At Inovateus, we have a soft spot for our supply partners—and get excited when we can help them provide the best solar service, workmanship and overall experience to their customers. In celebration of Valentine’s Day, we’d like to share a few suggestions with our installer pals to help them spread the solar love to their customers and their communities.
For a small- or medium-sized regional solar installation company, there’s usually not a lot of budget for extensive marketing and promotion. But there are many creative ways to squeeze the most out of those limited resources. Our friend and colleague Tor “Solar Fred” Valenza, CMO of our marketing partners Impress Labs’ solar group, published a guide to solar guerrilla marketing a few years ago that is chock full of creative and productive ideas that won’t cost you an arm and a leg.
One of Tor’s suggestions focuses on “a fun way to cement brand relationships and referrals for years to come”: celebrating the “birthday” of each customer’s solar installation with some sort of small gift or remembrance each year for at least the first 10 years of the system’s life.
Set up a company calendar of all past (and future) customer installs, and then send out a simple “thank you for your business” in the form of a gift card, edible treat from a local bakery or eatery, movie tickets or other modest token of your appreciation in celebration of their system’s birthday.
If just one of these thoughtful actions results in a customer testimonial, referrals for new business or a reason for that customer to think about other upgrades such as home energy storage batteries or smart home energy management systems, the gesture easily pays for itself
(Special love and thanks to our supply partners Jefferson Electric, Midwest Wind and Solar, Morton Solar, Superior Energy Solutions and Green Alternatives for sharing some images of their recent residential and commercial installations.)
You don’t have to reinvent the wheel to spread the solar love. When there’s a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new commercial rooftop installation, invite the local politicians, chamber of commerce, local news media, and other VIPs. Use the opportunity to talk about how solar creates jobs, saves businesses (and families) on their energy bills, and cleans up the environment. Encourage the business or property owner to talk about his or her own motivations for—and the benefits of—going solar; word of mouth remains one of the best sources of customer acquisition and referrals.
At the end of the day, every successful solar installation or happy solar customer is a boost for your business—and an opportunity to collect new leads and spread some solar love.
By Jordan Covely, fulfillment manager, Inovateus Solar
