How Your Energy Broker Can Make or Break Your Energy Sales Career

As an energy sales agent or consultant in the competitive retail energy industry, finding the right energy broker that aligns with your goals can make or break your career. A great salesperson’s ambition can be stifled by an energy broker that doesn’t provide the support and resources needed for success in the electricity and natural gas arena. When choosing an energy brokerage firm, an energy sales professional should consider some of the following:

The most important aspect to consider when choosing an energy broker is the financial stability of the firm. There are many circumstances where the financial insolvency of your broker can negatively impact your energy commission payments and income. Some of the most important risks to consider are:

1. Upfront payments: Does the broker make upfront payments to other sales agents? If so, does the broker have a mechanism in place to protect you from other agents’ chargebacks? If another agent’s customers become delinquent and the broker is issued a negative commission from the supplier, how are you certain that you will be paid?
2. Commission calculations: Does the broker have some sort of software program or accounting mechanism to properly track and pay your commissions? Energy commissions can be complex and you want to ensure that you are being paid accurately.
3. Financial responsibility: Is the firm financially responsible overall? How do they invest or spend their money? Do you feel comfortable aligning yourself based on the firm’s financial practices?

The deregulated electricity and natural gas commodity markets are complex and ever-changing. It is vitally important to work with a broker that has experienced personnel who understand these complexities and can aid you in structuring your deals. Having an experienced energy advisor in your corner is the difference between winning and losing a deal. It can also determine the amount of commission you are paid and affect your retention rate. The broker’s staff should have deep knowledge and understanding in the following areas:

1. Individual utility market pricing: Each utility throughout the country has its own nuances. It is crucial that your broker understands the intricacies of each market so that they can help you properly price your customers’ accounts. Furthermore, the pricing details within each utility market can get even more granular, so having support personnel in your corner who are experienced is a major competitive advantage.
2. Custom deal structuring: Energy pricing is not a “one-size-fits-all” game. Many times your deals will require a custom price structure. It is important that your broker understands how to vet these deals and negotiate properly with energy suppliers. From custom standard fixed-rate deals to complex load-following block and index, you need support staff who can “talk the talk”.
3. Energy Commodity Futures Markets: Lastly, great support staff will understand the complexities of the wholesale commodity futures markets – both physically and financially. As all energy supply contracts are correlated to a futures position, it is important for your team to understand how these markets trade, what affects pricing, and how to take advantage of market opportunities.

Relationships. Relationships. Relationships. The retail energy sector is a business of relationships, and the supplier-broker relationship is of the utmost importance when it comes to successfully saving your customers money. If your broker has a bad reputation or lack of supplier relationships, he has an inability to properly serve you as a salesperson. You might miss out on pricing opportunities, not be able to compete against other brokers, or even worse lose your commission payments. You need a broker who can offer you pricing from all of the relevant suppliers, so it is critical to find a broker who is well-liked and has deep, lasting supplier relationships. These relations are the key to your success.

Diversegy strives to “check all the boxes” for its sales partners and sales professionals. In addition to being financially stable and having a deep understanding of the energy markets, Diversegy offers its partners access to the nation’s leading energy suppliers. Here is the value Diversegy brings to its partners in each area mentioned above:

• Financial stability: Through the backing of our publicly traded parent company, Diversegy has liquidity and financial stability that is rare in the energy broker sector. We offer our sales partners upfront commission payments and have financially conservative mechanisms in place to protect you and your commissions.
• Energy knowledge: Our team of energy professionals and support staff has over 100+ years of combined energy experience. From wholesale price structuring to energy financing to energy efficiency projects, we have the market knowledge to help you structure and win your deals.
• Supplier relationships: We have deep-rooted relationships with the nation’s leading energy suppliers. We offer our sales partners access to 60+ retail energy suppliers and pricing, and we are constantly looking to onboard reputable suppliers. Diversegy prides itself in only working with the leading suppliers in the country.

For more information on becoming a Diversegy energy partner, please email us at [email protected], contact us, or join us on our Energy Sales Platform Launch Webinar on October 5, 2021, by registering here.