I just came across a press release for a recently launched site in the lead generation space – EcoOutfitters. While new launches in the lead generation space aren’t always news worthy, especially when it’s the second or third player in a vertical (including long-time player and great guys at CoolerPlanet), this one caught my eye for one big reason. One of its main investors is Jordon Keltz, the CEO of Seniors For Living.
Those who have been in the lead generation space for any appreciable amount of time will know Jordon’s work even if they don’t know his name. Alongside Luciano Rammairone, Jordon led ClassesUSA from concept to sizable exit to Experian Interactive all while teaching others in the space how to think about the online education lead generation business. Luciano is the Chairman of one of the largest online and offline education lead businesses, CollegeBound Network while Jordon has dedicated the last several years to doing what he does so well – breaking down barriers. Keltz made an early bet on the senior living space at a time when the buyers were just getting comfortable with pay per move-ins not even leads. I’m sure he and the team have some stories about their efforts to facilities happy with local print ads to leads. (“What? They don’t just walk in? We have to call?”)
Similar to senior housing, the market for green lead gen is in its infancy. It’s much smaller than senior housing is today and has some built in limitations. Solar lead generation is the biggest sub-segment.
- Solar panels though are only good for homes that see enough sun to offset the high cost of installation.
- They rely on government subsidies which could go away
- They don’t have a large organic demand, i.e., people aren’t thinking about them
- There is some built in competition from existing home improvement lead gen sites as it’s a similar buyer base (think how mortgage loan officers pivoted into debt when the market changed)
No industry is perfect, and if solar / green lead gen looked so easy, we would already see many competitors. The hardest part for any vertical is building the market – both the user demand and the buyer base. The good news here is that, like senior housing, the long-term fundamentals are there. Given that Jordon has been spot on twice before has me thinking, that in 18 months time or less, we’ll be seeing many more companies paying attention to the green lead gen space. While I don’t necessarily wish more competition, it would be great for the industry as a whole to continue to service new sectors.