and said it has saved the company millions in acquisition costs at a time when digital marketing expenses have skyrocketed. “We spend less than 2% of revenue on marketing annually (far below industry norms) because our community-driven model works.”
ReVision bolsters its relationships with customers by giving pet toys to pet owners, Sunsquatch plush toys to customers with children and gifts from commercial solar customers Grandy Organics and Badger. The company encourages its installers to go above and beyond by performing what it calls “unexpected acts of care,” which can include bringing in trash cans or shoveling snow off decks. Employee-owners also follow up by sending “solarversary” cards on the anniversary of every solar installations” These aren’t random touches; they’re part of a deliberate strategy we plan, execute, and measure. And the results speak for themselves,” Sprague said.
A net promoter score (NPS) is used to measure customer loyalty, and ReVision has received a score of 90, which Sprague noted is unheard of in the solar industry. “In short, our Solar Champion Community isn’t just a feel-good concept – it’s a competitive advantage that sets ReVision apart and drives sustainable growth,” Sprague said.
The Sunsquatch toys that are given out to customers with kids are part of the company’s strategy to reach out to the younger generation to help drive adoption of solar energy in the future. In 2019 the company introduced Sunsquatch to teach kids about solar and two years later launched Tiny Climate Classroom and Sunsquatch.com.
Since the company’s inception, ReVision co-owners have been invited into schools across its communities to teach kids about solar technology. Sprague said that Sunsquatch makes this work fun and memorable. She noted that this work is critical because climate education is often missing in schools, adding that studies show nearly half of U.S. students receive less than an hour of climate instruction during their entire K–12 experience. “By introducing solar in a positive, hands-on way, we help fill that gap and give kids solutions they can feel good about.”
Workforce development
Clean energy jobs grew three times faster than the broader job market in 2024, according to the tenth annual Clean Jobs America report run by E2, adding almost 100,000 jobs last year. Along with this job growth, however, comes the need for training and to meet that need, ReVision Energy launched its own electrical apprenticeship program, which Brie O’Malley, ReVision’s training center director said is significant because the company is both the employer providing on-the-job learning and the educational entity providing related training instruction.
“By being both, we are able to meet the needs of our co-owner apprentices by tailoring activities to the work they are doing and ensuring that we provide opportunities to practice skills in our labs that they would not encounter in a typical PV installation,” O’Malley said. The company currently has 36 registered electrical apprentices and have graduated 49 apprentices since the program launched in 2017.
Forging ahead
Solar installers face headwinds caused by the expiration of tax credits, safe harbor requirements and uncertainty about the requirements around materials from foreign entities of concern (FEOC). Decades of experience, however, has given ReVision Energy the confidence to forge ahead. For example, the loss of the investment tax credit will have little to no effect on customer investment because modeling electricity prices into the future, Mueller said, shows that projects will pencil out more favorably in the future, even without the tax credit. As for safe harboring, Mueller said it’s rare to have visibility to projects that are more than three years away but noted that many residential lease providers have safe harbored residential projects to go all the way to 2030.
Ultimately the company will continue to adapt to policy changes just as it has in the past, with the confidence that comes from its core strengths. Mueller said that for 23 years ReVision has been pioneers in the energy transition marketplace and that will continue by continuing to focus on building a community of customers, providing excellent customer service and achieving technical excellence.
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