Anyone can start a business on the Internet, but how well it’s marketed is the difference between success and failure.
In 2015, Amazon’s first voice-controlled smart speaker, Echo, was released across the United States, along with its virtual assistant service Alexa. Since then, sales have exploded. Amazon now ships tens of millions of units each year, and competing devices from Google and Apple are also gaining impressive market penetration.
FREE CFL’s! Scratch that. FREE LED’s! Scratch that. FREE...smart thermostats? Etc., etc., etc. Engage the customer with enticing free energy efficiency products, reminding them that they will SAVE ENERGY and SAVE MONEY. Boom. Your job is done, right? Enter smart grid optimization. Enter a new world where customers are becoming part of the process, not just as benefactors but rather engaged decision makers.
As utility customers grow and change, the services and products they need—and the shopping experience to buy them—do too. That’s why marketplace enhancements might be a good upgrade for your online store. These enhancements can:
Net metering has created some issues in terms of compensation for distributed solar. Under net energy metering, utilities compensate solar owners at the same retail rate for power sent to the grid as the customers pay for the electricity they consume. It has been almost too successful, utilities say, as it allows customers with solar arrays to dramatically reduce their bills, shifting the burden of infrastructure costs to the remaining customers.
