Industry insights
I evaluated seven AI phone agent platforms for solar installers, roofing companies, and home energy teams — ranking each on speed-to-lead, qualification depth, multichannel follow-up, CRM integration, and compliance readiness.
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I spent the past month evaluating AI phone agent platforms through the lens of a solar installer or home energy company buying leads at $50 to $200 each and losing half of them to slow follow-up. Solar and home energy is one of the most lead-intensive, speed-dependent verticals in the market: the company that calls back within 60 seconds books the in-home consultation, and the company that waits an hour watches that lead sign with a competitor.
This guide ranks seven platforms on how well they handle the specific demands of solar and home energy: qualifying homeownership, confirming roof condition and utility provider, routing leads based on service area and installer availability, following up across voice, text, and email over a multi-week sales cycle, and keeping everything in compliance with TCPATCPAUS federal law governing telemarketing calls and SMS. Thoughtly enforces consent capture, time-of-day windows, and DNC scrubbing automatically., state licensing requirements, and utility rebate program rules. Thoughtly ranks first because it delivers the broadest coverage of those requirements in a single platform — but each vendor on this list serves a distinct segment of the market, and I will tell you exactly where each one fits.
Most AI voiceAI voiceAn artificially generated, natural-sounding voice produced by a TTS model. Thoughtly supports a library of AI voices and brand-specific cloning. agent buyers guides assume the buyer is running a general sales floor or a customer support queue. Solar and home energy companies face a fundamentally different problem. Their leads are expensive, perishable, and require deep qualification before a human rep should spend 90 minutes on a roof inspection or in-home assessment.
In solar, speed-to-lead is not a nice-to-have metric — it is the single largest controllable variableVariableA named value the voice agent stores during a conversation — caller name, intent, qualifying answers — and uses to drive routing and post-call actions. in conversion rate. I evaluated how fast each platform can initiate a call or text after a lead form submission. The best platforms in this list can trigger outbound contact within seconds of a CRMCRMThe system of record for leads, contacts, deals, and activity. Thoughtly reads from and writes to your CRM continuously. webhook or form fill. Platforms that require manual queue management or batch dialing schedules scored lower because every minute of delay erodes the chance of reaching the prospect while they are still looking at their electric bill and thinking about solar.
Solar qualification is not a single yes-or-no question. I looked at whether each platform can run branching qualification logic that covers homeownership verification, roof condition and age, monthly utility spend, service area matching, credit pre-screening questions, and preferred consultation timing. Platforms that support multi-step conversational flows scored higher than those limited to single-intent call routing. The best platforms can dynamically adjust the conversation based on earlier answers — for example, skipping the roof condition question if the lead already mentioned a recent re-roof.
A solar sale almost never closes on the first call. I evaluated whether each platform can persist follow-up across voice, SMS, email, and potentially WhatsApp or iMessage over a multi-week timeline. The ideal platform books the initial consultation by phone, sends a confirmation text, follows up before the appointment, re-engages after the site survey with proposal details, and checks in during the financing decision window — all from the same agent context so the homeowner does not have to repeat themselves. Platforms limited to voice-only scored lower.
Solar companies run on a wide range of CRMs — from Salesforce and HubSpot to industry-specific platforms like Aurora Solar, Enerflo, and SolarNexus — plus project management tools like ServiceTitan. I checked whether each AI phone agent can write qualified leads back to the CRM with structured fields (not just a call transcriptTranscriptThe text record of a voice conversation, used for review, training, compliance audit, and search. dump), trigger downstream workflows like technician assignment or proposal generation, and sync disposition data bidirectionally. Platforms with native integrations to home services or solar-specific tools scored higher.
TCPA regulations, state-level do-not-call lists, contractor licensing requirements, and utility rebate program compliance all matter in solar. I evaluated whether each platform provides built-in DNC list scrubbing, consent tracking, call recording disclosures, and number reputation management. Outbound-heavy platforms also need intelligent DID rotation and spam-label mitigation, because solar outbound numbers get flagged fast. Platforms that treat compliance as an add-on rather than a core feature scored lower.
Solar homeowners are already wary of sales calls. If the AI sounds robotic, stilted, or takes two seconds to respond, the prospect hangs up immediately. I evaluated the natural conversational flow of each platform — how it handles interruptions, pauses, ambient noise, and questions it was not explicitly trained on. The best platforms can handle a homeowner saying 'hold on, let me check my electric bill' without breaking the conversation flow.
| Platform | Best fit | Key strength | Key limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thoughtly | Revenue teams running full solar lead funnels | Voice + SMS + email + CRM in one agent | Requires upfront workflow and qualification rule definition |
| Hatch | Home services companies on ServiceTitan or improveit 360 | Purpose-built home services outreach sequences | Voice AI is newer; core strength is still text-based outreach |
| Convoso | High-volume outbound solar call centers | Predictive dialer with industry-leading DID management | Complex setup; priced for larger operations |
| Podium | Local solar installers managing reviews and leads | Unified review, text, and AI phone platform for local businesses | AI phone features are newer and less configurable than specialist platforms |
| Aloware | HubSpot/Salesforce-native solar sales teams | Power dialer with AI voice add-on and compliance tools | AI voice agent depth lags behind purpose-built platforms |
| GoodCall | Smaller solar shops needing quick inbound coverage | Fast setup from Google-alumni team; 50K+ agents deployed | Limited outbound campaign and multichannel follow-up capability |
| LeadTrack AI | Australian solar companies | Sub-10-second solar-specific lead response | Australia-focused; limited US presence and integrations |
Thoughtly is a voice AI platform built for autonomous, high-volume inbound lead conversion in regulated and high-consideration industries — and solar checks every box. The platform deploys AI agents that engage 100 percent of inbound leads across voice, SMS, iMessage, WhatsApp, and email, qualifying interest, scheduling in-home consultations, and updating CRM records autonomously. For solar companies, this means a lead that submits a form on your website or comes in from Angi or Modernize gets a phone call within seconds, runs through a full qualification flow covering homeownership, roof condition, utility spend, and service area, and books a confirmed appointment on your installer's calendar — all before a human rep touches it.
What sets Thoughtly apart from the other platforms on this list is the combination of multichannel persistence and workflowWorkflowAn automated, multi-step process — usually triggered by an event (form fill, new lead) and orchestrating one or more voice / SMS / email actions. depth. The same agent that makes the initial qualifying call can send a confirmation text, follow up with an email containing a proposal link, re-engage by SMS if the homeowner goes dark for a week, and warm-transfer to a human closer when the lead signals buying intent. The CRM write-back is structured — lead disposition, qualification answers, appointment details, and call recordings all land in Salesforce, HubSpot, or your solar-specific CRM as discrete fields, not unstructured transcript blobs.
Solar and home energy companies with 500 or more monthly leads, a defined qualification and routing process, and a CRM that serves as the system of record. Revenue teams that need every inbound lead contacted within a minute, qualified through a multi-step flow, and followed up across voice and text over a multi-week sales cycle.
Usage-based pricing. Contact Thoughtly for a quote tailored to your call volume and channel mix.
Hatch is an AI growth engine built specifically for service businesses, with 2,000-plus customers across solar, roofing, HVAC, and home improvement. The platform automates multichannel outreach sequences across phone, text, and email — helping solar teams work through lead lists, re-engage unsold estimates, and book more appointments without adding headcount. Hatch integrates natively with ServiceTitan, improveit 360, Modernize, Angi, Yelp, and Thumbtack, which makes it a strong fit for solar companies that already use those platforms for lead sourcing and job management.
Hatch's core strength is its AI-powered outreach sequences that can automatically contact new leads, follow up on open estimates, re-engage aged leads, and nurture prospects through the decision cycle. The AI voice capability is newer — Hatch started as a text-and-email platform and has added voice AI calling in 2025-2026 — but the multichannel sequencing engine is mature and well-tested in the home services vertical.
Solar and home services companies that run on ServiceTitan or improveit 360 and need automated outreach sequences to work through new leads, unsold estimates, and aged prospects. Strongest for teams that want a home-services-native platform rather than configuring a general-purpose AI voice tool.
Custom pricing based on contact volume and features. Request a demo at usehatchapp.com for a quote.
Convoso is an AI-powered predictive dialer platform built for outbound-heavy sales operations, and it has deep traction in solar, insurance, and home services call centers. The platform's core value proposition is maximizing contact rates through intelligent number management, predictive dialing algorithms, and their Ignite product — which specifically addresses the caller ID reputation and spam labeling problems that plague solar outbound. Convoso claims customers see up to a 4x boost in contact rateContact rateThe percentage of inbound leads your team actually reaches by phone. Most B2C teams hover around 25%; Thoughtly typically delivers 90%+. and a 75 percent increase in conversions, driven largely by their ability to keep numbers clean and calls connecting.
For solar companies running high-volume outbound campaigns — buying lead lists from aggregators, calling aged solar leads, or running re-engagement campaigns across multiple markets — Convoso is the tool that the largest call centers tend to use. It is not the simplest platform to set up, and it is priced for operations with meaningful call volume, but the dialing intelligence and compliance tooling are best-in-class for outbound.
Solar call centers with 20-plus agents running high-volume outbound campaigns, buying leads from aggregators, and needing aggressive number management to maintain contact rates. Not the right fit for small solar installers with a few reps handling inbound leads.
Custom pricing based on seats and usage. Contact Convoso for a quote. Expect enterprise-tier pricing for the full feature set.
Podium is an AI-powered platform that local businesses use to manage Google reviews, respond to leads via text and phone, and handle customer communication from a single inbox. With over 9,700 AI Employees deployed, 190,000-plus appointments booked, and more than one million after-hours leads handled, Podium has real scale in the local business segment. For solar installers, the core appeal is that Podium handles the things that small to mid-size operations actually struggle with: responding to web leads and missed calls instantly, managing Google review reputation, and converting text conversations into booked appointments.
Podium's AI Employee uses a patent-pending architecture that draws on 10-plus years of local business conversation data and connects to your business systems in real time. It can answer questions about services, pricing, and availability, then book appointments directly. The AI phone capability is newer than the texting and review platform, but it extends the same local-business intelligence into voice conversations.
Local and regional solar installers with 1 to 10 locations that need a single platform for Google review management, instant lead response, and AI-powered phone and text communication. Less suited for high-volume call center operations.
Podium offers tiered pricing plans. Contact Podium for current pricing. Multiple sources indicate monthly costs start in the mid-hundreds per location.
Aloware is a cloud-based phone system with power dialing, AI voice agents, and native HubSpot and Salesforce integrations. They explicitly position their AI voice agent for solar companies, with a dedicated page describing how the platform handles instant lead engagement, qualification, appointment booking, and after-hours coverageAfter-hours coverageHandling inbound calls outside of business hours. Thoughtly works 24/7, so prospects don't bounce to voicemail at 2am. for solar operations. The platform is structured as a phone system first — with call routing, queues, and dialer features — with AI voice agent capabilities layered on top.
For solar teams that already run their sales pipeline through HubSpot or Salesforce, Aloware's native integration is the main draw. Leads that come in through your CRM can automatically trigger an AI voice agent call, and the disposition data flows back into your CRM pipeline without middleware. The AloAi voice agentVoice agentAn autonomous, conversational interface that interacts with humans over the phone — answering, qualifying, and routing calls without human staffing. can handle inbound and outbound calls, qualify leads through configured scripts, and book appointments.
Solar sales teams running HubSpot or Salesforce as their primary CRM that need a phone system with power dialing, AI voice agents, and built-in compliance tools. Best when the team wants the AI agent as part of a broader phone operations stack rather than as a standalone automation layer.
Aloware offers per-seat pricing with usage-based calling. Contact Aloware for current solar-specific pricing.
GoodCall is an AI phone agent platform built by Google alumni, with over 50,000 unique agents launched and more than 60 million voice agent interactions processed across 306 local area codes. The platform is designed for businesses that want to launch an AI phone agent quickly — connecting knowledge sources, business tools, and databases to go live in minutes rather than weeks. For smaller solar operations that are currently missing inbound calls, sending them to voicemail, or relying on an answering service, GoodCall provides a fast path to AI-powered phone coverage.
GoodCall's strength is in the simplicity and speed of deployment. The platform handles inbound call answering, lead capture, appointment scheduling, and CRM/calendar sync without requiring extensive configuration. It can share lead data via SMS, email, Google Sheets, or CRM integrations. For solar companies where the biggest immediate problem is missed calls rather than outbound campaign optimization, GoodCall is a practical first step.
Smaller solar installers and home energy companies with 1 to 5 reps that need to stop missing inbound calls immediately. Best for teams where the primary pain point is unanswered phones and lost leads rather than outbound campaign optimization or multichannel sequencing.
GoodCall offers self-serve pricing tiers. Visit goodcall.com for current plans. Entry-level pricing makes it accessible for small businesses.
LeadTrack AI is an Australian AI lead-response platform built specifically for solar, automotive, and real estate teams. The platform's core pitch is that it calls, qualifies, and books inbound leads within seconds — averaging an 8.2-second response time and claiming a 3.4x improvement in appointments booked for customers. With 150-plus Australian businesses using the platform, including names like Schneider Electric and Energy Queensland, LeadTrack AI has real deployment experience in the solar vertical.
The platform covers voice AI, SMS, and email automation with CRM integration, and it can be set up in approximately 15 minutes. For Australian solar companies where speed-to-lead is the primary differentiator and the integration needs are within the platform's supported CRM list, LeadTrack AI provides a focused, solar-aware alternative to configuring a general-purpose AI voice platform.
Australian solar companies with 10 to 100 leads per day that need instant automated lead response across voice, SMS, and email. The platform's solar-specific design makes it a strong fit for the Australian market, but US-based buyers should evaluate carefully.
LeadTrack AI offers tiered pricing with a 30-day money-back guarantee and no setup fees. Visit leadtrackai.io for current plans and an ROI calculator.
The right platform depends on your operation size, lead volume, and primary pain point:
Industry benchmarks consistently show that responding within 60 seconds dramatically increases contact and conversion rates. Multiple studies from InsideSales, MIT, and Harvard Business Review found that leads contacted within five minutes are 100x more likely to connect than leads contacted after 30 minutes. For solar specifically, where lead costs run $50 to $200 and homeowners are often submitting forms to multiple installers simultaneously, sub-minute response is the operational standard to target.
Yes, but the depth varies significantly by platform. Platforms like Thoughtly and Hatch can run branching multi-step qualification covering homeownership, roof condition, utility provider, monthly electric spend, service area, credit eligibility, and preferred appointment times. Simpler platforms may handle only basic lead capture — name, phone number, interest level — and leave the detailed qualification to a human rep. Choose a platform whose qualification depth matches your pre-visit screening requirements.
TCPA compliance depends on both the platform and how you configure it. Platforms like Convoso and Aloware include built-in DNC list scrubbing, consent tracking, and call recording disclosures. However, the legal responsibility for TCPA compliance ultimately falls on your company, not the platform vendor. Ensure that your lead sources provide documented consent, your DNC lists are current, and your AI agents disclose call recording where required by state law. Consult with a TCPA-focused compliance attorney before launching automated outbound campaigns.
The most common CRM stacks in solar are Salesforce, HubSpot, and industry-specific tools like Aurora Solar, Enerflo, and SolarNexus. For project management, ServiceTitan is dominant in home services. The most important integration capabilities are: structured lead write-back (not just transcript dumps), bidirectional pipeline sync, workflow trigger support (so a qualified lead can automatically trigger technician assignment or proposal generation), and custom field mapping for solar-specific data like roof type, utility provider, and system size interest.
Pricing varies widely. Simple inbound-only AI phone agents like GoodCall start at accessible monthly rates for small businesses. Mid-tier platforms like Aloware and Podium typically run mid-hundreds per seat or location per month. Enterprise outbound platforms like Convoso are priced for larger call center operations with per-seat and usage-based components. Multichannel revenue platforms like Thoughtly use usage-based pricing scaled to your call and message volume. The right comparison is not just the platform cost but the cost per qualified appointment booked — which is where AI phone agents typically deliver 2 to 5x ROI compared to manual follow-up teams.
