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www.HartfordBusiness.com June 1, 2015 • Hartford Business Journal 29 OTHER VOICES Fuel cell park raises value of renewable energy projects By Joel Rinebold T he recent announcement by FuelCell Energy to develop a 63-megawatt fuel cell park in Beacon Falls is of high inter- est and demonstrates the progress of the fuel cell industry, which should not come as a sur- prise. This project will be responsive to calls by the governor, commissioner of the Depart- ment of Energy & Environmental Protection, and state and federal policymakers for cleaner, cheaper, and more reliable energy. Fuel cell technolo- gy is among the clean- est electric generation technologies with ultra-low emissions of primary air pollutants and greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. Fur- ther, the technology is typically dispatch- able with some abil- ity for load following and is defined as a Class I renewable energy facility by Connecticut law. This classification as a renewable energy facility means that fuel cells will be able to enter the renewable energy credit market with a high capacity factor regardless of wind resources and sunlight needed by other renewable energy projects. It will also pro- vide Connecticut and other states with an alternative to purchasing renewable energy from remote locations, which may have low capacity factors and require storage and transmission to deliver energy to consumers. With these attributes, fuel cells should be viewed as a new market opportunity to the natural gas industry, as they will use relatively inexpensive, clean, and available natural gas to fuel an ultra-efficient, renewable generation technology. In Connecticut, the reasons for the Class I renewable energy facility distinc- tion include the ability of fuel cell technology to operate on natural gas or pure hydrogen potentially derived from renewable resources. Connecticut's forward-looking policy, which uses technical innovation and abun- dant, hydrogen-rich (CH4) natural gas as a transition fuel, moves both the state and the nation closer to a zero-emission, renewable, hydrogen-energy economy. The renewable energy industry should also find this technology improves the value proposition for renewable energy projects, such as solar and wind. With the limitation to produce electrical energy intermittently (only when the sun shines or wind blows), the renewable energy industry will have the ability to make use of off-peak electric - ity to generate energy and then store it as hydrogen. That energy can be used to fuel zero-emission vehicles, produce thermal energy and electricity with fuel cell technol- ogy whenever needed, or be introduced into the natural gas pipeline. This power-to-gas application could potentially develop a new renewable gas credit market. In terms of the fuel cell park's local impact, resident opposition should not be an issue. The technology is clean, quiet, efficient, and unob- trusive; and the planned location is within a former sand quarry that will generate an esti- mated $90 million in local property taxes over the project life. Further, the project is proposed to produce affordable energy for ratepayers and be built with private capital financing. The added ben- efits that will come from this project are eco- nomic development and job creation. In fact, the Northeast states now lead in the global research and manufacture of advanced hydrogen fuel cell technology with more than 1,100 companies in the supply chain and 5,700 total jobs. Connecticut is at the center of this research and manufacturing cluster, rec- ognized by the U.S. Small Business Admin- istration, with eight original equipment manufacturers, more than 600 supply chain companies, and more than 2,600 total jobs. Continued investment in the hydrogen fuel cell industry will add to job creation and eco- nomic development, in addition to providing clean, long-term, energy sustainability. The proposed Beacon Falls project, billed as the world's largest fuel cell park, will exceed other FuelCell Energy projects in Korea and Connecticut. It will indeed be an important milestone but this title of distinction as the world's largest will not likely stay for long as fuel cell technology emerges as the technology of choice for cleaner, cheaper, and more reliable energy with special interest by the renewable energy and natural gas industries. n Joel Rinebold is the director of energy initia- tives at the Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology, an East Hartford-based eco- nomic development nonprofit that focuses on strengthening the state's competitiveness in high-tech business development. Joel Rinebold ▶ ▶ Connecticut's forward-looking policy, which uses technical innovation and abundant, hydrogen-rich (CH4) natural gas as a transition fuel, moves both the state and the nation closer to a zero-emission, renewable, hydrogen-energy economy. TALKING POINTS Closing sales means making sense to customers By John Graham I t takes smart, highly competent sales- people to meet the challenges presented by today's informed and savvy customers. Even so, there are many in sales who believe that success depends on a friendly smile, a gift for small talk, and a large dose of enthusiasm and optimism. Others might toss in a passion for selling, listening, the ability to close, and coming across as sincere. Yet, possessing a great attitude and excellent sales skills doesn't guarantee success. Many salespeople who do everything right underperform. With so much focus on per- sonal qualities and skills, the sales pro- cess doesn't get the attention it deserves. However, it's the process — the sales experience — that makes a huge differ- ence to customers. More and more, it's the process that engages them in ways that lead to closing sales. Here are elements of a customer-oriented sales process: 1. Play detective. Too many salespeople set themselves up for failure from the start. They try to go from "Good to see you" to "Thanks for the order" with as little inter- ference or distractions as possible. "Keep it simple" is their motto. It sounds good, really good. If only it were so easy. When a customer asks, "What can you do for us?" too many salespeople instantly launch into a presentation about their company and how it solves problems for its customers. And that's their mistake. "Right now, I don't know, but I intend to explore your situation and deter- mine the best way we can help" are the words that make the most sense to customers. They know that answers come from dig- ging and finding what the customer may have missed or failed to recognize because they're too close to the situation or are being pulled in other directions. Today's customers are skeptics. They've learned from experience that many solutions are often overly simplistic, miss the mark, or are poorly conceived and fail to deliver on their promises. Customers recognize that the right solu- tions result from proper investigation. That takes detective work. 2. Figure it out. Digging and gathering information is worthless unless it's analyzed so the problem emerges with clarity. Rarely, are instant insights accurate or complete, let alone correct. It takes struggling to figure how the pieces fit together and takes time and thought so a proposed solution makes sense to the customer. It's exciting when salespeople get their arms around a problem. It can be something like an "ah-ha" experience. There's a rush — an "I was born to sell" feeling. The tendency is to assume that once the problem is figured out, it's the time to tell the story to the customer. Since salespeople rely on their verbal skills to carry them through the selling process, they're eager to share the good news with the customer. But, slow down. We're not there yet. Something important is missing. 3. Write it down. What's missing is the answer to the crucial question, "What do I need to do to make the solution compelling to the customer?" This is where it's easy to drop the ball. In your mind, you see yourself going across the goal line. While enthusiasm is essential, it takes more to close sales. And here's where the dreaded words "write it down" enter the process. Writing is torment- ing, frustrating, and agonizing. It's hard work, which is why it's easier and more fun to talk than write. Yet, as a professor at the University of Wyoming told his students, "If you can't write it, you don't know it." These are strong words and easy to ignore but absolutely correct. It's the writing that clarifies ideas, hones arguments, exposes weaknesses, spots inconsistencies, and, most of all, makes clear what's missing. It's only then that you know what you're talking about and when you're sure you will make sense to customers. 4. Win 'em over. It's now do-or-die. You've done your homework and built a solid case for getting the order. While all this is necessary, you're still not ready to get in front of the cus- tomer to capture the order. To do so now would be like handing the sale to the competition. In other words, it's time to "win 'em over." It's when a salesperson puts the power of the process into play. It's based on investing in the customer — on committing your knowl- edge, experience, and creativity (and that of a sales team) on uncovering the need and developing the right solution. All of this focuses on one result: the cus- tomer saying, "This makes sense." The cus- tomer sees beyond the proposed solution. It's your investment that's persuasive, that makes the difference. Winning is not simply providing all the right information and facts, or impressing a customer with the wonders of your product or service, the importance of your company, or even your impressive track record. It's a matter of making the right investment that gives salespeople the extra edge. n John Graham of GrahamComm is a mar- keting and sales strategist-consultant and business writer. John Graham ▶ ▶ It's exciting when salespeople get their arms around a problem. It can be something like an 'ah-ha' experience. There's a rush — an 'I was born to sell' feeling.