The Successful HVAC Company
By: Reggie Hucks | Jan 07, 2020
According to industry experts there are over 100,000 HVAC contractors currently doing business in the U.S. However, statistics show that 50% of small business startups fail within the first year and 95% fail within five years. Therefore, the 100,000 plus contractors successfully doing business have figured a thing or two out. Let’s look at some standard business practices of these HVAC companies that keep them profitable and out of the failure statistics.
First, a good HVAC business has a solid business plan. Creating the plan can involve industry consultants, accountants, bankers, and possibly attorneys. It really depends on the scale of the business startup. After the business plan is created, a good company works the plan. Working the business plan will require responsible people that have bought into the vision and want to see the business grow. Empowering these employees is an important step in getting a successful business growing.
Secondly, the best contractors learn how maximize income in the HVAC business. Staying on top of industry trends and offering the latest technology to the customer is a top priority. Utilizing the latest in industry software, offering equipment at various price points, and selling enhanced HVAC services are standard business practices.
Great customer service is another key ingredient for top performing HVAC businesses. This alone will generate as much income as good advertising. People love it when their heating and cooling systems are fixed immediately by highly skilled people. The old mantra that “service sells” is still true in the HVAC business, especially in today’s social media environment.
Excellent customer communication is a strong suit of the best in the HVAC business too. This includes:
- Responding quickly to the customer via telephone, computer, text etc.
- Meeting scheduled appointments
- Presenting quotes that are easy to understand
- Executing contracts and following through as promised in the contract
These practices lead to profits, repeat business, and future referrals.
And finally, great businesses follow all state and federal law. There are many laws that pertain to an HVAC business and following them takes prudent managers. For example, a company needs:
- service managers that understand the requirements of the Environmental Protection Agency.
- Installation managers that obtain jurisdictional trade permits and request inspections per the appropriate codes.
- Field managers that perform quality control and safety inspections on field installations crews.
- Accounting personnel that are responsible for sales, payroll and income tax.
All this hard work adds up to companies that are worth millions in value because they diligently run a complete business. There is a quote by Robert C. Townsend that states “If you don’t do it excellently, don’t do it at all. Because if it’s not excellent, it won’t be profitable or fun.” It takes a while to make an upstart company profitable. However, there are over 100,000 examples in the U.S. of doing it the right way.
Owning a small business is the dream of millions of Americans. Getting the business off the ground and making money takes patience and persistence. The good news is there are millions of customers and ample opportunity. Good Luck!
