The solar market in the United States has been exploding for a decade, and in just the three and a half years leading up to Q1 2021, the market doubled in size. With the industry enjoying record quarters and new opportunities abound, your solar sales business is faced with two important questions:

1. How can you best capture the new customers entering the market and looking to become the newest adopters?
2. How can you best capture that market share before the ever-growing army of competitors can?

The following represent three simple but highly effective strategies that your solar sales business can use to improve your marketing and promotion and, in turn, maximize the slice of the pie you can claim as the market grows. 

 

1) Make Evangelists of Your Customers

Residential solar installations are curiosities that always get the neighbors asking questions. One of the most powerful ways you can generate new leads is by turning your existing customers into brand evangelists that will promote you for free when the neighbors come calling. By far the best way to turn existing customers into marketing machines is to ensure that the service you provide them — from initial consultations through installation and ongoing support — is unmatched. But don’t underestimate the power of asking. Many happy customers will be more than happy to send you referrals or to hang on to some business cards or brochures to pass on when interested parties inevitably have questions about their new installation. Make sure each installation ends with a clear request for referrals. 

 

2) Simplify Your Messaging

The hardware and science behind solar power are complex, but the benefits it offers are simple and easy to understand. A great way to boost the effectiveness of your marketing materials and sales process is to simplify your messaging, avoiding technical descriptions of features in favor of straightforward descriptions of benefits. Clients don’t care about the science behind how photovoltaic panels work or the gauge of cable being used in their installations. They do care about lowering their monthly power bills, helping the environment, and increasing their energy independence. Looking for opportunities to simplify and refocus on benefits is an effective way to pull in more leads and close more deals with little to no extra cost involved. 

 

3) Know Your Target Demographics Inside and Out

The margins on solar sales are so tight and the competition so steep that to maintain healthy growth and carve out a secure foothold in the market, you can’t afford to waste anything. Marketing is one of the easiest areas to bleed money in any industry, but in solar sales, leaks in your marketing budget are absolutely unacceptable. To ensure each marketing dollar generates the highest return possible, it’s crucial that you understand your customer demographics inside and out. 

Solar consumer demographics might seem obvious, but they aren’t. How many people would believe you if you told them that Kansas had a higher rate of adoption than California? Or that people who make under $50,000 annually drive adoption more than people in any income bracket above $150,000/year? Yet, both are true. The demographic data might be even more surprising locally in the area you service, so invest the time and resources necessary to know the numbers.

 

The three strategies outlined here represent effective ways to improve your marketing and promotion, and, in turn, your growth. However, arguably the most significant step you can take to improve the effectiveness and return on your marketing efforts is to adopt a high-end solar sales CRM. 

Customer resource management systems have become mission-critical software across most industries thanks to the benefits they offer to lead management and prospecting, sales, ongoing service, and overall customer relationship quality. 

CRMDialer is the most full-featured and effective solar sales CRM on the market today, offering all the benefits of an industry-leading CRM tool with the added bonus of a built-in power dialer. To find out more about how CRMDialer can help your solar business improve your promotion, refine your sales process, and boost growth, click here to start your no-commitment free trial today.