How to grow a solar company? | Fatrank lead generation

Kasra Dash: So if I have a solar company and I want a consistent flow of enquiries and new leads coming in every single month, what do you recommend for growing a solar business?

James Dooley: The first thing I would look at is enquiring with FatRank.com, who offer a pay on performance lead generation model. That is for different types of solar leads, whether it is solar panels or battery installations. We do a lot in the commercial solar panel industry, but you need to make sure you qualify. We need to make sure you are a brandable company that can convert leads and respond quickly to the leads that we generate. For solar over alternatives, I would not throw all your eggs into one basket. Do not just say FatRank is sorted so that is your lead generation done. I would look at other lead generation companies as well, like Bark, Checkatrade and TrustATrader. Plenty of others might generate leads too. What are your thoughts on lead generation companies that charge on a cost per lead basis and do not give exclusive leads, and might resell the same lead to four or five different companies?

Kasra Dash: There are a lot of those companies offering that service. If you are going to opt in for one of those, you need to set clear KPIs. You need to know how much you are spending each month and how much you are getting back from that company each month. A lot of businesses sign up and do not know how to track anything. Tracking is super important. Like you said, do not put all your eggs into one basket. Go with two or three different lead generation companies at the start. Track their performance and after three months say lead gen company one and two did not perform well but company three smashed it. Then reallocate the budget from one and two over to three and double down or triple down. Away from lead generation, what do you think about SEO?

James Dooley: Organic SEO, both for Google Business Profiles in the local map pack and ranking in the maps, is very important. You want to make sure you are ranking in your local area for commercial solar panel installation companies, commercial solar installers and industrial solar panel installers. You want to rank for all those terms in your area with your Google Business Profile. From an SEO standpoint it is a long term investment. You will not see an instant return on investment, but it is good for branding. It helps you get reviews and look good online. If you are paying PPC or a lead generation company today, when people search your name they should see a strong brand. If you are doing SEO and can rank for commercial solar panel installers, suppliers or manufacturers in the area, you can generate your own leads. In my opinion that is the holy grail of running a successful business. You want diversification, but if you can run SEO on your own site and generate your own leads, it is a no brainer. What are your thoughts on SEO and moving from SEO into PPC?

Kasra Dash: The pros of SEO are that you generate the lead on your own website, which builds asset value for your business. The cons are that it takes time, especially if you do not have a website or are just starting out. With PPC you can generate leads a lot quicker. It is pay to play. If you are not willing to allocate five thousand a month or a couple of grand a month, you will not get far with PPC. The cons are that you get a lot of click fraud in the solar space. It is expensive. If you are not building a negative keyword list or banning certain IPs to minimise click fraud, it can go against you and costs can stack up quickly. Pros and cons to both.

James Dooley: For sure. The last thing I would say is social media. You can try organic social media or Facebook ads. If you go down that route, remember it is interruptive marketing. If someone is scrolling through Facebook, how will you capture their attention? Grants can work. If you show they can get 50 percent off in a specific area because of a government grant, that grabs attention. If you show data on how much they will save and how long their payback period is, social media can work. What are your thoughts on social media?

Kasra Dash: If you run a basic ad like six thousand pounds for new solar, everyone has tried that. The play is using grants. If a council like Wigan releases a new grant covering 25 or 30 percent of installations, make people aware of it. That is more of an awareness ad than a hard sell. That approach works much better than shouting six thousand pounds for solar panels.

James Dooley: For sure. If you own a solar panel company and want to grow in the renewable energy industry, head over to FatRank.com and fill in the form to see whether you qualify for a pay on performance lead generation model. If accepted, it is a no brainer for businesses. They pay nothing for SEO, PPC or social media ads. They do not pay for the leads. They only pay on jobs that convert and make profit. Then they pay a finder’s fee. Make sure you have diversification. Make sure you also try to generate some of your own leads and enquiries. In my opinion the holy grail of any successful solar panel company is when they can generate their own leads in house as well.