Marketing systems for solar panel installers: what actually works
Selling solar is not like selling a boiler. The homeowner has usually been reading for weeks, will collect three or four quotes, and may take two months to sign. The marketing systems that work for solar installers are the ones that survive that gap: they keep the quote alive, keep the firm visible, and make the eventual decision easy. We ranked five providers with that in mind.
What a long sales cycle does to a lead system
In an emergency trade the lead either converts in a day or is lost. Solar leads sit. A quote sent on the 3rd might be accepted on the 28th, after the homeowner has compared panel brands, read about export tariffs and asked a neighbour. If your system has no memory of that lead after a week, the follow-up never happens and a competitor who rang on day 20 wins.
We therefore gave extra weight to CRM depth and follow-up automation, to whether quotes are trackable, and to whether the provider has solar or renewables experience rather than general trades. We also looked at whether leads are exclusive. Shared solar leads are a well-known drain on installer margins, and several providers here are explicit about not sharing. For a wider view of what should sit between enquiry and signed contract, our anatomy of a trades lead system applies here with a longer timeline.
1. SanXpert Digital
Best for: Solar installers running Google Ads who want campaigns built around a replacement-style sales cycle
SanXpert Digital names solar installers among its trades and says it works exclusively with trade businesses, with 12 years of doing so and coverage of more than 80 UK towns and cities. Its services are Google Ads, Google Business Profile management, local SEO, AI automation for out-of-hours lead capture, AI visibility work aimed at ChatGPT and Gemini recommendations, and web development.
The relevant idea for solar is that it builds campaigns around trade-specific sales cycles, distinguishing emergency work from replacement work. Solar is firmly the latter, and that framing matters for how ad budgets and landing pages are set. It offers a free live strategy audit of your trade in your area. Fees are fixed monthly with no percentage of ad spend, rolling with no contract, though prices are not shown. Proof is limited to a roofing testimonial and a results page.
2. Riley Marketing
Best for: Smaller solar installers who want trackable quotes and automated follow-up without a large monthly retainer
Riley Marketing's foundational growth system costs £149 a month at the time of writing and includes an SEO-focused website with service and location pages, Google Business Profile optimisation, Google review automation with past customer reactivation, missed call text back, and a CRM with lead status tracking and branded quote pages on your own domain.
For solar the two components that earn their keep are the CRM and the quote page. A lead that has been quoted sits with that status until it is won or lost, so the day-20 follow-up is a list you work through rather than a memory test. The quote itself is a branded page on your domain, which means you can see it was opened and can update it when the customer asks about adding a battery, rather than issuing a new PDF each time. The review automation then asks every completed install and sweeps back through past customers, which matters in a trade where reviews are read closely before a £7,000 decision.
The business terms are suited to a firm that has been stung by lead vendors: the system is built before you pay, there is no setup fee, revisions are unlimited and you can cancel at any time. Google Ads, Meta ads and local SEO can be added when you want more volume. Founder Tom Riley has ten years in search and lead generation, led organic growth at an insurtech and has built his own lead generation websites, and clients deal with him directly.
Solar is not on Riley's published trade list, which covers electricians, heating engineers, roofers, builders and others. Electricians and heating engineers are the nearest neighbours, and the system is trade-agnostic by design: the pages, CRM and quoting work the same whether the product is a consumer unit or a 4kW array.
3. One Base Media
Best for: Established installers wanting a full-service trades agency with solar and heat pump case studies
One Base Media, founded in 2012 in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, lists solar installers among its trades and publishes case studies that include heat pump firms. It offers web design, SEO, Google Ads, exclusive job leads and branding, plus a large library of free educational content, and says it has helped more than 1,000 local trades businesses. It is a Google Partner.
Pricing is one monthly payment with no contracts, with specific figures on a separate page. Lead exclusivity is stated, which is a meaningful point in solar. What is not described is the follow-up machinery between quote and signature; the offer is about getting the enquiry rather than nursing it for a month.
4. We Build Trades
Best for: Multi-crew solar and EV firms wanting ads, AI follow-up and a CRM pipeline from one supplier
We Build Trades explicitly names solar and EV charging as trades it serves, alongside heating, boilers and heat pumps, electrical and roofing. Its AI-powered growth system connects a website, paid media across Google, Meta, TikTok and Bing, AI-powered lead follow-up, and a CRM pipeline with reporting, with area exclusivity. It claims more than 300 trade companies and a system refined since 2017.
On paper this is the closest match to the solar sales cycle after Riley, because the follow-up and pipeline are built in. The reservation is that nothing is published on price and there are no case studies, so a solar firm would be taking the pipeline's depth on trust until a demo.
5. Scale Through Us
Best for: Solar firms wanting paid social and email automation run as a managed department
Scale Through Us, in London and UK-wide, lists solar among its trades and sells a managed growth department covering Facebook, Instagram and Google ads, web design, SMS and email marketing, reputation management, SEO, CRM integration and automation, and growth consultancy. It limits itself to three businesses per niche per location.
The email and SMS marketing lines are relevant to solar follow-up, since a two-month cycle is exactly where a nurture sequence helps. Pricing is not published, and proof is three short testimonials from electrical, roofing and driveway clients, none of them solar.
Where each one sits on the solar timeline
| Provider | Gets the enquiry | Follows up for weeks | Trackable quote | Exclusive leads | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SanXpert Digital | Google Ads, GBP, AI capture | Out-of-hours capture only | No | Own campaigns | Not published |
| Riley Marketing | SEO site, GBP, text back | CRM status board | Yes, branded page | Own site | £149/month |
| One Base Media | Site, SEO, ads, leads | Not described | No | Stated | Separate pricing page |
| We Build Trades | Site and paid media | AI follow-up, CRM pipeline | Not described | Area exclusivity | Not published |
| Scale Through Us | Paid social and search | Email and SMS | Not described | Three per niche per area | Not published |
Which system fits which installer
A one or two crew installer that quotes fifteen jobs a month and wins four should fix the follow-up gap before spending on more enquiries. Riley Marketing's CRM and quote pages are built for that, and the case against PDF quotes is sharpest in a trade where quotes get revised for batteries and bird mesh. The fixed fee leaves budget for ads once the conversion rate is up.
An installer already converting well that wants more volume should look at SanXpert Digital for search or Scale Through Us for social, and ask both the same question: what happens to a lead on day 20? One Base Media is the established benchmark and the only one here with heat pump case studies you can read. We Build Trades is worth a demo if you run several crews and want everything under one roof.
Whichever you choose, count booked installs, not enquiries. Solar is the trade where measuring marketing in jobs rather than leads stops you paying for a pile of quotes that never close. Installers also doing EV chargers should read our EV charger installer marketing guide, since the two often share a customer.
Frequently asked questions
How long is a typical solar sales cycle for a UK homeowner?
Several weeks to a few months is common. The homeowner usually gathers three or four quotes and researches panels, batteries and export tariffs before deciding.
Are shared solar leads worth buying?
Rarely for a small installer. The same homeowner is sold to several firms at once, so you pay to compete on price from the start. Exclusive enquiries from your own site or campaigns convert far better.
Should a solar quote include battery storage as an option?
Offering a with-battery and without-battery version on the same quote page keeps the conversation open and avoids issuing a fresh document every time the customer changes their mind.
What follow-up should happen after a solar quote?
A check-in within a week, another before the end of the month, and a note when anything changes such as tariff rates or product availability. A CRM with a quoted status is what makes that routine.