Win HVAC Customers’ Hearts – and Business – Through Preventive Maintenance
Do you consider the HVAC service company you work for or own to be a good one? If so, you probably recognize the long-term value of a good customer in terms of potential future work. One way to establish and maintain valuable customer relationships is through HVAC preventive maintenance.
There are plenty of second- and third-rate HVAC contractors out there that are readily available for emergency service calls or quick furnace or condenser changeouts, but many have no loyalty to the customer, and the customer has no loyalty to them in turn. In all likelihood, the customer simply found an HVAC company on the internet that happened to be available at what seemed at the time to be a fair price. These customers often pay a much higher price after the fact as a result of poor workmanship or HVAC technician inexperience and are very unlikely to use these companies again.
A contractor that provides quality PM services (hopefully yours) makes sure the customer’s equipment is running properly and efficiently, is cleaned on a regular basis, and has the proper airflow through the system and the home. A quality contractor advises customers what their system may need and why without pressuring them into unnecessary work, whereas a more unscrupulous HVAC company thinks only of their bottom line. These companies tend to depend on emergency service and equipment replacement business drummed up from poorly-maintained systems. Spending time on customer relationships and addressing their needs is simply not in their wheelhouse.
When it comes to referrals, quality HVAC companies are the ones who get them from their satisfied customer base. Preventive maintenance performed twice a year in early spring and late fall help maintain your customers’ positive feelings, keep your company top-of-mind when issues arise, and – very importantly – keep service technicians busy during slower seasons. PM contracts sometimes lead to off-season system changeouts that keep money coming in to your business and installation crews busy.
Not every customer will be interested in signing up for PM, of course, but many of these same people are very attuned to online reviews and referrals from friends, relatives, neighbors, and colleagues. Quality HVAC contractors who develop and nurture good relationships with their customers are far more likely to be the recipient of good reviews and customer referrals, and preventive maintenance is a very good way to achieve this.
About E.P. Homiek
E.P. Homiek Sheet Metal Fabrication & HVAC Supply, with two convenient locations in Lakewood, NJ and Union, NJ, provides one- to two-day turnaround on all residential and light commercial ductwork, as well as one- to two-hour emergency fabrication service, rapid delivery, and competitive prices. HVAC parts, supplies, and equipment lines include Goodman, Honeywell, Bryant, Bradford White, Crown Boiler, Daikin, Weil-McLain, York Commercial, Sea Breeze, Generac, Fantech, ZM, A.O. Smith, Hart & Cooley, Malco, Mueller, and many more
