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lead generation startup help

by wjh563
11 replies
I want to start a lead generation company focused on exclusive solar leads for smaller solar companies/installers. I plan on starting as a one man operation with a 25k investment. What is the smartest way to go about it? This will be my first start up on my own, so any advice will be GREATLY APPRECIATED!


My background is sales, not marketing. I buy leads from some very large companies now, so I have a VERY BASIC understanding of how those leads are generated. ie..set up a squeeze page, buy traffic from google, and find a buyer. But I am sure that it's not going to be that easy.... I am just starting my research now, so like I said, ANY advice would be a great help.


Thank you,

Joe
#generation #investment #lead #lead generation #pay per click #start up #startup #traffic
  • Profile picture of the author James Gould
    Are you trying to generate interest offline as well?

    Seems to me that solar installers/manufacturers would be mainly offline as it's usually a local company installing the panels to somebody's house.

    Jamie.
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    • Profile picture of the author wjh563
      Right, a lot of the smaller ones work by word of mouth. My plan is to essentially sell the company/installer a pre set appointment for a homeowner or business looking to go solar.
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  • Profile picture of the author henryw1981
    Wow that sounds like a great business model. Alternative energy is a trending niche with

    not a lot of competition. It is also forecasted to explode over the net 5 to 10 years. I am

    in the business of lead generation and I would like to know more about your plan. PM

    me and I will see if I can help.
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    • Profile picture of the author Auctiondebteliminator
      Originally Posted by henryw1981 View Post

      Wow that sounds like a great business model. Alternative energy is a trending niche with

      not a lot of competition. It is also forecasted to explode over the net 5 to 10 years. I am

      in the business of lead generation and I would like to know more about your plan. PM

      me and I will see if I can help.
      How are you measuring the 'low competition'?

      I just did some rudimentary research on the niche and found some high-authority sites.


      How are you measuring 'low competition?'

      A forecast? Or actual data?

      Because we all know how accurate weather 'forecasters' are.
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  • Profile picture of the author henryw1981
    Great question. The low competition is found in the alternative keywords that are relevent

    to the niche. Their are sub categories to every keyword. The key is to find the alternative

    keywords that have low competition but also get at least 13000 global searches per month.

    Thats where the low competition is.
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  • Profile picture of the author Auctiondebteliminator
    So what are the parameters?

    I see your demand, (Global monthly searches)

    But I don't see your competition parameters.
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  • Profile picture of the author seobro
    Hi Joe:

    The biggest problem I have is getting people to pay me. Most people will try to find any excuse. Yeah, then they use that excuse to not pay. It is always the same game. Getting leads is not all that hard at all for me. Actually, it is quite easy. By now you should have a web site with many product pages. These are items you are trying to sell to consumers. When they decide to buy you are ready, as you probably will have a form page. That is where people will sign up. Create many incentives to get your customers to commit to a new installation by pushing a new product or a service. Discounts are a great way.

    A lead will contain the following information:
    NAME
    ADDR
    PHONE
    PRODUCT WANTED
    HOW SOON

    How much does a person make in each installation - approx $5,000.00?
    Then I would sell each lead for $5 each.
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  • Profile picture of the author henryw1981
    If you are using the google keyword tool it will tell you whether the competition is low,

    medium, or high. I would also recommend spyfu for keyword research.
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  • Profile picture of the author Auctiondebteliminator
    That doesn't tell you the RANKING competition.

    That tells you the PAID search competition.

    What are your parameters for the organic competition?

    Google has 2 search engines - Paid search, and organic search. And when you're looking at the ORGANIC competition, this tells you if the 'NICHE' has high competition.

    Not if the KEYWORD in the paid search is (necessarily)

    Again, you cannot 'forecast' if the keyword will explode based on the keyword paid search 'competition' column.

    You need 'now' data for 'now' competition, otherwise, you're 'sticking your finger in the wind'.
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  • Profile picture of the author jenki1
    Yes it is an up and coming trend that will get better with time.
    All depends on who you are aiming your business at.
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    • Profile picture of the author wjh563
      I appreciate all the input. However, my background is in sales not marketing. I have never gone through this process before. That's why I am here, hoping for some insight. I have never set up landing or squeeze pages, or bid on traffic from google. I don't know what the cost of either of those things are. I planned on calling a few website design companies, and contacting google to see about pricing this week. I know the model works because there are many large companies doing it for many different industries, debt, insurance (my industry now), loan mod, and I have looked at quite a few companies that are doing it for solar. My pricing model is going to be a bit different and I think it will appeal to smaller/mid size installers. I am looking for advice on everything involved with going about this.

      Thanks,

      Joe
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