Solar Marketplace
The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands developed the Nigeria Solar Marketplace to connect people and organisations working across the clean-energy sector. The platform brings solar businesses, customers, financiers and service providers into one shared space to support project discovery, investment and growth.
Each audience arrives with a different goal. Businesses are looking for opportunities to grow, customers want reliable and affordable energy, financiers need projects they can assess, and service providers want to reach organisations that need their expertise. The experience needed to make room for all four perspectives.
I designed distinct pathways for each audience, giving them a starting point shaped around their needs. For customers, that includes a free load calculator on the homepage, helping them understand their energy requirements before contacting a provider or making a commitment.
A Clear Starting Point for Every Audience
Instead of sending everyone through the same sign-up flow, I shaped each entry point around what that audience came to do.
Find opportunities to grow and connect with potential partners.
Solar Businesses
Estimate energy needs with the free load calculator, then explore clean-energy options.
Customers
Assess solar projects and identify credible funding opportunities.
Financiers
Present their expertise and gain visibility across the solar value chain.
Service Providers
Problems
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Four audiences arrived with different goals and needed different things from the marketplace.
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Customers wanted clean energy but often didn’t know where to start or how much energy they needed.
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A generic sign-up flow would ask users to identify their own needs before the platform had helped them.
Solutions
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Each audience has a clearer route into the marketplace.
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Customers can explore their energy needs before contacting a provider.
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Businesses, financiers and service providers have dedicated ways to pursue opportunities across the solar sector.
Results
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Each audience has a clearer route into the marketplace.
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Customers can explore their energy needs before contacting a provider.
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Businesses, financiers and service providers have dedicated ways to pursue opportunities across the solar sector.
A marketplace is only as useful as the connections it makes possible
LEARNINGS
Designing for four audiences taught me that each needs a clear route into the platform, but the value comes from how those routes meet. Customers may begin by understanding their energy needs, while businesses, financiers and service providers look for relevant opportunities to connect.