For many reasons, the new year is looking like it will be a hard year for lots of businesses. But this also presents opportunities. For a lot of owners, the question of how to grow your HVAC business this year sounds almost impossible, but it’s not.
Are we saying it’ll be easy or ‘one quick thing’? No. But that’s not why you got into this business. This year doing the basics right and continuing to grow your reputation is going to be the keys to success.
The basics – make sure you answer every call
This sounds basic, but the simplest way to grow your HVAC business is to answer more calls. 80% of people will hang up if they don’t speak to someone. Relying on voicemail just won’t cut it in 2023. If you want to grow this year, make sure you answer every call. Don’t let the work go to the competition!
Get follow-ups in the diary immediately
How many times have you got a number but no one picks up when you call back? People lead busy lives, so get follow up calls scheduled on the very first call. Once you’ve got the basic details you can ask when it would be best to call back or visit for an estimate. Link appointments to your calendar and service software, and your life will be immediately easier and more efficient.
Make sure business is right for you – qualify new leads
As you grow your business you need to make sure you’re focusing on the right customers. People make requests all the time that are not a good fit for you. Being able to spot the best leads to follow up on as a priority is critical when it comes to growing your HVAC business.
Make sure you’re getting information in the very first call. Getting information like when they want to start the work, their budget, or even if they are in your service area are all perfect ways to qualify leads. With qualified leads, you can pick the biggest priority jobs to focus on.
Get more work in off-season by servicing existing customers
How many emergency calls did you get last year that could have been avoided if people maintained their HVAC systems? Contact previous customers and get servicing contracts in place to check their systems out before it becomes an emergency.
It’s great to have recurring revenue in your business to help you plan for the future, so use some downtime to plan how you’re going to reach out to your existing customers and people they know.
Read more: How to get leads out of season
Open up new channels like chat and social media
The world is changing fast, over 50% of younger people are avoiding talking on the phone. You’ve a choice here – you can either roll your eyes or decide to take advantage of new channels that other businesses are ignoring. Live chat is everywhere now, so get it on your website and social media platforms.
In the 80s we just had phones (and maybe a fax if someone did it from the office), but now we do more online than ever before. It makes total sense that people don’t want to then phone a business during business hours unless it’s an emergency.
It’s now really simple to add live chat to your website and connect it to your Facebook page. That way you can answer questions as people browse or when a friend recommends your business, better still you’ll have information on what they’re looking for to get back to them. Whether someone is browsing at 2am or the middle of the afternoon your business is there.
Read more: How HVAC businesses can use live chat
Make the most of your marketing spend
Already investing in marketing spend? Great. Marketing your business is massively important, but are you making the most of it? Most companies aren’t. If there’s a phone number on your adverts is someone answering it?
Unless it’s an emergency, most people do their research when they have downtime. If you’re advertising in your local area, chances are people will be doing their research in the evening. You deserve downtime too. But if your adverts and website all say to call you, make sure you are able to answer at the times people are looking for you.
Follow up and get reviews
Your reputation is what makes you stand out. You do excellent work, so make sure people know about it. Once you’ve completed a job, ask your customers to give you a review on platforms like Google or Trust Pilot. People trust the opinions of others, especially if it’s something they don’t know about themselves, so reviews really do matter.
You can also start doing follow-up calls. A few days after the work is done, call up a customer to check that everything is working as expected and if they’ll give you a review. Not only will you get happy customers, but this level of service is what people tell their friends and neighbors about.
How can AnswerForce help?
All of these steps you can do on your own. But your day is busy already, so let AnswerForce help. Our HVAC answering services solutions are here to help you answer calls and chats 24 hours a day, schedule follow-ups, qualify your leads, and more.
To grow your HVAC business, book a demo and see how our people-powered services can become part of your business today.