How a renewable energy company sparked direct to consumer sales
See first-hand the features that empower businesses like Renogy to grow with BigCommerce.
increase in conversion rate
increase in revenue
increase in website traffic
Renogy is a renewable energy company supplying solar panels for homes, businesses and recreational vehicles.
The company began as a small project led by current CEO Yi Li while she was earning her Ph.D. at Louisiana State University and working for another solar company.
Upon seeing the rising demand for solar panels, Yi Li set out to make solar products more accessible to the general public.
In the beginning, Renogy sold a limited range of solar products through Amazon, eBay, and a handful of suppliers.
But with the help and support of the Louisiana Business and Technology Center, Renogy quickly grew into a flourishing company, expanding its product line by specializing in solar do-it-yourself kits for home or vehicles.
As told to BigCommerce by Valerie Duong, Marketing Supervisor, renogy.com
Although the company started in 2010, our first website didn’t go live until 2013.
We originally used Volusion for our ecommerce platform; however,  we quickly realized that Volusion didn't give us the features we wanted. Specifically, the platform lacked the variety we wanted to run different kinds of promotional campaigns. Additionally, Volusion’s built-in analytics made it difficult for us to obtain a full overview of our store’s performance, such as looking at revenue by SKUs or product. It also lacked basic customer insights.
We ultimately decided we needed a more robust ecommerce platform. After thoroughly researching leading ecommerce platforms, we made the decision to switch to BigCommerce.
As told to BigCommerce by Valerie Duong, Marketing Supervisor, renogy.com
One of the main features we liked about BigCommerce was the built-in marketing and promotional tools that were far more user-friendly and functional than what we had on Volusion.
When switching to BigCommerce, we also did a major site redesign, which we believe has helped in our success. With the redesign, our goal was to make the site more modern and accessible to consumers, with a higher emphasis on rich visuals and product photography.
While simultaneously redesigning our website and migrating to BigCommerce required a lot of preparation by our internal team, the transition was seamless.
Currently, we sell a large number of our solar products to installers and dealers. In addition, we work directly with large organizations such as schools who want to buy in bulk for their facilities.
We operate as both a business-to-business and a business-to-consumer company, but we are experiencing higher sales on the consumer side. In light of these results, we are pushing our consumer line even more by developing products for every use, from tailgating at football games to camping.
“While simultaneously redesigning our website and migrating to BigCommerce required a lot of preparation by our internal team, the transition was seamless.”
VALERIE DUONG MARKETING SUPERVISOR, RENOGY.COM
“After thoroughly researching leading ecommerce platforms, we made the decision to switch to BigCommerce.”
VALERIE DUONG MARKETING SUPERVISOR, RENOGY.COM
“Since launching on BigCommerce, we've experienced a 40% increase in conversion rate, 30% increase in revenue, and 20% increase in site traffic. "
VALERIE DUONG MARKETING SUPERVISOR, RENOGY.COM
Since launching on BigCommerce, we’ve experienced a 40% increase in conversion rate, 30% increase in revenue, and 20% increase in site traffic. We are pleased to have found an ecommerce platform that helps us continue to grow.
Over the years, Renogy also has been the recipient of numerous awards and recognition. We received the Graduate of the Year award from Louisiana Business and Technology Center in 2014, a spot on Inc. 5000's top 500 fastest growing private companies, and certification by the Women's Business Enterprise National Council.
We started small and we appreciate all of the help and support we’ve received from our employees, suppliers, and customers. BigCommerce has been an integral part of our success.
“We started small and we appreciate all of the help and support we've received from our employees, suppliers, and customers. BigCommerce has been an integral part of our success.”
VALERIE DUONG MARKETING SUPERVISOR, RENOGY.COM
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