Palomar Solar, under the leadership of Andy Anderson and Adam Rizzo, co-founders and owners, learned early on about the effectiveness of radio as a medium to increase awareness of their solar panel installation company. During the initial years of the five year old business, they primarily depended upon direct mail campaigns and home shows to identify clients. Then, radio Account Executive Jessica Chou, responding to one of those direct mail postcards, convinced the team to develop Palomar Solar’s first radio efforts.
When Chou moved to iHeart Media, she felt that the KOGO-AM news audience would provide an opportunity for Palomar Solar to expand upon its clientele. Her knowledge of the owners’ values convinced her that the company’s commitment to customer service, “no gimmicks,”, and cost efficiency would be a perfect fit for KOGO personality George Chamberlin. Chamberlin’s reputation for financial expertise and audience credibility made him an ideal spokesperson for the spots endorsing Palomar Solar. The company makes a point of educating their customers thoroughly on the financial options and opportunities of owning solar and Chamberlin’s ads were a perfect introduction for the company.
The initial campaign on KOGO ran from October through December of 2014 and prompted an additional 20 phone calls per month to Palomar Solar. Many of the callers repeated much of the information communicated in the commercial so were easily traceable to the station, even if they didn’t mention the call letters. The company was able to generate five to seven additional deals per month, equaling $180,000 in added monthly revenue…impressive results that earned Palomar Solar a 2015 San Diego Radio Broadcasters Association EAR Award.
The ads also ran on the streaming version of KOGO which is available on the iHeart Radio app. Digital banner ads were featured on KOGO’s website. Palomar Solar continues their sponsorship of George Chamberlin endorsements to date.
(Chou Jessica. (July,7 2015). “Citing Sources.” San Diego Radio. Retrieved July 14. 2015 from http://sandiegoradio.com/palomar-solar-powers-up-with-radio/)
