Episode 3: Jake Hess: An inside look

Jake lets us in on how he got started in solar and what pushed him to become one of the industry top influencers. Wait till you hear what is coming for Solar Con 2024. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hello, everybody. Thank you for joining us. Day one of Door to DoorCon. I am with the one. We only the King of Solar himself. I am with Mr. Jang Pat. Solar. Yeah. A very, very good friend of mine. We've spent extremely kind speaking. And also one of my favorite stories in Solar. I want to jump in by asking a little bit more about Jimmy. Everybody sees you on a dough in the way they should. As the person that is serving the solar space. You show up on knocking. You get people talking, you get people loving, you get people helping one another, educating, you create space for people to be the best versions of themselves. Obviously, I'm a fan. Where did it start? How do you get to be the Jake House of Solar?

SPEAKER_00 0:51

Thank you for that. You know, I don't I hear people say that, and I hear people give an announcement like that, and it's kind of unique to hear that. Uh, because you don't really think of yourself that way. You know, you know where you came from, you know you've been through, you know what it took to the on a day-to-day basis. I feel like I worked just the same as anyone else. Um, I guess if I were to pick something that was a differentiator in that in that process, I would say a lot of what I did was uh I guess more of an empathetic approach to to how things were going. I was a sales rep that locked doors over and over and over, and and uh the people that always I felt had the money, the managers, the regionals, uh, I felt like they always tried to keep me from my money and finding ways to you know keep it from back end checks or to keep it from adders, or and so I thought I would learn how to do this, and and uh my passion was to protect the sales reps.

SPEAKER_01 1:47

Love it.

SPEAKER_00 1:48

I want to protect sales reps. That was my passion. If you follow my journey throughout this entire thing, well, that is kind of I've not left that. I genuinely think that protecting sales reps mean a higher education. I've always been pushing for that. Uh I think that sales reps don't mark. I think so. There's there's situations where sales reps don't get to hear uh everything that they they should hear because people are trying to make their money off of them. That's kind of how recruiting works, right? Um, but I think some people get so frustrated they get to a point where they believe that they are bigger uh than the moment that they're in. And some leaders have fear to have a fear to allow them to grow, yeah. Uh keeping that sort of glass ceiling. And because of that, you get some people that break through, uh, like that will just punch through in a massive way. And I feel like that's what I did. I feel like I was part of this process, this game, this whole this hierarchy that I couldn't break through. And it took me separating from what I was comfortable with. It took me getting out of that world of whether it was uh for me at that time advanced pays or uh or uh recognition or thinking I was with the best company, or I wouldn't make this leaderboard because they built cultures around this, and it took me breaking through and going in a different direction. When I did, I realized that everything that I wanted to do to protect these sales rest was possible in it in a way that I didn't think of before.

SPEAKER_01 3:15

Um, I want to tell the story because I think it's a special story. This is how I met Jess. So I was installing solar, it's the APC building, grinding, traveling all the time, and I found myself in San Diego. We had the nerves to take on California, we weren't in Stroud California, relaxed. We got the Taurus, exactly, and uh I'm in San Diego, I'm shooting a selfie video on the beach. I'm here in San Diego. Who wants to meet up? And I get a direct message. You and I are meeting up, let's talk coffee. Like, this is cool.

SPEAKER_00 3:52

I'm a nobody at this point. I was a nobody. I was also no, you are not. You're a giant. I called you a giant in the industry. I couldn't believe it.

SPEAKER_01 4:01

You were so happy, but Miller is in the house. So we get up, we have coffee, and have such a good conversation with you. We could have talked about a few the comments trends that we know, but you know everything about solar in San Diego. It's just it's very, very unique to California, you know, compared to a lot of the other markets. And I learned a lot from you that day. But what I think is probably my favorite thing about Jess is that that guy who showed up for Cosmic was super hungry, her food celebrated me, made me feel like I was clean that day, I was doing everything right. That scene in Jake, I see I see show up continuously in this way. You see, you went from starting your company from my Helio Gold, yeah. Helio gold time from Helio Gold. You know, we know the Jake has story. We'll give you kind of the short word version here, but you're getting prepped to blast your amazing and incredible best conference in solar. But you know, every single time I see you, you're still about how can I serve, how can I elevate other persons, how can I continue to show up and create this space. And I'm just a big fan of your story now because the authenticity and the realness that really made me want to be your friend of Bill together is still very much truthful. And so if you do not know this man, you should get nothing.

SPEAKER_00 5:15

Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 5:15

Let's talk about your conference. Um, I'd start by saying you have to Gary B. I'm so excited about Gary B is my as such a like I didn't know that, dude. I've such like as the really lame business owner that was like hot had my selfie, you know, with San Diego. Like, just wanted to show up a way that it keeps on solution foundational for me to find that nerve to put my face on Cavran. Wow, that is gonna be great.

SPEAKER_00 5:48

He inspired you to do that. That was him.

SPEAKER_01 5:50

Oh, a hundred right, okay. Dude, he's yeah, I mean back in solar year for nobody was on social media.

SPEAKER_00 5:55

No, nobody was. You were killing it.

SPEAKER_01 5:58

Everybody said, like, how did you work for DNX? How did you sell? How did you build this? It's right here. Social media, selfie video, yeah. And all I said was come meet, be come, you know, see what we've got going on here, you know, and then you just show up. It's some it's that simple. But I I loved boom, I love social media. It's been really hard for me to continuously show up the way that I want to and manage all my brands like you have crushed that Gary me installed.

SPEAKER_00 6:27

I thank you. I sure I genuinely believe in social media, and I yeah, my my business partner Joe, we all know him that he's the one that introduces me as celebrities. I don't know who they are, I don't follow him, I don't listen to them. I just I just know hey, I want a conference, so I grind and I go and I push for it. Uh but Joe brings Joe brings the hype, right? Joe brings Gary B. Uh last year he brought Andy Alley and Brad Lee. I didn't know these people, and uh it's incredible. I I I love that I get to be in the circles uh with you and with uh Hayes. You bet you just walked up at Hayes like you guys were best friends last year. I was like, oh sir, nice to meet you, please back there. Wow, I love it it's it's uh it's so awesome to watch you work too. Like the relationships you have, the knowledge you have, but I don't know, half the stuff you know. Uh but it for me, and I think the same for you, a lot of what I like to do is is impact. Uh, a lot of people impact me in my life, Sean Branchley, if you know him, uh made a massive impact on me my first year knocking doors. If it wasn't for him, I would have to tell you that might not even be here doing this, right? Uh, but impact is kind of it's addicting if you can inspire people in their lives and uh shoot for the middle and everything to believe in it and enjoy. That's you know, that's that's how I've gotten success. It's that it's you think it's not a novel concept. Help people out, they will like you.

SPEAKER_01 7:55

But it's it's amazing. Lead with value, ask how you can guess. Yeah, and guess what? It all um I feel like it's cheating.

SPEAKER_00 8:04

You go do nice things for people and you put a camera on it, possibly that's right. And all of a sudden, like you said, on the beach, all of a sudden, business is coming out of nowhere. People want to follow you, like you're inspiring people, and it just takes bravery. Yeah, putting yourself out there. People think your same thoughts all the time, they just they just are too afraid to say it.

SPEAKER_01 8:23

And guess what? Everybody feels like they're scared in front of a cube, yeah. Everybody feels like they look like shit. No, the best best part in it is again, I think thinking RV because he's just such a regular guy, and I think that's that's really the beauty of it. It's just having that connection with Solarn. Yeah, so powerful videos then it's such an amazing part, uh part, and even videos I'll be going to continue to see. That's why I read on it. I am already selling it.

SPEAKER_00 8:51

People ask me to predict the future a little bit here in Solarn. I have fun with it. Yeah, I can go down 10 different rabbit holes, but one of my favorites is social media. I think that this year in 2024, I genuinely believe that business owners and businesses themselves are going to start ranking and station being like yeah, our industry doesn't have a medium to advertise on. Uh, you know, like we're not putting vendors, uh, vending machines in the streets like Coca-Cola, right? And trucks driving through like we don't have that for a lot of our business. So how do we distinguish who we are or differentiate ourselves from our competition? And in our industry and where our audience is at is social media, right? And the ones that are starting to do it or the ones that have been doing it, coincidentally happen to be the largest names in the solar industry. Yeah, you being one of them. Of course, I'd be social media at a high level. And people might not know this, but this conference that we built, one you mentioned solar cost. Uh, we've spent a less than a thousand dollars in that spend. It was literally all off of our social media channels. Uh that's that's it. So impressive influence generated a multi-million dollar world, world known conference, uh, and we've only had it for two years.

SPEAKER_01 10:00

They say that viewers' eyeballs are key, right? And you have the eyeballs of the space right now, and it's gonna continue to be that way. I'm sure of it. Uh, your show, Solarcon, is uh you guys honestly been just it would be like so much fun for me to answer it. I felt really blessed because it's each of being really creative ways every year. Oh, I think I'm gonna ask you for something selfish here. Okay, you don't have to give a big but like is there anything like really like any like teasers? Like what should what should everybody be most excited about? Are you on it out here?

SPEAKER_00 10:34

Like she really can know a lot. She already knows, she's part of it, she's helping build it. I can't I can't think of anything in this industry I want to do more than work with Ivy and Steve Buckmiller. These two I think are the most intelligent people in solar because they've been through the up and they've been through the down and now going through the up. Do you know how many people in this industry have done that? Probably, probably not, right? You're the first. But I wouldn't, I would, I'm so stoked to be able to build something. What we're working on this year, Abby Tell. What we're working on this year. Uh, you might know the Nobel Peace Prize, right? You might know uh JD Power and Associates for Cars. The solar industry is obviously as prestigious as that. So we are building Solar Academy's uh awards, the Academy Awards for Solar. Uh, we're building that together, Steve's helping out, and it's called the Excellency Solar Awards Lab. We held an event called the League of Influencers where everyone dressed up, tuxedos. We have red characters walking, we um gala dresses, all the ladies look beautiful. Abby's still the show, obviously. Uh, but your dad's guys incredible. And I mean, did you get on your felt that I for real? We got it all. Uh, but you know, we're building these awards because uh people in this industry deserve to be recognized. And and guess can I just take a minute to explain this? Please, please. I go to all of these, I mean, we all see it in the movies. We see like all these industries, they have these black tie events and they have parties at yachts and people going on shows, pressing up, and and and we don't have that. Our industry doesn't have a culture aside from build an install company or be a salesperson driver and or be a soccer, right? Be but but where me celebrating them? Where's our academy awards, right? And where where is where where is our where's our shark tank? Yeah, give us give us some love media, right? This is hard shit. So we need to be selling we do. This is the career that we chose. I mean, likely, what are we gonna do? All of us pick up one day and be like, hey, you know what? Solar was fun, but we decided at the eight, I'm 40 years old, at the age of 40, I decided that I'm just gonna go study potty. Yeah, it's just this is the industry I'm in, and in and I think that these people that I meet are beautiful and incredible.

SPEAKER_01 12:50

Yeah, you know, I did all you have a super interesting perspective. You have eyes every sacred year. Tell me, is there anything that people would say elevates the surface as far as like new exciting upcoming things?

SPEAKER_00 13:03

Uh yes, definitely. So for me, a lot of what I see up made in this industry is a lot of sorry, I don't want to partnerships forming, right? Lots of partnerships. And and I did speak a little bit earlier about social media. A lot of the partnerships I see are ones that are actually having audience because they believe that with this audience and this audience, they combine and mutually benefit each other in a collaboration uh that complements both businesses. And I'm and I'm beginning to see a lot of that. Uh I'm beginning to see uh, you know, I feel banks coming out uh for different reasons, and I don't know how far into this we want to get. Um yeah, so and instead wasn't that interesting. Uh but I see these new banks come about, and we know that everyone has these different policies and ratios, but I mean why. Yeah, but I do see a lot of people wanting to partner up with them or switch over to them and recommend it uh ways in the new market. There's a new type of uh uh BPA. Have you heard of that? PPAs. Uh and uh it's it's just a new style of PPA that's coming out. Batteries, for example, one of the coolest things I've heard batteries are doing is they're beginning to follow uh weather stations. Have you heard this? They're beginning to follow weather stations, and when like in Texas tornadoes out and they know that the solar has not generated enough power in the battery storage, that they're following these weather channels and they'll actually uh charge the battery up from the utility company so that if power goes out, they have a fully charged battery. They're doing that uh because utility companies can announce blackouts around us and else these things, so they're monitoring those things, charging the battery up from the utility to get their armor. There's so many cool things going on that people are adapting with uh banks are partying with battery banks or party charging with uh proposal companies. Wow, everyone's finding new ways to get into market to get to one source, and that is the volume. So sales it still rates brand because we all need you and love you. Yeah, uh, but also learn some things a little bit so you don't catch all these companies, you know what I'm saying? Like they're not really doing good, and it's hard to make a transition from all of the money and all the success that we were making to dipping down into finding a new way to get you all excited again, and and frankly, get you all installed because there's a lot of trauma happening in that in the country. Allow allow a little bit of grace for a shift in economy, right?

SPEAKER_01 15:22

Yes, change is inevitable. But you can learn to adapt and smoke those are the people like all your options, those are the ones that are gonna stick through. That's resilience, right? I like the optimism that you brought. Love the perspective of the new and the great. Lights me up, makes me straight the right here. Make sure you're following all of these guys, this guy's channels for everything new in the space. Stay on top of everything, and do not forget to Juliet's so bargain.