Best SEO Strategies for Solar Marketing

Marketing plays a vital role in how you commu­nicate your company’s value propo­sition, clarify customers’ needs, and then meet them where they are. This is all the more true for solar businesses, which are currently seeing an uptick in demand from customers switching to renewable energy.

As solar technology becomes more affordable, you might be wondering how to compete against a growing market­place of solar installers. One of the best ways to accom­plish this is with an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy. You’ll attract more organic traffic, get better quality leads, and ultimately close more deals.

To help you prepare a strong plan of action, let’s review our top five SEO strategies for solar marketing:

• Set Up a Google Business Profile & Local Listings Management
• Expand Content on Your Service Pages
• Create a Blog with Author Blocks
• Include More Multimedia on Your Website
• Update Your Website’s Page Load Time

Imple­menting SEO strategies takes work and dedication, but don’t let the overwhelm get to you. Work on one thing at a time, or…

Set Up a Google Business Profile & Local Listings Management

Google Business Profile

When your car’s ​“change oil light” flashes on your dash, what do you do? Chances are, you turn to Google to find an auto shop to change your oil. Your solar customers are most likely doing the same.

A Google Business Profile (GBP) page acts as a forefront to your website and is often the first thing that people see when they search for your services. In fact, a Google Business Profile has been known to refer 40 to 70% of organic traffic to your website!

To take full advantage, you’ll want to fill in every section of your profile and be metic­ulous about your contact infor­mation. You’ll also want a stellar business description that includes your location and other necessary infor­mation, such as whether or not you offer a free solar estimate or financing assis­tance. Once you get your GBP set up, maintain it by posting regular photos and responding to questions and messages.

To learn more, check out our blog, How Can I Use Google My Business to Market My Solar Business?

Local Listings Management

Aside from a Google Business Profile, more and more people are searching for solar installers on platforms like Yelp, Facebook, Apple Maps, and Bing Places. Solar is still a relatively young industry, and consumers are keen to see photos and reviews from satisfied customers.

For this reason, it’s crucial that you keep your local listings updated with the right contact infor­mation, hours of operation, photos, and responses to reviewers. Not only will you maintain a trust­worthy presence with customers, but these listings will help your website rank higher in search engines by providing natural backlinks, which is why it’s such an effective SEO strategy.

Expand Content on Your Service Pages

Your website can be your best sales­person, but only if your service pages have content that attracts, informs, and converts potential leads. This is especially true for solar businesses, which carry the extra burden of explaining ROI to customers that might be skeptical about going solar.

To expand content on your service pages, make sure to:

At all costs, avoid keyword stuffing. Strike the perfect balance with well-researched keywords written in a useful way. Aim to educate and inform your reader about why they should go solar.

When you under­stand where your customers are coming from, you can speak to their needs more authen­ti­cally. This in turn builds trust and sets the stage for more appoint­ments and sales.

Create a Blog with Author Blocks

Hosting valuable, well-written content on your website will not only help you rank, but it also helps you build authority as an expert. The more your audience sees you as ​“the” solar expert in your area, the more they will go to you for advice, and eventually, service.

To achieve this, we recommend creating a blog with posts that answer common questions that people have about going solar. For example, you might write content on topics like, ​“How many solar panels do I need?” ​“What’s the average pay-back period for solar panels?” or ​“Do I need a battery with my solar panels?” Not only will you save time answering common questions, but you’ll also provide space for calls to action, with direct links to book a solar estimate.

Additionally, make sure that each blog post contains an ​“Author block” at the bottom, with your profile picture, name, and a brief bio. Include your creden­tials while throwing in a few personal facts. This helps make you approachable and builds rapport with your readers.

Include More Multi­media on Your Website

While solar technology may be exciting to some, the layman who’s simply inter­ested in reducing their electricity bills might need a little more pizzazz to keep their attention.

To encourage longer visits to your site, we recommend adding high-quality photos, infographics, and videos. Not only is multi­media more visually appealing, but it also helps your site rank better on Google and other search engines.

You might invest in profes­sional photos, or ask your installers to capture ​“on the job” snapshots to share on your website. And if you’re short on resources, you might try stock photos such as Shutter­stock, Envato, or Pexels.

Update Your Website’s Page Load Time

The faster your website loads, the better you’ll rank in search engines.

How often have you clicked on a website only to click away because it took more than a few seconds to load? That’s exactly what you don’t want your customers doing when they click on your website.

According to Pingdom, the average load time is 3.21 seconds. Sites that took longer than 2 seconds to load had a bounce rate of 38%, which isn’t good.

You can track your site’s bounce rate within Google Analytics to see how well your site is performing. Any improvement you can get is a step in the right direction.