The Budget Framework Solar Companies Should Use Before Hiring an SEO Agency

Solar SEO pricing isn't arbitrary — it reflects three real cost inputs: the amount of work required, the competitiveness of your target market, and the level of strategy involved. Understanding these inputs helps you evaluate quotes rather than just compare numbers.

Market Competition

A solar installer in a mid-size market competing against a handful of regional players requires less link-building and content investment than one trying to rank in California, Texas, or Florida — where national installers with domain authority in the hundreds are already entrenched. The more competitive the market, the more months of sustained effort are needed, which directly affects monthly cost.

Geographic Scope

Single-city visibility campaigns are structurally simpler than multi-market or statewide ones. Each additional service area requires its own location page, citation profile, and Google Business Profile attention. If your installation territory covers 10 counties, expect to pay more than a firm serving one metro area.

Starting Authority

A website with zero backlinks, thin content, and technical issues requires significantly more work than one with a clean foundation. In our experience working with home services companies, the first few months of a new SEO engagement often go entirely toward fixing infrastructure before any ranking gains become visible. That remediation work is priced into the retainer.

Content Requirements

Solar SEO lives or dies on content. Homeowners searching for solar panels, solar incentives, or installer comparisons are doing research — they need answers, not just a landing page with a phone number. Producing that content (service pages, blog articles, FAQ content, comparison guides) takes time. If an agency is quoting you $800/month, ask how much content creation is included. Often, low-priced retainers exclude the content work entirely.

Rather than presenting a single number, here are three common engagement tiers — what they include, what they don't, and who each is appropriate for.

Entry Level: $1,000–$2,000/month

At this range, you're typically getting technical SEO monitoring, basic on-page optimization, and limited content (one or two pieces per month). This can be appropriate for a solo installer in a low-competition market who already has a functional website and some existing authority. It is not enough for a multi-service-area company trying to compete with national brands.

Mid-Range: $2,000–$4,000/month

This is the most common range for regional solar installers with 5–20 employees. It typically covers: technical SEO, ongoing content production (3–5 pieces per month), local citation management, Google Business Profile optimization, and basic link-building outreach. Results from this tier, in competitive markets, typically become visible between months 4 and 9.

Full-Service: $4,000–$8,000+/month

Large regional or statewide solar companies competing across multiple metros operate at this tier. The budget supports high-volume content production, aggressive link acquisition, multi-location local SEO management, and sometimes conversion rate optimization on landing pages. Expect a dedicated strategist rather than a rotating account manager.

One-Time Projects

Technical audits, site migrations, and penalty recovery are typically scoped as fixed-fee projects ranging from $500 to $2,500 depending on site size. These are separate from monthly retainers and are appropriate when you need a diagnosis before committing to ongoing work.

Solar pay-per-click advertising — particularly Google Local Services Ads and standard search campaigns — can generate leads immediately. SEO cannot. That tradeoff is real and worth taking seriously when allocating budget.

Solar PPC costs have increased significantly over the past several years as the installer market has grown. Industry benchmarks suggest cost-per-click for high-intent solar keywords in competitive markets can run well above the home services average, and lead quality varies by platform and campaign structure.

SEO operates on a different economic model. There is a cost-heavy ramp-up period — typically 4–6 months before meaningful ranking movement — followed by a compounding return as rankings stabilize. Over a 12-month horizon, many solar companies find their cost-per-lead from organic search falls below what they were paying in PPC, particularly for research-phase keywords where homeowners are comparing options rather than ready to sign.

The practical implication: if you're a growth-stage solar company, you likely need both. PPC funds near-term lead generation while SEO builds a durable channel. The mistake is treating them as an either/or decision and underfunding SEO because PPC shows faster attribution.

If budget forces a choice, consider this framework: if you need leads in the next 60 days, invest in PPC first. If you're planning 12 months out and want to reduce your cost-per-lead over time, start SEO now — because the clock only starts when work begins.

The structure of an SEO contract tells you more about the agency than their pitch deck does. Here's what to look for before signing anything.

Deliverables, Not Just Hours

A contract that promises '20 hours per month of SEO work' is not a contract — it's a time-billing arrangement with no accountability to outcomes. Ask for a scope that specifies: how many pages will be optimized, how many content pieces will be produced, what link-building activity is included, and how Google Business Profile management is handled. Hours are inputs. You're paying for outputs.

Reporting Cadence and Metrics

You should receive a monthly report showing keyword ranking movement, organic traffic trends, and Google Business Profile performance. If an agency cannot tell you which keywords they're targeting and where you currently rank for them, that is a red flag regardless of price.

Contract Length

Most reputable SEO agencies require a minimum 6-month commitment, and that's reasonable given how long ranking movement takes. Be cautious of month-to-month-only arrangements at high prices — that structure often signals the agency is optimizing for retention optics rather than results. Also be cautious of 12-month lock-ins with no performance clauses.

What Shouldn't Be in a Contract

• designed to ranking positions — no ethical SEO provider guarantees specific rankings because Google's algorithm is not in their control
• Vague language like 'SEO optimization' with no specification of which pages or which keywords
• Automatic renewal clauses with no exit provisions

A straightforward contract protects both sides. If a proposal is difficult to parse, that's useful information about how the engagement will be managed.

Solar SEO ROI is real, but it requires a specific measurement framework to see clearly. The common mistake is measuring too early and with the wrong metrics.

Month 1–3: Measure Process, Not Results

In the first three months, your agency should be completing technical fixes, building out or improving core service pages, and beginning content production. Ranking movement at this stage is minimal for competitive keywords — and that is normal. What you should be measuring: Is work actually being delivered? Are technical issues getting resolved? Are new pages going live on schedule?

Month 4–6: Measure Keyword Movement

By month four, you should see early ranking movement on lower-competition keywords — typically informational queries and local modifiers. This is the leading indicator that the strategy is working. Organic traffic may still be modest, but directional movement matters here.

Month 7–12: Measure Leads and Cost-Per-Lead

This is when ROI becomes calculable. Track organic lead volume from Google Search Console and your CRM, and compare it against what the same lead volume would have cost in paid search. For solar companies with average installation values in the tens of thousands of dollars, even a handful of incremental organic leads per month can justify a full SEO retainer.

A simple benchmark: if your average installation generates $X in revenue and your SEO retainer costs $Y per month, you need roughly Y divided by (X × close rate) organic leads per month to break even. Most solar companies reach that threshold before the end of month 12 if the campaign is properly executed.

If you want to see what a full execution plan looks like before committing to a retainer, see our SEO for Solar Company services for a breakdown of how we approach each phase.