Published on: August 23, 2022 Running a profitable HVAC business requires more than just trained technicians or a sales team – it demands outstanding HVAC customer service. Customers are looking for a smoother experience from start to finish. According to a survey by Salesforce, 89% of customers are more likely to make another purchase after an excellent customer service experience. A study by American Express revealed that more than 33% of customers would switch companies immediately after poor customer service. Focusing on customer needs and creating positive interactions will help you increase your sales, and a loyal customer can even lead up to 9 referrals for your company. So, your customer service team plays a huge role in converting a prospect into a new customer or leaving your business before they even reach the checkout. How do you provide that experience to your customers repeatedly? From getting the first call to the final follow-up and beyond, our team has come up with 8 ideas that can help you to attract potential customers. Table of Content 8 HVAC Customer Service Tips You Must Know FAQs FieldCamp Streamlines HVAC Business Operations 8 HVAC Customer Service Tips You Must Know Let’s dive into the 8 tips that can help your HVAC business to attract many customers. 1. Providing on-site HVAC quotes If your HVAC techs visit a customer’s house to address the air conditioning system or a furnace repair issue, the customer might become frustrated if he is forced to wait for several hours or even days to get the price estimate. This can negatively impact the customer, and they may even buy products or services from other HVAC companies. So, you need to ensure that your technicians can provide on-site estimates and warranty information and even allow them to sign off on the work on the spot. Thus providing a quote on the spot gives you an advantage over the others. By the time your competitors have responded, you’re already moving down the negotiation path, and it becomes hard for others to catch you this way; you just got a new customer for your HVAC business. 2. Having a uniform for the HVAC team Are your HVAC technicians showing in ratty t-shirts, in need of a shower or shave? They might be the best technicians out there, but if they come across as disorganized, it will ruin the customer experience. An HVAC service call may not be as formal as a board meeting, but it has as much potential as a sales pitch. So, it becomes necessary for your technicians to follow a dress code. Ask your team to keep a few extra pairs of clean work shirts or polos as collared shirts project professionalism. Also, before entering someone’s home, they should wrap their shoes or work boots in plastic. This prevents dirt from entering the house and shows that you care about your customer. 3. Providing timely HVAC services Respect your customers’ time. Disappointing your HVAC customer before even you start working with them and having to reschedule an appointment because of miscommunication wastes the customer’s time and looks unprofessional. When you have good time management with your team, you know exactly where your technicians are and how long they will be there- information that requires close to real-time communication between you and your technicians. As a result, you can estimate the arrival time of a technician for a customer with a lot more accuracy and then make sure your job dispatcher sends a field tech out on schedule, and this will result in a better customer experience. 4. Building a quality customer relationship You need to ensure that you are connected with your customers even after they have completed the purchase through consistent content marketing and notifying them about the new products or the services you are offering. This helps keep your HVAC business top of mind, so the customer reaches out to your company when they need any service. This can be done by providing friendly reminders through email marketing, phone calls, or text messages when it’s time to change filters, schedule an annual tune-up on their HVAC system, and even by providing discount coupons during the slow season. This will ensure that your customers know the services you are providing and can buy the services and even share them with their friends or family about it. 5. Ask for feedback Check in on your customers. When your HVAC technicians finish the job, follow up with the customer within 24 hours through a call or an email to check if things went well or not. When you follow up, consider including a discount for further visits, promote sales for other services, or provide customer advice on keeping HVAC systems in good working order. Make sure to check in again a week or so later. Make sure to include them on your distribution list for future communications if you send out a regular newsletter or any other type of communication. It’s going to help them in making an informed decision if they want to do business with you or not. 6. Schedule service requests quickly When a customer reaches you for a service call, it’s important they are greeted by friendly voices who will schedule their service request. You need to ensure that you understand the requirement properly and then provide them with the information such as the estimated cost and the providing accurate service windows. Also, it is important to process these requests as the earliest. This will help them to make an informed decision if they want to do business with you or not. 7. Explain work to your customer With just some training, even the most un-expressive field techs can learn to share the fundamentals of the work in a super friendly manner. For instance, new customers are not familiar with air conditioner terminologies like load calculation and condenser coil, so make sure your field techs can break it down into simple language. When the job is about to start, they can take a moment to describe what they will be doing, the components being installed or repaired, and how long it should take. And once they are done with the work, they can demonstrate the work to the customer and recommend preventive measures they should follow while using the HVAC systems. 8. Cleaning the mess after the job is done Respecting others in the workplace and on client property is essential to a successful company. You don’t want to receive a call from the job site claiming that your technicians left cables, pipes, and plastic shavings lying around after servicing the HVAC system. It demonstrates a lack of professionalism and casts doubt on the caliber of the work completed. Suppose the technician clears all the mess after completing his job. In that case, it will create enthusiasm to recommend your HVAC business to other potential customers and a willingness to call you back if they want to repeat business. These 8 HVAC customer service skills can help you attract more customers and convert them into loyal ones. But, apart from these tools, you also require professional field service management software that will improve HVAC customer service. These field service management software are helping HVAC companies streamline their entire process. Field techs can use mobiles or tablets to ease their process – such as taking payment, creating invoices and paperwork, and even getting feedback from the customer. It can be overwhelming to filter service management software based on your unique business needs and requirements. So, our team has selected the best field service management software for you. FieldCamp – Your Preferred HVAC Software Schedule and dispatch HVAC technicians, Create invoices, Get paid, Generate service reports with our All-in-one HVAC Management Software. Try FieldCamp for Free FAQs What are the benefits of using HVAC customer service? HVAC customer service is an important aspect of the HVAC business. It’s a great way to show your customers that you care about their needs and want to ensure they are happy with their service. Some benefits of providing HVAC customer service are: – Increased customer satisfaction and positive reviews – Increased sales opportunities for the business – Decreased number of customer complaints What do we need in HVAC maintenance? The primary reasons for HVAC maintenance are to keep the equipment running efficiently and to prevent breakdowns.Air conditioners, furnaces, and other HVAC units require a regular check to ensure they are running at peak efficiency. The unit can break down or need costly repairs if not maintained regularly. Thus, you can fix issues before they become bigger problems. What certifications do you need to get into the HVAC industry? The HVAC industry is a very competitive and demanding work environment. There are many HVAC certifications that a person can get to be qualified for this field.The most common certifications are the Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Contractor (HVACCC) and National Environmental Controls Certification (NECC). What are the benefits of using HVAC services? There are many benefits of using these services. The benefit is that you don’t need to worry about the safety of your children.If your heater or air conditioner breaks down, and you don’t know how to fix it, it can be dangerous for your children.Another benefit is that you won’t have to worry about whether or not the unit will work efficiently. You’ll know that someone with experience has inspected the unit and will ensure everything is in working order before leaving.The last benefit is that you’ll save money on energy bills by having an efficient unit. How much do HVAC service calls cost? Many HVAC companies offer regular maintenance plans with annual, bi-annual, or quarterly service visits. If you sign up for a maintenance contract, you’ll usually receive priority scheduling, reduced fees, and repair discounts. The company may even contact you about scheduling, so you don’t have to worry about it slipping your mind. Annual maintenance agreement plans average $75–$150, and bi-annual plans tend to cost $150–$300. FieldCamp Streamlines HVAC Business Operations If you think you are missing out on recurring jobs or service calls from customers, the answer may be related to your customer service. The HVAC techs are an important part of any company, but if you find that certain team members lack customer service skills, you could damage your reputation. HVAC software like FieldCamp can enhance customer service relationships and reduce some of the stress that accompanies running a successful HVAC business. With FieldCamp Service Management Software, you can reduce the chance of forgetting to follow up with a customer or having your technicians forget anything on site by using checklists. With FieldCamp, you can combine your office and field to ensure that your team can deliver quality customer service, and you have a way to capture satisfaction surveys and reviews that help you build your brand and presence in the market. You can take a 7-day FREE trial to get a deeper understanding of FieldCamp. If you like it, you can also raise a request to integrate it with your HVAC business. Author Bio Gaurang Bhatt Gaurang Bhatt is a techie in himself with an ability to solve problems technically and present solutions in the form of a product. He is one of the pioneers to curate FieldCamp with his 15+ years of knowledge and expertise in providing solutions to home service industries. Gaurang aims to overcome challenges faced by service business owners through software solutions and blogs. Sign up for weekly updates from Fieldcamp.
