 Diversification of services and a focus on helping people use less energy is driving the direction of this energy services company.
The whole concept sounds backward. Tell your customers to use less of what you sell? In almost any industry, that’s akin to putting a nail in your own coffin. But at Wesson Energy, this concept is key to securing its future.
“We made significant strategic decisions to sell customers less oil and propane, not more,” said Craig Snyder, president. “We embraced this new direction two years ago, and the feedback we’ve received has been fantastic.”
In business for more than 80 years, Wesson Energy was traditionally a gasoline and fuel oil distributor. In the last few years, the company decided to divest itself from the gasoline business.
“As the capital requirements for the gasoline business became more and more intensive, we shifted our focus to building our heating and cooling operations,” said Snyder.
The company’s core focus now is on sales and service of residential heating and cooling systems. Serving more than 30 cities and towns in Connecticut, its diversified operations include fuel oil, propane, solar, and geothermal. Most of the work the company does is residential, but it does light commercial work as well.
Home improvements
Although exiting the gasoline distribution market was significant, the major change for Wesson Energy has been spending the last two years helping customers figure out ways to consume less energy, and save on their monthly energy bills, in the face of rising energy costs. To this end, in May 2009, the company launched an energy efficiency division. Working with Connecticut Light & Power and the United Illuminating Company, Wesson Energy provides independent energy assessments as part of the utilities’ Home Energy Solutions (HES) program.
“This year we’ve conducted home energy assessments on more than 500 homes and are on track to conduct another 2,200 next year. Our teams of certified home energy assessment experts identify a home’s major energy deficiencies, including its air leaks,” Snyder said. “During the four-hour assessment process, not only do we seal these leaks and reduce the structure’s overall CFM, we also provide the homeowner with a blueprint for additional home energy improvements.”
Snyder added that Wesson’s energy efficiency experts have found that most homes need to upgrade their attic insulation and HVAC systems. “Consumers now turn to us for our energy efficiency expertise, in addition to supplying their oil and propane,” he said.
Why is this expansion so important to the company’s future? Snyder said it is similar to the old model of being a full service heating oil company. There were always two types of fuel oil companies: those that only sold and delivered, and those that offered the added benefits of a service department. Snyder sees the same conditions developing in the energy assessment business.
“We go beyond just offering home energy assessments. We offer homeowners the resources to make the home energy efficiency improvements identified in a home energy assessment,” he said. That means installing insulation, HVAC systems, solar or geothermal solutions, replacing propane units, and advising customers on what products are best suited for their needs.
Wesson Energy is also finding that its home energy assessment services have improved relationships with customers. Because the four-hour on-site assessment allows for quality time with the homeowner, the company is training staff to be exceptional communicators.
“That four-hour window becomes a chance to build a relationship based on trust and open communication. In addition, it is helping us learn what our customers want from the company,” said Snyder. “One of the things we learned is that our customers would prefer that we do the insulation work ourselves, so we’ve decided to expand our service offerings to include insulation. Installing insulation can be a complicated process, and homeowners want to work with a company they trust. We have spent the last 80 years establishing and building that trust.”
Accepting change
The key to getting this transition off the ground and moving forward was, is, and will continue to be organizational buy-in from Wesson Energy employees. Snyder said that eight cents of every dollar spent by the company to facilitate this transition went into hiring and educating its staff.
Every week, the company holds technician meetings, which Snyder identified as a critical component of the company’s success. These meetings give field technicians the opportunity to share their insights and observations with upper management. The company also takes advantage of these meetings to bring in third-party experts to teach staff about building science, product, and service innovations. Two strategic planning sessions each year invite employees to participate in the company’s decisionmaking process, giving all Wesson employees a voice in the company’s future.
“It makes sense that our employees drive our decisions, because they are the ones talking to our greatest asset—our customers,” Snyder said. “Although the transition from selling more to selling less has not always been easy, our employees have embraced the challenge and are bullish about our future.”
Educating customers about energy efficiency could not have come at a better time. With consumers watching their wallets, Wesson Energy has made it its mission to help homeowners reduce their energy costs without sacrificing comfort.
As the transition continues, Wesson Energy is working to make home energy efficiency improvements more affordable by offering long-term financing options.
“At the end of the day, not only will a customer’s energy savings finance the upgrades, but the energy their home uses will be cut by as much as 25% to 30%,” said Snyder. “Multiply that scenario by every residential home in our market area, and we will make a significant impact for the good of our company, our customers, and our country.”
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