Building a successful solar business comes with a slew of extra time-consuming tasks. This is especially true in the solar industry, where lead generation can sometimes take more time than the actual installation.
Without the leg work or a lead generation marketplace, getting business can be slow going, but it’s not impossible. To get those coveted solar leads that convert and make your company some money, you don’t have to rely on cold calling or knocking on every door in town.
5 DIY Solar Leads: Strategies For Keeping It In-House
Generating solar leads in-house is time-consuming and requires strategic thinking. Here are some DIY strategies you can use to create leads that will hopefully turn into sales.
List Your Company Online
Today, any person looking to buy something searches for it online, and the same applies to solar installation.
While you might have a beautiful website, the chances of it appearing as a first-page search result are slim.
That is unless you have been in the business for years and consistently have people clicking on your URL and interacting with your content.
Showing up as a newbie will be almost impossible.
The competition is stiff, with the top spots dominated by directories and review sites. Users rarely click on anything but the first three search results. A click on your website might never happen.
Luckily, it’s not all hopeless.
Directories
When someone searches for “solar leads near me,” they are most likely to be presented with solar review sites or directories. Because search engines favor large, consistent websites, solar directories tend to pop up first.
You can take advantage of this by listing your solar company on these directories. When you do, your company shows up when people search for local solar companies.
Because of the flexible nature of the internet, these might change over time. We suggest searching in your area to see which appears first.
These are the directories that show up most often on search engines.
- The Solar Directory
- Solar Reviews
- Solar Business Hub
- Clean Energy Resource Teams
- ENF Solar Directory
Don’t stop with just directories. Add yourself to solar associations.
Solar Associations
By adding yourself to these trusted sources that guarantee specific solar standards, you’ll likely pick up more clients ready to purchase quality, guaranteed solar panels and systems.
- Solar Energy Industry Association: The SEIA is a highly trusted source with a directory that offers sources for every part of the solar industry. You can find solar installers, project managers, and many more solar industry specialists here.
- North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners: NABCEP contains two directories – the Company Accreditation Directory and the Certified Locator Directory. Both help consumers find qualified and certified professional solar companies.
Even though your business will be available on the directories, the competition with other local companies on the directory will still be steep. Adding your business to a solar directory is only one step in gaining solar leads in-house.
Use Instagram
Yes, Instagram is mainly known for selfies and videos of cute pets. However, when used right, it can be a great marketing tool for solar companies.
With the right hashtags and a carefully curated posting schedule, you can catch the attention of homeowners and people actively searching for solar solutions.
Here’s how you can use Instagram to get fresh, solar leads.
Create a Post Schedule
Create a posting schedule and stick with it.
You can start once a week and gradually increase the frequency of your posts. Use apps that let you plan your feed and schedule uploads so that your content is uploaded even if you aren’t active on the platforms.
Instagram favors consistent posting and quality posts with engagement. While getting likes is important, how people interact with your content holds more weight.
Do they comment on your posts? Do they share and save your content? These clues will help you deliver the right content at the right time.
At what time you post is also essential.
Luckily, Instagram offers a business profile with analytics that lets you see the numbers behind your account.
It takes some time and trial and error, but you can see what time of the day and what days of the week get you the most engagement.
Share Quality Content
You might be at a loss on what to post, but you’d be surprised at what internet users find entertaining or engaging.
You can post any of the following:
- Before and after photos,
- Promotions,
- Company photos,
- Anything related to how going solar can improve your impact on the environment.
It’s best if you also take advantage of the video features on Instagram, especially the reels feature.
These short videos, known as reels, are consumed in massive numbers, and the algorithm currently favors accounts that use this feature.
Users also find progress videos satisfying. Show the installation process like applying spray foam, and create videos on the daily routines of your solar installers.
This generates leads and comes with the added benefit of showcasing your company’s processes.
Show potential customers what to expect when they work with your solar company and why using yours is the best option for them.
Use Hashtags
Hashtags are like Instagram’s directory. When you use a hashtag, your post shows up first for those browsing the tag. The hashtags you use are critical. Instagram lets you use 30 per post but beware of spamming your content.
While using 30 hashtags might seem like an excellent way to be seen, it’s better to narrow them down to the most accurate topics. Instead of just using a vague #solar tag, which has millions of posts and new ones every second, you can opt for tags with fewer users.
Most likely, these users are higher-quality leads and spend more time consuming your content. When you post on Instagram and add a hashtag in your caption, the number of posts for every tag is visible.
Niche-down and choose ones that fit with your account, the photo/video, and that have less content already. Anywhere between 50,000 to 500,000 gives you a good amount of reach.
Join a Homeowner Community
Homeowners are the people that generate the most leads for your business. So it’s only natural to join a homeowner community, where most of your potential local clientele is.
First, you have to identify the homeowner’s associations communities in your area. You can do this by manually sweeping the local associations and societies. Drive around, take note of the neighborhood names, and look them up at home.
The next step is to contact these homeowner communities to talk to their council or leadership. If they have websites or Facebook pages, a contact form with their contact details should be available.
However, it might be a little tricky. The association may already have other solar power companies on their newsletters or sponsored pages. Don’t give up. This is where the quality of your service and offering affordable packages makes all the difference.
If they decide to accept your company into their community, they will most likely add your business to their website and newsletter.
Be available at community events to advertise your services with a booth that can provide any interested parties with the necessary information.
Smaller communities don’t always allow solicitors. If this is the case, be persistent in finding contact information. Tactfully get involved with the leadership and the community to advertise your solar solutions.
Create a Solar Facebook Group
With over 2.9 billion active users, Facebook is still the largest social media platform in the world. It also has a massive, flourishing marketplace with many people using it as their source to find reliable local businesses.
With this strategy, create your own Facebook group for people interested in solar power. The downside is that you won’t have the established network of the homeowner’s groups but will have to build one from the ground up.
It will be hard but not impossible, especially with Facebook’s ample promotional tools. For a fee, you can show targeted ads to people in your area that have shown any interest in solar power or green energy options.
To get the most out of your new group, you shouldn’t use every post for marketing your solar services. People will get tired of your posts quickly, and may even consider them spam.
Instead, opt for posts focused on showing users what to expect from solar panel companies, how the installation is done, and what to look for when purchasing a solar system. Doing this builds genuine trust with your audience and makes you their natural first choice for their solar needs.
Creating a presence on any platform is difficult. Be patient with the process, post consistently, and provide quality content that Facebook users engage with.
Invest in Content Marketing
Content marketing focuses on creating content like blog posts, listicles, and product reviews that all lead people back to your website. Content marketing is not a short-term fix. Like all the above strategies, this will take time and effort but will be worth the time if done right.
Instead of just creating service pages on your website, create articles on other things about solar power and the industry.
If even one of these articles makes it to the top of any search topic, you’ll experience an influx of users on your website.
Most users will click out, but a small group will further explore your website and find your service pages.
The average click-through rate (CTR) to sales ratio for businesses is 2%. This rate means only 2% percent of your visitors will make a sale, which is only if your campaign was successful.
It’s depressing, considering the competition among solar companies is only getting fiercer.
If your audience is searching for solar-related articles, reviews, or comparisons, it’s safe to assume they are in the market for solar and might consider your company an option.
Simplify Solar Lead Generation and Outsource It
To be successful with in-house lead generation, you’ll have to commit to most of these strategies and keep an eye out for future lead sources.
Considering the time and work it takes to build a reputable presence, especially one from which people are willing to purchase, the obvious choice is to outsource your lead generation.
You don’t need to outsource if you have a big following and are steadily generating leads.
However, suppose you don’t have the presence or the ability to dedicate every spare moment to trying to finesse the ever-evolving internet algorithms. In that case, outsourcing will be your golden ticket to lead generation.
If you want your business to be on a professional level with consistent leads and sales, consider the advantages that come with outsourcing solar lead generation to a trusted partner:
- Guaranteed Sales: With an outsourced lead generator, you can purchase a lead that’s immediately interested in installing solar. There will be no guessing or begging for impressions. You will be instantly connected to people that have done the research and are ready to install solar.
- Low Effort & Cost Effective: Hosting, promotions, analytics software – all these things cost money and take up a large chunk of time. Instead of spending money and time on a ‘maybe’ with digital marketing, you can buy leads and get right to work.
In-House and Outsourced Solar Lead Generation: The Key to Success
Generating leads with in-house resources is not impossible, but it’s time-consuming and gobbles up your time and money. You have to constantly create clever marketing strategies and keep your audience engaged.
However, with Solving Solar, you can easily outsource lead generation to a trusted professional. Free up your time and finances by taking the guesswork out of solar lead generation.
Let an expert handle the solar panel installation lead generation while you get down to business and do what you do best.
