If you are an HVAC business owner or an HVAC contractor who wants to grow your HVAC company, then you need more customers.
Well, let’s think about it…
What if, instead of obsessing about HVAC lead generation, how to get more HVAC clients or new HVAC sales leads, you instead focused on maximizing what you already have?
The truth is most HVAC companies make a big mistake when trying to get HVAC leads, advertise their HVAC service or attempt HVAC marketing to get more clients.
In fact, there is a much easier way to get HVAC customers for your business than spending thousands on advertising and HVAC marketing. You don't need to obsess about your Google ad spend, local SEO, or using the right SEO services.
All it takes is improving your HVAC sales process and keeping the customer’s best interests in mind.
Let’s look at how the smartest HVAC business owners get more HVAC customers, excel at HVAC lead generation, and how you can too.
Why Most HVAC Marketing is a Waste of Money
The reality is that any HVAC company that is willing to offer excellent customer service, will be able to find new HVAC customers.
The barrier to entry to become an HVAC technician or to set up an HVAC company is as simple as learning the trade and then getting a truck and some tools. But attracting a potential customer for HVAC services is more competitive than ever.
When a HVAC business needs to attract HVAC customers and get more HVAC leads that most begin to struggle. They spend a ton of money on a lead generation strategy, reputation management, with the hope of generating leads.
If you want to try to compete with the larger HVAC companies in the same space, you cannot do it by simply spending more on advertising. Each potential client has an almost unlimited amount of options for HVAC services.
The fact is that almost every dollar that HVAC businesses spend on advertising is wasted because they fail to keep the customer past one transaction.
The Obsession with New HVAC Leads
As an HVAC marketing consultant, I hear the same five things all the time:
“I need more leads for my HVAC business”
“There is too much competition in my area”
“How do I get the phone to ring?”
“What is the best HVAC advertising platform?”
“How do I promote my HVAC business?”
No doubt you have said something similar to yourself at some stage too.
What I notice is that most HVAC business owners have an obsession with getting more HVAC lead generation. The focus on Google Guaranteed ads, HVAC SEO, and using lead generation services such as Service Direct thinking that generating leads can be left to somebody else.
This way of thinking about HVAC customers and generating leads is what causes a HVAC business to stagnate.
How Do HVAC Companies Get New Customers?
No matter how you look at it, there are only three approaches to HVAC marketing and attracting HVAC leads that you can take:
- Grassroots marketing: getting to know businesses in your local area, and being visible in your community so people find you when they need you.
- Organic marketing: spending time building an online presence through your website being found on Google search, Google reviews, and a Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business).
- Paid Marketing: buying ads on Google (known as Google Guaranteed, Google Local Services Ads, PPC, or Sponsored Listings), or paying to rank on sites like Yelp, Angie, HomeAdvisor, NextDoor, HomeGuide.com, etc.
Which HVAC Marketing strategy is the best?
The honest answer is none of them. Each one works when done well, and doesn’t work when done poorly.
Don’t Get Fooled by HVAC Advertising
Make no mistake about it - the biggest profits in the HVAC industry are made by Google.
The average HVAC business will spend up to 10% of its revenue on Google PPC ads, Google local service ads, and sites like Yelp, Angi, or HomeAdvisor.
Paying for HVAC leads through online advertising and listing sites can sometimes feel like a form of extortion.
Most HVAC contractors who run their own small businesses obsess about getting new customers to call them. And that is exactly what companies like Google, Yelp, and Angi want you to do.
Don’t get fooled by the advertisers telling you that you need to spend all your money with them.
Unless you are a brand-new HVAC business, the majority of your profits and sales will come from your existing customers in the form of upsells, repairs, maintenance, and system replacements.
The Mindset of a New HVAC Customer
Take a minute and think about the mentality of a new HVAC customer.
Are they excited to call you? No, they aren’t.
Do they want to spend any money? No, they don’t.
The reality is a prospective HVAC customer will likely only call you if something is broken, or they are frustrated with their current HVAC contractor.
They don’t want to spend money, and they don’t want to spend more time than they need to get their HVAC system up and running again.
Even if you manage to attract a new HVAC customer via advertising or digital marketing, the deck is stacked against you making more than the bare minimum of profit on every new transaction.
Of course, during the busy summer rush period, it is a little easier to get customers to buy and to agree to repairs. But during the slower months from September through to April, it can be a huge struggle to stay afloat as an HVAC contractor.
This struggle is made worse by the fact that most HVAC businesses just try to fight over the smaller amount of new HVAC leads that are available during the majority of the year.
Your Hidden Asset is Your Existing Customers
Compare the mindset of a new HVAC lead to an existing customer whom you have already worked with and helped.
New HVAC customers don’t trust you and don’t want to buy.
Existing HVAC customers trust you, and will listen if you have a way to help them.
Because there is an established relationship, your existing customers will be more likely to pick up the phone if you call and open your emails.
If you have an offer for them that benefits them in some way (not just gets you another job) then they will be very open to it. Even if they don’t buy, at the very least they will be more likely to call you when they have an issue if they have heard from you more recently.
The ultimate HVAC marketing tactic is to take excellent care of the customers you already have.
If you and your HVAC techs do an excellent job servicing your customers, they will refer more prospective customers. They will write you Google reviews, and they will be open to upsells of add-ons like IAQ and duct cleanings.
Stop Chasing, Start Serving
Is all HVAC marketing a waste of time? Of course not.
Email marketing, social media, content marketing, local SEO, and video marketing all have a place in growing your brand and staying in front of customers.
The reason most HVAC professionals struggle is they focus all their energy on trying to advertise rather than find another new customer instead of servicing existing customers.
The problem is, that most HVAC contractors ignore this fact and waste their money on advertising and trying to chase new HVAC leads.
If all you do is spend money on HVAC advertising without focusing on improving your customer experience, then you are wasting money and time.
Success in getting new HVAC customers all comes down to how you focus on your target market. Once you have a clear market, become the very best at serving them.
You must spend time planning your HVAC marketing so you get more HVAC leads and keep them as customers. Increase your average ticket on every HVAC job by a few hundred dollars and you will immediately see a boost in profits.
Before you spend any more money or time trying to get new HVAC leads, make a plan to take better care of the customers you already have.
Not only is it more profitable, it’s a lot easier, and a lot more rewarding.