Are you wondering why, as a residential solar panel installer, you should invest in pre-set solar appointments?
Well, we would say, Why should you not?
With the rewarding federal policies, falling PV panel costs, and the soaring demand for solar in every American household, it is public knowledge that the solar industry is only going to trend upwards for the envisioned future. However, with that comes the most concerning situation facing solar contractors: solar lead generation market saturation.
As per the IBISWorld report, the number of solar panel installation businesses in the US by the year 2022 will be 11,190, an increase of 1.9
% from 2021, with California coming in as the topmost, followed by Arizona and Nevada. And this number is only going to increase, not just in these three but all across the 50 states of the U.S.
When the demand is this good, solar installers can see the bright opportunities waiting for them ahead if they know how to crack the code to reap benefits from it.
All professional businesspersons know how difficult it is to grab even a single exclusive solar lead in this very competitive market. Even after days of nurturing, there is no 100% guarantee that the prospect will convert into a paying customer. Leaving with nothing but waste of time, energy, and resources and a lot of disappointment.
This leads to the very important question: How, as a solar installer, would you secure a qualified residential solar panel lead in this hot market?
Lucky for you, there are pre-set solar appointments that give solar businesses and contractors golden chances to acquire customer acquisitions that yield maximum returns.
In this blog, we will share the benefits of residential pre-set solar appointments and how they can boost the longevity of your solar company. So, let’s get started.
What is a pre-set solar appointment?
As a solar panel installer, what will be your key considerations while you are on the lookout for buying leads for your business? Needless to say, it would be the following:
- One is that you would need to invest minimal time and effort in order to nurture them.
- And two, after putting in all the energy, these leads actually convert into final sales.
Right? And Purchasing leads in the form of pre-set appointments helps you fulfill both of these requirements.
Preset solar appointments are pre-verified (usually over the phone or email), pre-qualified, and pre-screened homeowners that are ready to go solar and are interested in investing in your services. All your in-house sales team has to do is visit the homeowner and discuss the solar panel installation process. Indeed, it is not easy either, but it is way better than handling all the before prep work.
Both business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-customer (B2C) companies use the benefits of pre-set solar appointments and generate a greater return on investment (ROI). However, the preset leads are comparatively more expensive than the aged or real-time leads.
How much does a pre-set solar appointment cost on average?
Usually, the average cost of solar leads ranges from $20 to $200, depending on how old the lead is and other additional factors like the location you work from, qualifiers, and others. However, pre-set appointments fall on the pricing side because of all the pre-nurturing and pre-screening reasons, so be ready to expect between $150 and $350 per lead.
But don’t worry. The more you invest in exclusive pre-set appointments, the more they will pay you off.
Benefits of buying pre-set solar appointments
Buying pre-set solar appointments helps solar companies maximize their conversion rates while requiring minimal time and effort from their sales representatives. Let’s see how:
Hone in on your target market
In order to close more sales, it is imperative that your services reach the right audience. For instance, if you are a residential solar installer in California, then all the commercial solar requirements in California and residential requirements in other states won’t be useful for you.
So, it is imperative that you have a detailed list of leads who will be your prospective ideal buyers. All this in-depth research demands a lot of time and resources, which apparently you can’t afford all the time. As a solar panel company, you already have too much on your plate.
So how would you hone in on your target audience?
Again, the answer lies in pre-set solar appointments. Since these pre-set appointments are narrowed down after a lot of screening steps, verified over call or email, and personalized based on services and location, you now have access to insightful homeowners. This results in pouring more target-specific prospects into your sales funnel and boosts ROI.
Cut down the marketing spend
As per a study by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), the average solar panel company spends 5% of their total revenue on marketing. Well, this figure might seem low to an outsider, but for the startup’s or small-scale solar companies that are busy struggling with generating leads, accounting, marketing strategies, and administration, this might be a concerning financial thing.
Moreover, another study from the SEIA shows that 20% of the top solar companies invest 10% of their revenue in marketing. This means more successful businesses tend to spend more on marketing. All these figures clearly indicate that companies know the value of marketing in generating leads and driving sales growth. This implies spending on solar marketing is a must, but that also comes with a significant upfront cost.
Good news is investing in pre-set solar appointments saves you from the need for splurging on the marketing team. All that conserved money that would otherwise be allocated to digital strategies, paid ads, and the production team can now be redirected towards fueling your business by buying more qualified solar prospects and closing more sales.
Overall, the preset appointments help you reduce all the pre-lead generation and nurturing investment.
Spend more time closing deals
Choosing the path of generating your own leads might sound very energetic and entrepreneurial, even at a low cost. However, the time and money required to invest in hiring an in-house marketing team and sales staff, chasing consistently cold leads that might not turn into paying customers, and taking repetitive solar lead follow-ups are way more than simply buying the pre-set solar appointments. As per a research, homeowners take 6-9 months to go solar after their initial point of contact.
Because of this, your sales reps get less time to close more deals, thus limiting your business growth. And even if you are planning to market your services all by yourself, let us tell you that it is not easy. In fact, it is way harder than it appears and is very time-consuming.
Whichever afore-mentioned options you are planning to opt for, all will end up costing you time, money, and energy, with no guaranteed results. And this could be a troublesome thing, especially when you are a startup and have limited resources.
Therefore, if you really want to keep the leads pouring into your sales funnel and generate hefty revenue, it would be a wise decision to invest in pre-set solar appointments. Since these leads are already screened, nurtured, and ready to be converted into sales in one appointment, you and your team can close more deals in a shorter time.
So, instead of putting your blood and sweat into micromanaging every single thing, it would be best to direct your efforts in the direction that assures you the most promising results.
Maximizes average lead profits
Pre-set solar appointments usually return higher average lead profits as compared to aged leads and web-shared leads because of the following two reasons:
Boasts quality pre-screening: All the pre-set appointments have already been through a detailed screening process. This means only verified and qualified solar leads with a serious intention of installing solar on their property will call you for a home inspection appointment.
Chances of building better customer relationships: With the traditional leads, the sales reps had this constant fear of losing prospects if they didn’t attend them immediately as soon as they were assigned to them. They use all their tactics on potential clients so that they say yes to the solar services.
However, with pre-set solar appointments, this case is no longer applicable. With the leads being pre-screened and confirmed appointments, sales reps can now spend more time educating customers about solar panel technology and helping them provide the best solutions. Thus, laying a strong foundation with customer relationships and building rapport.
It will help position your company among the competitors
As we said earlier, it is a great time for solar installers to enter the market. The National Report Energy Laboratory (NREL) even projects that by the year 2050, solar energy would be able to provide 45% of the power in American households.
But just because the market is hot does not imply that the journey of positioning your company in the solar industry will be easy for you. The competition is still there.
There is a saying, “The earlier you start, the better it will be for you.” However, a little correction is needed: “The earlier you smartly start, the better it will be for you.”
What does that mean?
Everyone knows the ABCDs of solar lead generation, but does everyone get their hands on high-quality leads? Certainly, not. And if you are waiting for the time when the leads will come to you all by themselves with a little bit of word-of-mouth marketing, then you won’t be able to generate much business.
Investing early in pre-set solar appointments gives your first mover an advantage and helps you reap the benefits of it at the earliest and grow your company. This is one of the most reliable and fastest ways for startups or small-scale solar businesses to reach the doors of prospective buyers, stay ahead of the competition, and establish themselves in the industry.
Final Words
In a world of cutthroat competition, it is high time for solar companies to smartly invest in resources that could yield higher profits. Acquiring pre-set solar appointments is an efficient marketing strategy that maximizes sales conversions with minimal time and energy, thus helping you stay ahead of your opponents.
Furthermore, always remember that running a solar company demands a constant streamlining of exclusive leads into your sales funnel so that your sales reps keep focusing on closing more deals and meeting your target goals. Let’s review the benefits of pre-set appointments quickly:
- Cut down the extra budget spending on the marketing team.
- It helps in closing more deals quickly and optimizes sales conversion rates.
- It gives you a first-mover advantage and helps you position your company among the top competitors.
Thus, the earlier you start putting your foot into pre-set solar appointments, the earlier you start reaping benefits from them.
