How to sell permanent lighting door to door
When to knock, which streets pay, the first 30 seconds, and how to go from "we just hang our own" to a signed estimate without leaving the porch.
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When to knock
The fall build-up. From late summer into the holidays, people are already dreading the ladder and the tangled strings. That is your strongest stretch. If your install calendar really fills before the holidays, say so. If it does not, do not invent a deadline.
Every other month. The lights stay up all year, so the reasons do too: team colours on game day, red, white and blue for the 4th, orange and purple for Halloween, warm white every night for curb appeal. A rep who only sells Christmas has a three-month job.
The hour. Late afternoon into dusk catches both owners home, and a dark house next to a lit one is easy to notice. You do not need to wait for night: the daylight photo is turned to night in the app.
Where to knock
- Around your installs. A lit house is a sign the whole street sees every evening. Knock the neighbours while it is new.
- Homes that already hang lights. Old clips on the gutter, a cord on the porch, a ladder by the garage. They want the look; you are selling the end of the ladder.
- Newer subdivisions. Owners who decorate, and rooflines that repeat. Check whether the HOA has lighting rules before you lean on it.
- Big rooflines. Two storeys, peaks and gables mean a bigger job. A ranch is a clean front-only sale.
- Skip posted no-soliciting doors and obvious rentals.
The door, in seven steps
The full lines are on the lighting scripts page.
Read the house from the street
Look for a roofline worth lighting, old clips on the gutters, a ladder by the garage and lit homes nearby. Skip posted doors and rentals.
Open in 30 seconds
Who you are, why you knocked this house, and one easy question about how they decorate now.
Show them their own house lit up
Take a photo from the street, tap the roofline, pick a look and hand them your phone.
Measure the roofline on the porch
Fill each section in feet from satellite roof data, then trace it on the map to fine-tune.
Quote three packages
Good, better and best, built from your price per foot, extras and minimum job price.
Close or book a time
Sign on your phone or by QR code and take the deposit by card, or book a time both owners can look.
Note the door and follow up
Set the status, leave a voice note, email the postcard of their house lit up and set a go-back.
The 30-second pitch
Who you are, why this house, one easy question. "Hi, I'm Jordan with [your company]. I saw the clips still on your gutter from last year. Do you still hang your own lights every fall?" Then listen. Whatever they say about the ladder or the weekend it takes is your opening. Do not explain the product. Show it.
Show them their own house, lit up
Ask for 30 seconds and take a photo from the street. The app turns it to night. Tap the roofline corners and lights appear at real spacing, with the glow falling on their own siding and brick.
- 11 looks, from warm white and Christmas to team colours (pick two)
- Steady, twinkle, chase, colour fade or sparkle
- Show customer opens it full screen to hand them the phone
- Save it on the house, share it with your logo, or email it as a postcard
- Drawn on the phone: no AI, no charge per picture, on every plan
Measure and quote on the porch
Once they like the picture, they ask "how much?" Give a real number. On the knock map, 📐 Measure roofline uses satellite roof data to fill in the front, garage, sides, upper floor and peaks in feet in seconds. Trace it on the map to fine-tune.
Your price per foot for each section, your extras and your minimum job price become three packages: Front Glow, Curb Appeal and Full Home (rename them). Example: 120 ft at $24 a foot is $2,880 before extras. The full method is in how to price permanent lighting.
Close at the door, or book a time
Close when both owners are there and they have picked a look. They sign on your phone, or scan a QR code and sign on theirs, then pay the deposit by card: 40% to start, and you can change it. Your terms, warranty years and timeline text are your own, so read them out plainly. Book a time instead when a spouse is missing, the HOA must approve it, or the roofline needs a closer look.
Objections you will hear every night
"I'll hang my own." "Too expensive." "My HOA won't allow it." "Holes in my fascia." Each one has an honest answer that needs no promise you cannot keep. Ten of them are on the scripts page, and the AI objection coach has the same set to practise.
Follow-up that works after you leave
- A postcard of their house. Email the lit-up picture from your business, with your logo, note and phone. Its button opens a page where dusk falls on their house, the lights switch on, and they try colours themselves, then call, text, email or message you.
- Know when they look. You are notified when it is opened and when they write back. Or tap Mail it and a printed card of their house goes out with your Sunday mailing.
- Notes and go-backs. Talk after the door and a voice note fills the card for you to check. Set a go-back for the spouse or the HOA meeting.
Use your own photo of the house. Google Street View's terms do not allow it in marketing.
Every house remembers the visit
Lighting is a come-back-later sale, so the map does the remembering. Every house you knock is a pin, and the pin is where the job starts.
- Status, notes, photos, voice notes and history on every pin
- GPS-verified visits, so a knock on the map is a knock at the door
- Open a pin to measure the roofline and show the house lit up
- Go-backs that bring the house back when it is due
- Territories for each rep and a live team map for the manager
Running a lighting team
Give each rep a territory so nobody double-knocks a street, and use the leaderboards and stats to see who is producing. Then pay to match: see how to pay lighting reps.
Check the local rules first
Before a crew works a new town, check your city's solicitor permit rules, knocking hours and any no-knock list. Carry the permit if one is required, and obey every no-soliciting sign. This is not legal advice; when in doubt, ask the city.
| Step | What FieldStacker does |
|---|---|
| Find the doors | Knock map with pins, statuses, notes, photos, history and territories |
| Show it lit up | Phone photo to night, traced roofline, 11 looks, 5 effects, Show customer |
| Measure and quote | 📐 Measure roofline, Trace it, price per foot by section, extras, three packages |
| Close | E-signature on your phone or by QR, deposit by card |
| Follow up | Postcard email of their house lit up, open and reply alerts, voice notes, go-backs |
| Coach the team | AI objection coach with a lighting set, live team map, leaderboards |
Permanent lighting door-to-door questions
When is the best time of year to sell permanent lighting door to door?
Late summer and fall, when homeowners are already thinking about holiday lights. But the lights stay up all year, so game days, the 4th of July, Halloween and plain curb appeal are reasons to knock in every season.
Do I need to knock after dark to show the lights?
No. You take the photo in daylight and the app turns it to night. Dusk is still a good hour, because both owners are often home and dark houses stand out.
Which neighbourhoods are best for permanent lighting?
Streets near your installs, homes with signs of temporary lights (old clips, cords, a ladder by the garage), and newer subdivisions where owners decorate. Owner-occupied matters: renters usually cannot approve anything mounted on the house.
Should I close at the door or set an appointment?
Close when both decision makers are there and the roofline is simple. Book a time when a spouse is missing, the HOA must approve it, or the roofline needs a closer look. A visit that happens beats a yes that cancels.
Do I need a permit to sell lighting door to door?
Often, yes. Many cities require a solicitor permit, set knocking hours or keep a no-knock list. Check your city's solicitor permit rules before you work a new area, and respect every no-soliciting sign.
What should a lighting rep carry?
A sample section of the track and a light so people can hold the product, cards for the not-homes, and a phone for the map, the picture, the measurement, the quote, the signature and the deposit.
Light up your next driveway
Draw a territory tonight and show your first house lit up tomorrow. 14-day free trial, no credit card, month to month.