Wing Energy
14 June 2024
Sector: Renewable Energy
Location: Rushcliffe
Wing Energy is a renewable energy solutions business based in West Bridgford, Nottingham. Its mission is to promote and support the transition to sustainable energy.
The business is a Tesla-certified installer and builds balanced energy systems for commercial and residential properties. Wing Energy specialise in design and installation of photovoltaic (PV) systems, battery storage and electric vehicle chargers.
Challenges faced
The business has been growing well over the last few years, until last year when the pace of growth dipped and turnover fell by £100,000. Director, Shaun Taylor puts this down to increased competition as many local electricians pivoted to renewables which has affected margins. Having said that, the level of knowledge and skills needed for this work is a high entry barrier and because Wing Energy has all the necessary accreditations they have a distinct advantage over new entrants.
Still, with bills and wages to pay the business couldn’t afford to sit back. They needed to generate more business and grow to safeguard current jobs. A lot of their money was also reinvested into the business, including the acquisition of electric vehicles so the business needed to keep moving forward.
Solution and Impact
Wing Energy has taken advantage of the Accelerator project with 1-2-1 support from Business Adviser Insan Farooqi. Through a business diagnostic, they have identified what their most pressing needs are. One of these areas is Wing Energy’s current website. Shaun commented: “Increasing competitors in the renewable energy space requires our online presence to be working optimally to drive enquiries into our job management system.”
The business successfully applied for a Growth Voucher and is being supported by consultant Ian Lockwood to ‘polish up’ the website and help generate more quality leads. Both Shaun and his colleague Shivam have attended East Midlands Combined County Authority Growth Hub and Accelerator workshops which have helped them identify the skills they need and don’t have in-house. Shaun continued: “Ian has those skills in SEO, website design and optimisation so we are using him to help take us to the next level and help drive leads. We can monitor where leads are coming from and where we are losing people.”
The business hopes to cut costs, improve efficiency and streamline processes which will help them become more competitive on pricing and win more customers. The website work will also help them be more targeted in their marketing, particularly around Google Ads. The support has helped them specify geographical areas and potential customers, stopping adverts to people who have no intention of buying and wasting their marketing budget. Ian is also guiding Shivam on the website to help the business build an in-house resource.
“I am impressed with the attention to detail and the care taken to understand our business from Insan.
Because we’ve done the workshops, we’ve recognised which of the consultants has the skills we need. Ian’s work on the website is helping us to generate leads which is vitally important to secure the jobs we’ve got. It’s been a life saver.”
- Shaun Taylor, Director
This initiative is funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) and delivered by East Midlands Chamber on behalf of Rushcliffe Borough Council.
