Qualification funnel strategy + homeowner intent targeting for a Southwest US solar installer
This solar installer had been buying shared vendor leads at $85 per lead — the same leads being simultaneously sold to three to five competing installers. With no loyalty and no real intent, the close rate sat under 8%. Sales reps were battling over cold contacts who had filled out a generic form weeks prior and barely remembered doing it.
Their Google Search campaigns were targeting broad terms like "solar panels" and "solar company." This attracted commercial developers, renters, and low-income households who could not qualify for solar financing. The traffic volume looked healthy in reporting, but the signal quality was negligible. Every unqualified click was burning budget that should have been reaching actual homeowners.
With no qualification filter between the ad click and the sales call, the sales team was spending 80% of their time on leads that would never close. Churn among sales reps was climbing — good closers leave when the leads they are handed are consistently unworkable.
Stripped all generic "solar" terms from the account. Rebuilt keyword sets exclusively on homeowner-intent phrases: "solar panels for my home," "solar installation cost," "best solar company near me," "solar savings calculator." Added a comprehensive negative keyword list to block renters, commercial inquiries, and DIY searches before the first click.
Built a qualification landing page with a 3-question pre-screen before the contact form: Do you own or rent your home? What is your home size in square feet? What is your average monthly electric bill? Leads that do not meet minimum thresholds receive an educational email sequence instead of a sales call. Qualified leads proceed directly to the contact form and trigger an immediate sales alert.
Rewrote ad copy to reference specific utility companies and high electric bills. Headlines like "Still Paying APS $220/Month?" and "SRP Rates Up Again — Solar ROI Has Never Been Better" attracted homeowners with the highest solar ROI potential. Click-through rate increased 3.2x versus the prior generic copy, and the leads who clicked were dramatically more likely to qualify.
Built an automated SMS alert that fires to the next available sales rep within 60 seconds of a qualified form submission. The company committed to a callback within 90 seconds. Speed-to-lead at that response time is a documented conversion multiplier. Conversion from contact to booked appointment jumped to 64% — up from under 20% with the prior vendor lead model.
Built an automated email and SMS sequence for qualified leads who did not respond to the initial call. Day 1: personalized solar savings estimate based on their form inputs. Day 3: federal Investment Tax Credit reminder with current percentage. Day 7: financing options overview. Day 14: limited installation availability close. Non-responder conversion added 18 additional closeable opportunities from the same 45-day window.
Results reflect this specific campaign. Individual results vary.
"The qualification funnel was the game-changer. We used to chase 100 leads to close 8. Now we call 30 leads and close 9. The ads cost more per lead than the vendor junk we were buying, but the quality difference is night and day."
Tell us about your solar business and your current lead situation. We will show you exactly where the budget is leaking and what a qualified homeowner funnel looks like for your market.
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