Solar Lead Vendor Boosts Contact Rates and Quickly Scales After Switch to Convoso

Having churned through a long series of disappointing dialers, lead vendor Solar Direct Marketing finally found the technology, contact rates, and accelerated growth they were after when they switched to Convoso.

We interviewed David Stodolak, President of Solar Direct Marketing, about the success his company has experienced with Convoso's contact center software solution.

TL;DR

• Inconsistent dialer performance led to declining contact rates

• Frequent platform changes disrupted operations and slowed growth

• Contact rates increased by up to 39% after switching to Convoso

• Easier onboarding supported planned headcount growth 

• Increased agent efficiency boosted morale

• Time savings reduced manual work for managers and executives

Outbound success depends on reaching enough prospects

Solar Direct Marketing runs both a lead generation business and a call center operation in the solar industry, where results come down to one thing: reaching enough prospects.

“This is a contact sport,” said President David Stodolak. “No matter what vertical you’re in, you have to contact enough people to make it work.”

With more than 15 years of experience in the call center space, Stodolak knows what strong outbound performance looks like and what happens when the system behind it breaks down.

After cycling through multiple dialers that failed to deliver, contact rates dropped and performance started slipping across the operation.

Finding a dialer that could actually support consistent outbound performance became critical. “If you don’t have the right technology, nothing else matters,” he said.

Challenges

• Multiple dialers failed to deliver consistent performance

• Software issues required constant troubleshooting 

• Declining contact rates reduced revenue 

• Frequent platform changes created instability and slowed growth

Solutions

• Reliable dialing performance

• Dedicated onboarding and customer support

• Caller ID reputation management

• Compliance and QA integrations

Results

• Up to 39% lift in contact rates

• 2x planned growth in headcount

• Faster onboarding

• Higher agent morale 

• Less time spent on manual management tasks

Multiple outbound dialers fail to deliver consistent performance

Solar Direct Marketing spent years trying to find a dialer that could support consistent outbound performance. 

Since starting in 2016, the company went through roughly six different platforms. Each one looked promising at first, then broke down within weeks. The team was left putting out fires instead of running campaigns. 

Stodolak began noticing a trend. Vendors promised impressive features and capabilities, but “they didn’t have any of that stuff.” Every dialer they tried fell short, leaving them with low contact rates and less revenue coming in. 

On top of that, each attempt to find a better software solution led to disruption. Constantly onboarding new systems and learning new workflows kept the company from building momentum.

After seeing the same pattern play out again and again, Stodolak was determined to find a solution that could improve contact rates, reduce constant troubleshooting, and serve as a reliable long-term software partner they could stick with.

With the help of some well-timed recommendations from industry peers, he decided to try Convoso.

“A lot of people we knew in the industry had good things to say about Convoso—there was some credibility, some trust involved when we signed on,” he said.

That switch marked the first time they saw consistent improvement instead of another frustrating reset.

Contact rates rise quickly after switching to Convoso

After years of dialer issues, Solar Direct Marketing saw contact rates improve quickly with Convoso. Before the switch, contact rates hovered around 18%. After moving to Convoso, they climbed to as much as 25%—a nearly 39% increase.

That lift had a direct impact across the operation. More answered calls meant more opportunities to generate live transfers for clients and stronger overall performance.

“Convoso has been phenomenal in terms of helping us move the needle in our contact rates, which has helped us move the needle for our clients in terms of better conversions for them,” Stodolak said.

Caller ID reputation management improves contact rates and visibility

Outbound performance comes down to whether calls actually reach prospects. When carriers block or label calls, fewer conversations happen regardless of lead quality.

With Convoso, Stodolak and his team can see how carriers treat their numbers, including which ones are flagged or blocked and where issues are coming from. That makes it easier to understand what’s affecting contact rates and respond accordingly.

The caller ID reputation management dashboard is a core part of the team’s dialing operations. 

“Our dialer manager looks at it every day, and he knows exactly where we are and what we need in terms of adding numbers,” Stodolak said. “Convoso has a very good caller ID management system. They’ve been huge with that. I can’t emphasize that enough.”

Hands-on support speeds onboarding and improves performance

Solar Direct Marketing leaned on the white-glove support throughout the switch to Convoso. The onboarding team, customer success managers, and support staff helped get the system up and running quickly and kept things moving once campaigns were live.

The team didn’t have to figure everything out on their own. They worked directly with product experts to set up campaigns, establish calling cadences, and make sure everything was aligned with their goals from the start.

That support also reduced the day-to-day friction. Instead of spending time dealing with system issues, managers stayed focused on optimizing dialing strategies and improving results.

“We told them what our goals were, and they helped us get there,” Stodolak said.

“We have a great relationship with the people there. The whole team is great. From the moment we onboarded with them, they’ve been hands-on, and we can reach them at any time of the day,” he said.

Integrations support compliance and quality assurance

Outbound teams operate in a tightly regulated environment, where compliance requirements directly shape how campaigns run. Staying aligned with TCPA and other regulations is part of the day-to-day, especially at scale.

Convoso’s built-in compliance tools, along with third-party integrations, helps Solar Direct Marketing stay on top of those requirements without slowing things down. The team uses Contact Center Compliance to scrub leads against Do Not Call registries and filter out known litigators before outreach begins.

They also use a quality assurance integration to keep an eye on performance and spot issues as they come up. That way, the team can address problems right away instead of letting them build over time.

“Convoso also has great plugins. We can integrate with any technology without an issue,” Stodolak said. “We can address things right away, and nip them in the bud. They allow us to be proactive rather than reactive. In this industry, that’s huge.”

Ready to improve contact rates and scale without constant fire drills? Request a demo to see how Convoso can help.