The foundation of a successful inbound marketing strategy is compelling content, and unfortunately, not every firm starts off on an equal footing. If you're a bank, for example, you're in relatively good shape. There's no shortage of financial news you can collect to create blog posts and market your brand. If you're a lawnmower manufacturer, however, your challenge is a bit more difficult. The good news for solar firms, regardless of size, is that they fit squarely in the former camp: the solar industry continues to grow and smaller firms can capitalize on this heightened awareness. Therefore, we'd like to take the opportunity to look at specific ways in which smaller solar firms can utilize the larger solar market to their advantage.
A Seemingly Endless Supply of Content
The beauty of the solar industry is that smaller firms can convincingly talk about larger macroeconomic trends to prospects. This isn't the case for every industry. A mom and pop coffee shop can't exactly write a convincing blog post on a global drop in Honduran coffee bean prices. Yet a solar firm can talk about how cheaper solar panels can reduce their upfront investment costs.
Therefore, we recommend smaller solar marketing departments first set up a Google Art with keywords like "Solar news," "Solar panels," "residential solar," etc. Second, when the news hits your inbox, ask yourself: "Can we parlay this news into a 500-750 word post that will be of value to our target audience?" If the answer is "yes," you're in business. Integrate this content into an formal editorial calendar that includes a schedule for social media posts. Given the wealth of material at your fingertips, you'll need some sort of structure.
Examples of Leverageable "Big Market" Solar Content
Now let's put the aforementioned advice into practice. You, more than anyone, know what kinds of issues will resonate with readers; nonetheless, we'd like to pass along four "big market" solar topics that you can successfully integrate into your solar marketing strategy.
1. Pocketbook issues — Your prospects, whether families or business owners, want to reduce their electric bills. Any and all news that speaks to this is fair game, especially pieces with actual dollar figures.
2. "Keeping Up With the Jones" — Other news pieces can help move prospects along the funnel. Take his one for example, which notes that U.S. residential solar power eclipsed commercial installations for the first time ever. This is big news because it signifies that residential solar is reaching a mature stage. Families read this and suddenly residential solar is that much more attractive.
3. Tax Credits — It's important to frame this news properly, as a reader's eyes may glaze over the moment her or she see the word "tax." Nonetheless, it's important stuff as solar tax credits can save families and businesses a good deal of money. Share any tax credit-related news that could pertain to your customers (but avoid "accountant-speak.")
4. Technological Developments — While a drastic drop in Chinese-manufactured solar panels may not initially seem exciting, it can prove useful to customer when framed through the lens of reduced prices. That said, use your judgment here; the aforementioned types of content are a bit more compelling.
Again, the important element to remember is that you shouldn't simply republish the news as-is, but instead include your own "small-market" voice so your content directly appeals to your readers.
With that in mind, we'd like to ask you, our readers, to join the conversation. What's difficult about leveraging "big market" content for your solar marketing strategy? What approaches have proved successful? What types of content resonate most with readers?
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