Why it matters
The 10pm comparison
A homeowner opens three solar company websites on a Tuesday night after the kids are in bed. Two have a contact form. One answers her.
She asks what it would cost for a house like hers. The honest answer is that nobody knows until someone looks at the roof, and that is what she is told, along with the fact that the survey is free and how long the whole thing usually takes.
She leaves her name, her number and her address. By the time you read the text in the morning, you know she owns the house, which is the one thing that decides whether the lead is real at all.
- 280,119people worked in US solar in 2024, with 178,713 of them in installation and project development.IREC, National Solar Jobs Census 2024
- $25is all it takes: a sale agreed at someone's home for $25 or more carries a federal three-business-day right to cancel, and states add windows of their own. Which one applies depends on how the deal was signed, so the assistant never states a deadline.FTC Cooling-Off Rule, 16 CFR 429.0(a)
- 4terms turn a chat into a credit advertisement: a downpayment, a number of payments, a payment amount or a finance charge. Name any one and the APR and full repayment terms have to appear beside it. The assistant states none of them.Regulation Z advertising, 12 CFR 1026.24(d)
Example conversation
A savings question at 10pm
- Roughly how much would solar knock off my electricity bill each month?
The question every solar site gets, and the one the FTC watches
- I can't put a number on that, because what a system produces depends on the roof, the shading and your own usage. The survey is free and it's what produces a real figure. Could I take your name and number so someone can arrange it?
No saving, no payback, no estimate. It offers the survey instead
- Fair enough. What about the 30% tax credit, do I qualify? And is it basically free after that?
- Whether you qualify is decided by the programme and your own tax position, so that's one for your tax professional rather than me, and I wouldn't call any install free. Our team can walk you through what they've seen. What's your name and the best number?
Never confirms an incentive, never says free
- Priya Raman, 555-0143. It's 22 Almond Way, and yes we own it.
- New lead · Priya Raman · 555-0143 · 22 Almond Way · Solar, asked about bill savings · Owns the home · Evenings
Texted and emailed to you in seconds, with the ownership flag
What customers ask
What homeowners ask before they book a survey
- How much would solar cost for a house like mine?
- How much will it save me each month?
- Do I qualify for the federal tax credit?
- Can you add a battery to the system I already have?
- How long does it take from signing to switch-on?
- What warranty comes with the panels?
- Which panels do you fit?
- Do you install in my area?
It answers these from your own website, and hands over any it can't.
What it does
What it does for you
Answers the cost question without inventing a number
It says what is true of every roof: the figure comes from the survey. Then it offers the survey and asks for their details, rather than leaving them with nothing.
Asks the question that qualifies the lead
Whether they own the home. A renter cannot have panels fitted, and finding that out on the website rather than on the doorstep is the difference between a wasted visit and a booked job.
Keeps you out of the claims that draw enforcement
No savings figure, no payback period, no free-solar language, no suggestion you are sent by the utility or a government scheme, and no monthly payment.
Books the survey
It sends homeowners to your booking page, or offers real free times from Google Calendar, and texts you the lead either way.
Rules it follows
Claim rules it follows
No savings, payback or production figures
It never states or estimates a saving, a payback period, a bill reduction, a return, or how much power a system would make, and never says solar pays for itself. The FTC's solar business guidance names overpromised savings from credits, rebates and incentives as the industry's central deception, and its 2023 case with the Arizona Attorney General turned on exactly those claims.
Never free, never government-paid
It never says solar is free, no cost, or paid for by the government or the utility. The FTC names free-solar offers as a scam outright in the same guidance.
No borrowed authority
It never says or implies you are affiliated with, endorsed by, sent by or acting for a utility, a government body or an incentive programme. The FTC's Impersonation Rule covers misrepresenting an affiliation with a government entity or a legitimate business.
Incentives are the programme's decision
It never says whether someone qualifies for a tax credit, rebate or grant, what it is worth, or when it ends. It says the programme and their tax professional decide, and that your team can explain what they have seen.
No payment, rate, deposit or term
It gives no monthly payment, interest rate, deposit or finance charge, even one your website publishes. Under Regulation Z, naming a payment, a downpayment, a number of payments or a finance charge requires the annual percentage rate and the full repayment terms to appear with it, which a chat window cannot carry. Your website can; a sentence lifted out of it cannot.
No cancellation deadlines
It never states a deadline or says whether an agreement can be cancelled. A sale agreed at the home carries a federal three-business-day right to cancel above $25, states add their own windows, and which applies depends on how it was signed. It points at the contract and your team.
Leases and PPAs described only in your words
It never says a lease or a power purchase agreement is like owning, and never says what either does to selling the home. Where your site mentions a lien or a transfer on sale, it repeats what your site says and nothing more. The FTC's guidance cites the Ygrene case, where homeowners were deceived about PACE financing and left with liens that made their homes hard to sell.
No judgements about the roof
It never says a roof is suitable, needs no work, has enough sun or is too shaded, and never assesses an existing system. It asks whether they own the home and where it is, and never asks for a utility account number, a bill amount, a credit score or an income.
What reaches you
What reaches your phone
Each lead arrives by text and email with enough to decide whether to send a surveyor.
- Name
- Priya Raman
- Phone
- 555-0143
- Address
- 22 Almond Way
- Interest
- Rooftop solar, asked about bill savings
- Owns the home
- Yes
- Best time
- Evenings
Your tools
Works alongside your solar software
- Aurora Solar
- OpenSolar
- Enerflo
- Jobber
Questions
Common questions
Will it tell homeowners how much they'll save?
No, and that's deliberate. It says the figure comes from the survey and offers to arrange one. Savings claims are the exact ground the FTC and several state attorneys general have brought solar cases on, and a chat window cannot carry the substantiation a savings claim needs.
My website publishes our finance rates. Will it quote them?
No. Under Regulation Z, stating a payment, a deposit, a number of payments or a finance charge means the APR and the full repayment terms have to appear alongside it. Your website carries its own disclosures around those numbers; a sentence lifted out into a chat doesn't. It hands the question to your team instead.
Does it know about the federal tax credit?
It never says whether someone qualifies, what it's worth or when it ends. It says the programme and their tax professional decide, and offers to have your team explain what they've seen. That keeps you clear of the incentive claims the FTC's guidance singles out.
Can it tell whether a roof is suitable?
No. It never says a roof is suitable, shaded, or needs work, because a surveyor decides that. It takes the address and the details so somebody who can actually look at it gets in touch.
Does it ask whether they own the home?
Yes, and it's the most useful thing on the lead. A renter can't have panels fitted, so knowing before you send anyone out is the difference between a booked job and a wasted afternoon.
Can it book the site survey?
Yes. It sends homeowners to your booking page, or offers real free times from your Google Calendar, and texts you the lead either way.
What does it do with a battery or EV charger question?
Answers it from your own pages, the same as anything else, if your site says what you fit. Where your site doesn't cover it, it says it'll get someone to confirm rather than guessing at a specification.
More business types
Built for other businesses too
- HVAC, plumbing and electrical
- Dentists
- Salons and spas
- Real estate agents
- Law firms
- Accountants and CPA firms
- Gyms and fitness studios
- Driving schools
- Tutors and tutoring centers
- Veterinary clinics
- Auto repair shops
- Medical clinics
- Roofing contractors
- Pest control
- Cleaning services
- Moving companies
- Home improvement fitters
- Physiotherapy and chiropractic
- Med spas and aesthetics
- Nurseries and childcare
- Insurance and mortgage brokers
- Online stores
- B2B SaaS companies
- Fintech companies