In the past few weeks we here at Palmer HQ in San Francisco have been experiencing some pretty intense rain and windy weather, and our neighbors to the Northeast are bracing themselves for record snowfall this weekend. It's safe to say that purchasing solar panels isn't top of mind for most people during the winter months or when the weather isn't particularly sunny but; that doesn't mean you can't or shouldn't be driving leads during these off-season periods.
Google AdWords is a great way to keep your brand in front of customers during the off-season for instance. Businesses can control their costs and only pay when viewers click the ad (aka Pay Per Click or PCC). The ad can drive traffic to your site or landing pages for off-season promotions. And by using Google's keyword and demographic targeting tools, you can be sure you're reaching the right customers.Here are a few useful solar marketing tips for creating your off-season PPC campaigns:
Know and target your audience. As we just mentioned, AdWords allows you to target your ads to well-defined demographics. So when you create your ad, make sure you know as much as you can about your solar buyer persona, including gender, location, and age.
Nail the keywords. The success of your ad depends on your keywords, and Google provides some helpful advice along these lines here. Make sure you think broadly about the different ways customers could reach you while aligning your keywords with specific business goals.
Use Google's optimization tools. AdWords provides many tools to help you make the most of your ads. For example, in your AdWords account you can view low search volume keywords. These are the keywords that aren't working, so delete them.
Optimize the text. Your ad is meaningless unless viewers actually click it. Therefore, make sure the ad highlights what makes your solar firm unique — zero-down financing? Experience in the community? Google also advertises prices, promotions, and exclusives in the text, as viewers use Google search to make decisions. Also make sure the ad includes a keyword.
Include Calls-to-Action. Your ad should encourage customers to take action. Employ strong words like "call today" or "get a free consultation."
Match ad to landing page. Congrats — the viewer clicked on your ad for a free residential solar quote. Now the real fun begins. Make sure the process from click to convert is as friction-less as possible. Take them to an intuitive and easy-to-navigate landing page.
Explore non-keyword alternatives. Take AdWords' Dynamic Search Ads. While standard text ads use keywords to determine when they show up on Google Search, Dynamic Search Ads differ in that they don't use keywords. Instead, Dynamic Search Ads automatically show your ad based on the content of your website.
Interested in learning more about PPC? Check out these resources.
Ready to launch a PPC campaign, we'd love to get in touch and find out about your goals.
