Even though the popularity of solar continues to grow – around 210,000 residential solar installations were installed in the third quarter of 2023 in the United States – attracting high-quality solar leads remains one of the most challenging aspects of the solar business.
Without any further ado, let’s discuss how you can separate high-quality solar installation leads from the rest and capitalize on these high-intent potential customers.
What Are High-Quality Solar Leads?
High-quality solar leads are consumers showing significant interest in solar energy solutions: purchasing, installing, or maintaining solar equipment. More often than not, high-quality leads have confirmed their interest by taking specific actions like asking for a quote, filling out a form, subscribing to a newsletter, etc.
High-quality solar leads must also be relevant to your company. Demographics, psychographics, and history of interaction are the major factors that impact the quality of a particular lead. For example, if you’re targeting solar panel leads exclusively in New York, then even the most high-intent leads in Minnesota won’t do the job for your company because you don’t do business there.
Now, evaluating the quality of solar installation leads can focus your marketing efforts on your most profitable consumers so you can make sure every marketing penny goes where it should go.
The Importance of High-Quality Solar Leads
| Rational use of resources | High-quality solar leads allow you to focus on potential customers who are genuinely interested in solar products or services |
| Increased conversions | High-quality solar leads have already demonstrated interest in solar, increasing the likelihood of conversion. |
| Saving marketing resources | When you get quality solar leads, you don’t have to spend time on low-quality leads, optimizing your marketing resources |
| Increased profits | High-quality solar leads are more predictable and quicker to convert. You don’t have to spend much time nurturing these leads, as they are half there already. |
Here’s Why Evaluating Lead Quality is Crucial
In the quality-quantity debate, solar lead quality usually comes on top, especially for smaller businesses that can’t boast hundreds of monthly clients. To sustain your business, you must ensure a steady flow of leads and – more importantly – conversion, and high-quality leads serve these purposes well.
Here are three hypothetical situations:
- A potential client wants to buy a specific solar panel with installation and maintenance.
- A potential client is trying to choose the right model, quantity, and installation and maintenance services.
- A potential client is inquiring about the repair of their solar panel, but you don’t provide such services.
Theoretically, you’ve got three solar leads, but their quality varies dramatically, not to mention the third one is irrelevant. Evaluating the quality of these leads as soon as possible – where they are in the sales funnel, how likely they are to buy from you, and how to nurture each of them – would save you time on the third lead and speed up the conversion process for the former two.
Lead evaluation, and solar leads are no exception, is usually based on scoring the leads in question. The more points, the more likely the potential solar lead will convert into a paying customer.
Explicit vs. Implicit Lead Scoring
There are two governing lead scoring models: implicit and explicit.
Explicit Lead Scoring
Explicit lead scoring uses information collected from open sources or explicitly provided by the client via, for example, filling out a form. For B2B lead scoring, factors like company size, turnover, industry, number of employees, and the number of sales points are crucial.
In the explicit model, you can score leads with the BANT method:
- Budget
- Authority
- Need
- Time
In this methodology, all parameters carry equal weight, each scored on a 10-point scale.
Here’s a lead scoring example:
| Criterion | Lead Information | Points |
| Budget | Vague idea of solar panel costs but is willing to allocate a budget | 6 |
| Authority | Decides whether to buy a particular solar panel | 10 |
| Need | Wants an independent energy supply | 10 |
| Time | Installation needed within 5 days | 10 |
Total: 36 points make the lead high-intent, and they can be passed on to the sales department.
Implicit Lead Scoring
Implicit lead scoring works mainly with the lead’s behavior: interaction across touchpoints, previous experiences, and activity on marketing channels. None of this data is publicly available, but you can collect it with lead management software if you have one.
In practice, both scoring systems can be mixed, choosing criteria from explicit and implicit models based on the specific business case.
Tools To Evaluate Solar Leads
Implementing a scoring system for solar leads requires a certain level of automation, when you can collect information on the fly and make real-time adjustments alongside strategic decisions based on profound marketing analysis.
Here are the tools you may need to evaluate solar leads:
- Lead scoring software: Lead scoring software can collect exhaustive lead data, automatically score leads, and independently identify scoring criteria.
- CRM platforms: CRM software can store and organize data on solar installation leads so you can automate communications and analyze what affects the quality of your solar leads.
- Reporting Tools: Reporting software can inform you in real time about the quality of your leads and important changes. Likewise, it can visually present metrics to inform decisions and actions.
While lead scoring software may be enough to effectively evaluate your solar installation leads, the comprehensive use of all mentioned tools will align lead scoring with your other marketing endeavors and avenues.
Buy and Sell Insurance and Solar Leads with Profitise
The Profitise affiliate network might become your best place to monetize insurance and solar leads or – if you’re an advertiser – purchase high-intent leads for your business.
Here’s what Profitise offers:
- Selling or buying insurance and solar leads at the best price
- Connecting to the biggest pool of insurance and solar advertisers and affiliates
- Customizable lead generation forms
- Around-the-clock support from an affiliate manager
Sign up as an affiliate or advertiser to start selling or buying leads with Profitise. For questions, contact us at info@profitise.com or call 888-400-4868.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get leads for solar?
You can obtain solar installation leads in three ways: generate them from earned media, acquire them via paid advertising, or buy solar leads from lead generators and lead marketplaces.
Where can I buy solar leads?
You can buy solar leads online at Profitise by tapping into a huge market of lead sellers. You will be able to buy solar installation leads of the desired type, quality, relevance, and price without jumping through hoops.
