MSCA hosted two days of Peer Group Roundtable Discussions at MSCA 2009, our annual educational conference in Bonita Springs, Florida. These are notes taken by Ferris State University Students during the roundtables.

Customer Retention in a Competitive Economy.................................................................2New Rules and New Tools in HVAC Recruiting................................................................3Supporting a Sales Team/ Setting Goals.............................................................................4Unique Sales Strategies.......................................................................................................5Customer retention in a competitive economy..................................................................10Best Practices in a Challenging Market.............................................................................13Providing Energy Services to Grow Your Maintenance Base...........................................14Principles Focus – Lonely at the Top................................................................................16GPS/field technology.........................................................................................................17Best Practices in a Challenging Market.............................................................................19Unique Sales Strategies.....................................................................................................24Field Productivity..............................................................................................................27New rules and new tools in HVACR.................................................................................28Field Productivity..............................................................................................................29Selling Energy Service......................................................................................................30Principals Focus - Lonely at the Top.................................................................................31

Jon Alvey

Customer Retention in a Competitive Economy

Use marketing though Facebook and Myspace. Because new customers are younger and use them to communicate.

Younger customers tend to base the company that they will choose to go through based on the company’s websites and the information they can gather about the company online. So websites should be up to date and be interesting.

There is a problem with the younger generation not wanting to meet or talk face to face. They only want to communicate though email. This creates difficulty when you are trying to get them interested in your company.

Then younger generation really likes to talk about energy and green technology. Some companies are doing water audits for really cheap or for free as an

incentive. Some companies are rewarding tech’s who bring in leads or maintenance

contracts so that they are likely to bring them in more often. Send out questionnaires to customers for quality assurance. Dispatchers are doing random surveys. Does putting MSCA GreenStar qualified and other MSCA qualifications help to

gain customers? Companies are training their service technicians in customer service.

Jon Alvey

New Rules and New Tools in HVAC Recruiting

Get close to the Local UA because they feed in good apprentices and contractors. One of Local UA’s lets guys sit in on one training session to let them see what

they are all about and to get them interested. Many are using a pass or no pass test when recruiting. Good questions to consider are: How does this person make decisions? or What

kind of decisions does this person make? To see how a person makes decisions you can use drug testing, look at their

driving record, credit report, etc., because the decisions that a person makes in these things directly reflects the decisions that they will make on the job.

Facebook and myspace are good ways to see how a person is and what kind of qualities they have.

Ryley WentworthBlake Allen

Supporting a Sales Team/ Setting Goals Obtaining and Tracking set goals. Motivation to sell. Building a Sales Team of 2 to 3 people. Look towards the future not the past. Trying to find new customers while keeping the current one. Watching goals and measuring them. New Staff Team of 2 people one for sales and the other for maintenances and attention. Need a goal for every project. What you push you will get both activity and pro-active. Sale is black and white, get out (personal), call out, get appointments, then

closing. For tips visit www.salesdog.com Mandatory book readings, then talk about the readings in a meeting to make sure

if employees are reading and getting involved. 8am-5pm is perfect sales time for selling. Build top of mind presents. Build a team of one of your best employees.

Dave Feutz

Unique Sales StrategiesJim Bartolotta, Dave Bavisotto

Questions1. Within your organization, are there any unique sales techniques that have

improved your sales numbers?a. Sales training courses. b. Calling on people, not one time, but for years. c. Listening, truly listening and questioning what your customer needs, and

being honest as to whether or not you can help.d. Plumbers and HVAC techs have become the best sales guys.

i. Not only can guarantee that the job will be done correctly, but then can back up himself.

e. Davei. Give sales guys one bit of information at a time, rather than

sending them to sales training seminars. ii. Magic email- send an email with a title “follow up”. “You’re on

my list of people to follow up with, am I on yours?iii. Magic question- ask the customer if he will work with you on a

calendar basis. If he starts backing away, then he is just looking for prices, if not he will probably agree to it.

iv. Mark Madison had a piece of paper that was an agreement for a customer to meet with a contractor at a later date and make a decision by a certain date.

f. Jim- how many guys have thought they had a sale in the bag and then the customer falls off the map?

i. Most agreeg. Jim- what are you struggling with sales wise

i. Competition- the customer takes our bid and pricing information, and gives it to the competition (mainly non-union)

ii. Qualifying- keeping sales people focused on not chasing every option they get, make sure you have a chance with the customer

iii. Try and put a little doubt in the free service that is being given away (who is this person they are sending into your building?)

h. Jim- struggling with low price competition on PM? How do you validate?i. PM is intangible, how do you validate your quality compared to

the competition?

1. Separate yourself (how?) everyone says they have the best techs, so you can’t say that. We separate ourselves by not letting things go wrong.

ii. Housekeeping and landscaping- when you cut back you notice. How can you tell what is going on with the HVAC – track what a customer spends in repair vs. PM (3/1, 5/1, )

1. We validate our second year to our first year. Compare maintenance to repair from year to year since we have been there. Keep track of each asset (unit) what they are paying, what they are saving. Great renewal tool

iii. But how do we get that costumer in the first place?2. Any incentives for the first year? Free PM or warranty, or anything?

a. With a new construction job we include one year PM with the project. It helps keep your foot in the door when you show up for the first year for maintenance.

b. Some wait for the construction project to finish, because the owner will be upset with the contractor and will be looking for any other company for maintenance.

c. One year labor and PM on new installation.d. Write up a contract and have then sign it. It is a $0 contract, but they still

have signed a contract.3. Extended warranties?

a. Only if askedb. Worked with carrier to negotiate another year parts warranty with

manufacturer.c. Lifetime compressor warranty- replaces a compressor at no cost to the

customer. Only if we maintain the equipment. The cost of the compressor is nothing compared to the maintenance agreement.

i. Service can feed construction, so getting customers in service can help our construction departments.

d. Lifetime- look at the assets of their system and price an all inclusive PM, replacement and repair. If the unit goes down, we replace it for free. It costs about 10% more than the usual PM.

4. Auto renewals vs new renewals every year?a. Mostly autos – easier to increase by 3% every year and higher retention. If

you are negotiating with customers, they want to negotiate down. 5. Listening

a. Do you do air compressors? Well sure we can do that. Same thing with training, when customers started asking for it, we developed it and it helps keep those customers for everything.

b. Emergency generators are starting to become a need for customers.

c. Smoke and fire dampers in nursing homes and hospitals. d. Smoke detectors are starting to be potential PM’s. Some fire marshals.

6. Energy services?a. Many are trying but without much luck (benchmarking, energy star

services)i. Upsell to ESA (energy service agreement). Add an energy star

benchmark, a low cost no cost survey, its about $200 more a year. Can be very easy to save the customer a lot of money which keeps them as your customer.

1. List of 18 key points for an energy star benchmark, available on MSCA website.

2. Really helps keep customers around. Show the customer what their building is compared to the national average.

ii. Challenge to kick our tires, try a service call. b.

7. Regulated objects databasea. Backflow preventers- Use the website to look up when the preventers need

to be inspected, and send a bid to the customer a few months before their required inspection dated. Commonly got signed contracts back. Can lead to hvac service.

8. Webviewing?a. Everything is online, reduces overhead. We don’t have any paper

anymore. Service guy is quoting the compressor changeout before he leaves the roof on his blackberry. The customer is much more likely to sign if you have the contract right there.

9. Using a blackberrya. You can get a quote done instantly.b. Techs can quote up to $1800c. Techs are selling a lot, but you have to have the right tech with the right

skills. 10. We do a lot of things everyday that we don’t think about, but it is very

marketable. 11. Give techs incentives for pull through work?

a. Yes, helps sales a lot. But if they are working on commission, are they being honest?

12. Cold calling.a. Use an outside company to do your cold calling?

i. Tried it, but stopped. Was pretty good at generating leads, but there was always someone else already on the building

ii. Yes very successful. Each sales person is getting 5 leads per week. Not to be sexist, but this company only hires women to do the

calling. Each service tech is assigned to a sales person, and tells the sales person who to call.

iii. Probably depends a lot on company. Take a lot of time in the interview process, you have to have the right kind of person to do this type of work.

b. Silly things, or going over the top (golf ball/ baby shoes) can really get peoples attention. People are tired of the same old thing, so getting their attention is huge.

13. Unique training for customersa. Bring all the customers together for a morning with breakfast and coffee,

and do a presentation on energy savings or leed. Gets them talking about all the projects they are thinking about.

14. Newslettersa. A good way to show customers what their options are without having a

dollar amount on it. b. Trivia with prizes.

15. Servicing alternative energy systems (solar, fuel cell)a. Some are doing solar. b. Roofers are doing solar themselves, and mechanicals are missing out.c. Solar is getting a lot more affordable with utilities incentives. d. Utilities now buy back excess power. e. Johnson controls- bundling, selling solar with lighting and combining the

payback to make solar look a little cheaper.f. Solar heat? Systems have been around for a while, they are starting to

need maintenance and no one out there can service them. No one in the room really had any experience.

16. Single contact for the customer so they know who to sell.a. Each account with have an account manager who handles everything for

that one customer.b. Some keep construction and maintenance separate.

i. There are different levels of expertise, so you have to talk to different people about it (a basic rooftop change out vs a chiller change out)

17. Sales a. Sales are 100% commission. Worked very well for some.b. Spreadsheets comparing all salesmen. The management does not use it;

it’s just a friendly competition between sales people. It is a great organizational tool, how you are doing in each category, which customers you need to call back, etc. Basically a score card, keeps everyone motivated and having fun.

c. Bells you get to ring depending on what you sell, lets everyone in the office know how you are doing. Just a fun thing.

d. With tech as well, show them how they are doing compared to the rest of the field. Not necessarily as incentive, but the more information they have about their performance, the better off they are.

18. Customer appreciation?a. Get together all the customers for a paddleboat ride down a river, just a

fun night to get together with everyone.b. Oktoberfest for customers.c. Baseball game and golf outing.d. Some competitors go all out and have private suites at pro sporting events

etc.19. Give techs information on sales to allow them to kind of sell the customer on

ideas. Not necessarily actually selling, but just making the customer aware of other programs or money saving products that we offer.

20. Frequent customer 21. Referrals

a. “I’m glad you liked our service, tell a friend.”

Dave Feutz

Customer retention in a competitive economy

Thom Brazel, Jaimi Lomas

1. More UA guys attending this conference than ever, they realize they need to respect and partner with the service guys if they want to survive this.

2. How many people doing energy service?a. Many are. 

i. Local utilities are financing projects.ii. Lots of rebate money available

iii. Anything competition isn’t doing, just to stir up interest. iv. Using case studies as marketing:  can bring a lot of business to

your company. 3. What are you doing differently (besides “thanks for your business”) to retain

customers?a. Getting more involved with the customer, more face time with the

customer to show them you are interested in them. b. Raised prices before the recession hit, so that this year they did not have to

raise prices, but could still make money (may be a little late to try this now).

c. Using utility rebates to help existing customers is huge. Doing a very good job with the customers you have, they will tell other people if you find them big rebates and are very likely to tell others, resulting in new customers calling you.

4. Margins are actually increasing in some companies, using the recession to maybe get rid of some inefficiency.

5. GPSa. Use it as a selling point with the customers, “here are all of our trucks,

we’ll find the closest one and get them to you.”6. How many have sales people?

a. Yesterday many didn’t have sales, and in fact were fairly negative about sales.

7. Some owners are becoming their biggest tenants (not many people renting)a. Be proactive, “we know that you are losing tenants, maybe we should

reduce your maintenance agreement”.8. Loyalty program.

a. If a customer owns so many buildings we give him a reduced hourly rate as a loyal company.

b. Will do a free energy audit.c. Free backflow preventer inspection.

9. Energy audits10. Send out a letter a month before backflow preventer inspection is required. Very

rare that the customer does not get back to you and give you the job. Fire dampers and filters as well.

a. Some call it a call ahead agreement.b. Full maintenance backflow preventer contracts are very possible.

11. Fire dampers, power actuators, and mold growth inspection are called “life safety inspections” (very effective wording).

12. Immediate reporting for unhappy customers, service guys have to report to their supervisor immediately.

13. Champion of customer service focus group.14. Service techs can write up small quotes on site.

a. Some techs absolutely love it because they generate their own work.b. More convenient for the customer. c. Service manager reviews every quote; any discrepancy is taken up with

the service techs afterwards.d. Techs have a limit on prices that they can quote. e. Some customers have contracts that allow the service tech to fix anything

under $300 per unit without having to get permission. 15. Having only one person in the office quoting all the small jobs. Anything from a

compressor and up goes to sales people.a. Increased margins

16. More value for our servicesa. Any job over $1000 get a follow up phone call or email to thank them and

make sure everything is working right. 17. Client Survey?

a. Onlineb. Face time with the salesman or foreman

i. What if they are unhappy with those people?1. Sales and Foreman go out at different times and have

specific questions to set up a dialogue that tells if they are happy or not.

c. Personal performance objectivesd. Simply have a personal relationship with the client. Talk to the customer

about the guys you sent out to the job. Find the tech that the customer likes the best, and keep him on that job.

18. Newslettera. Constant contact email?

i. A lot of people do not want emails.b. One company actually sends out a music CD quarterly (summer songs,

winter songs), something you certainly would remember.c. Lottery tickets just to give them a little something to keep you on their

mind.d. One company actually sends out a music CD quarterly (summer songs,

winter songs), something you certainly would remember.19. Lunch and learns

a. Either goes to the customer, or invites them to our office and teaches them a little about air conditioning or plumbing (or anything).

20. How do we connect with customers that cannot accept any sort of gift? a. Facebook?

i. Be careful, don’t go all out on facebook, as it is not the most professional networking tool. It is not necessarily a bad idea, but keep it simple. (Advice from the Ferris Student: Be careful not to be invasive on facebook, for many people it is a personal networking tool, so professional contacts on facebook may be uncomfortable for some.)

b. Schedule a lunch a few weeks in advance. Face time over lunch is a great way to make a personal connection.  Go hit a bucket of balls or go fishing.

21. Advertising on the internet?a. Don’t use common words like “plumber”, be specific “backflow

preventer”. b. Pay per hit advertising on google, yahoo, and bing. Has worked very well

for some. c. One budget is around $3000 per month

22. Get to know the client on a personal level, ask the questions, do not assume based on stereotypes. People can be offended when you automatically put them in a category.

23. Some of the best clients are owners/managers. How can we find more of them?a. Brokers may be a place to start. b. Developers sometimes own and manage their own buildings. c. Talk to those owners/managers to find out how to find more people like

them. 24. How do you tell off site managers what work is done when the tech does work

on their buildings?a. Send an email from the dispatcher.

25. Handhelds?a. Work well, sometimes can be hard to make a benefit for the customer.b. Use laptops.

i. Bring up history on the building. ii. Have a signature pad

iii. Better handwriting and spellchecking. iv. All the documents are instantaneous and electronic, much faster

and easier. v. Wireless aircard (group rate).

1. Coins is a product to look at. c. Use a PDA and a redflyd. Buy a fax machine or scanner, and have service guys send the tickets in

every night that way.

Andy Wiers

Best Practices in a Challenging Market

Customer Service Every customer/job is different Customers want more for less It’s a fight for every job Have to get as many estimates as possible Contractors need to know their cost

Bids to low to compete against Bidding to get the job but not making money on it

Can’t efficiently run a company when employees have multiple job duties During tough times, find out who’s loyal to the company GPS in vehicles

Big savings in fuel Angry employees can’t quit because there isn’t really anywhere to go If they do, there are a lot of good workers without a job and want a chance

Takes away the “takers” Owners have the right to know where their vehicle is Need to have a policy in place for issues Disadvantage to GPS

Treat them like children and they’re going to act like children Hire the right people to begin with

Communication Have to keep moral up. Employees scared of layoffs are not very efficient. Communicate when things are both good and bad. Honesty. Weed out the poor workers

They hurt everyone Don’t have to be their friends, just fair to employees

Savings of diesel vehicles have dissipated Safety programs

Prizes worth while Gets whole family involved

Andy WiersJohn Alvey

Jamie ARyley Wentworth

Providing Energy Services to Grow Your Maintenance Base

These days you need to energize your service agreements. By doing this you differentiate your offering, get the meeting, and change the buying criteria. A few ways to set you apart from the rest are to hire better trained techs, build and maintain a positive reputation, and have a competitive price. There are a few things to consider when getting started in energy services. They are: treat as a sales initiative, start benchmarking, focus on financial buyer, and integrate with service offering. Energy service agreements establish a baseline of energy performance and also benchmark the energy performance. Energy service agreements should have different service tiers based on the amount of service the customer wants.

Michael ChapmanSelling Energy Services

I. Energy is a key cost saver for businesses:a. More energy efficient products help a business cut costs

i. Green, LEED certified, Energy Starb. More energy efficient buildings are being required before construction.

II. Building owners and customers want better products for less:a. Customers are looking at how much they can save now with a less

expensive, less efficient product instead of how another more energy efficient product will save them more money in the future.

III. Targeting customers:a. Set up an appointment with the potential customer(mail, telephone, service

agreements)b. Get in the door with something important to say:

i. Energy savings and cost savings should be included in the sales pitch

ii. Show the customer how a company’s energy star ratings could help them cut costs (up to 10-20% savings).

1. Energy benchmark reports2. Age of Equipment reports

a. Show the customer when systems should be replaced

c. Service Agreement renewals:i. Allows the business between the contractor and customer to

continue.

Andy Wiers

Principles Focus – Lonely at the Top

How involved do you get with employees? Employees appreciate involvement Hard to do with bigger organizations Can’t always be their friend. Decisions based on good of the company Get their respect and understanding

Take out to dinner for special occasion. 1 on 1 Personal phone call ex: birthdays, anniversaries, etc… Make it an individual action

Family business’s – Succession Planning Family business’s have own unique challenges Lay everything on the table so all feelings are known Doesn’t have to be equal, just FAIR

Lonely at the Top Who critiques the owner? No one to look over their shoulder Peer groups are a good idea Can only be 1 leader/president

Co-presidents don’t work. Someone has to have the final say

Grow a business for profit not volume Business is relationship related

To stay successful during this economy you need strong relationships with others

Blake AllenMatt Salvati

GPS/field technology

Diagnostic Benefits: Fuel pressure Over heating Takes the mystery out of what’s wrong

Dispatching Benefits: No need to call techs; Know where your trucks are at all times Knowing = holds techs accountable Knowing the distance of truck from the job site = getting the most qualified techs the

fastest to the costumer - can be used as a selling point to costumers

Other Benefits: If a tech gets a speeding ticket GPS allows you to go back and check his speed and/or

speeding habits. If a costumer says the tech was only there for 4 hours - GPS can prove actual 8 hours

of work

Pro Active Alerts- can be alerted immediately via texts and/or emails if- Truck leaves 20 mi radius of shop Truck crosses county lines When the truck starts Truck operating during odd hours Speeding Truck operating during the weekend Out of normal range miles

Fuel Saving benefits: 1. Set speed limit - light will go off if exceeded - causing techs to slow down which in

return = saving in Miles Per Gallon. 2. If the truck idles for too long a sensor will go off.

Examples of success after installing GPS systems: 10 hr jobs turned into 5 hr jobs Techs now telling you were he was at - no arguing Cleans everything up - guys realize fair is fair

Soft sell to techs - Installing GPS systems for the safety alerts

Hand - Held Devices

Benefits: Much tighter Much cleaner Past service reports Special instructions Integrated with accounting/office

Assists the tech by providing info on: Costumer notes Who worked on the system previously Past problems Things to look out for (ex. Locked doors) New contacts

Costumer copy will include: Basic info Problem description Labor Description of work Material info Costumer signature

FSU Student: Jamie Ambeau

Best Practices in a Challenging MarketBy: Scott Berger & Pattie Krippendorf

1. Scott talked about how speaking to everyone can have a gain in all directions. a. Whether it is a big company or small company.

2. How to overcome a big problem.a. Scott says that he had to reduce contract price.

i. Re-sell/Re-work contractsii. Had to reduce after hour calls.

b. Another man said that a company said they wanted everything the same in level but with $20 less an hour.

i. They had to lose the contract.ii. Why do the work for free?

1. Was a million dollar account.iii. Having a Journeyman or Intern would not fix the problem.iv. Call back in a year or so and see how things are going.

1. Or 6 monthsv. Do things in house to help customer

1. Email, phone follow upa. They are very happy with thisb. Believe that they are there

2. Keep in touch with them! a. Long term , things will get to where they once

wherec. Some say need a reduction in contract.

i. How can you charge us 10% less now and not be able to do it then?

1. Trying to keep relationships going2. Sometimes, you have to let them go.

a. Can’t always lose money3. When a unit comes to 20 years old, instead of replacing it,

service it for nowa. Michael says that they market this approachb. There has been a decrease in repairs

3. What are best practices doing to help customers?a. NICE BIKE!b. Communication, follow-ups, calls

i. Some places just don’t have the money1. Plant the seed

c. Trying to do a financial selli. Has had a couple jobs so far

1. More successful when shown a payback4. What’s EMCOR doing special?

a. Find the rose for everythingi. Some just don’t have money

ii. Increase in competition1. Weird bids coming in market place

iii. OEMs in Boston are vulnerable5. Keep an open communication

a. You will be one step ahead of them1. For some reason, everyone’s level has dropped three

notches.ii. Market your customers

1. Golf Outingsb. Have to have a relationship with everyone

i. That way they aren’t on each other’s backc. Customers have told people that he would pay them twice to do a same

job.6. EMCOR is trying to get away from Full Maintenance Agreements

a. Very difficult to keep and maintain b. Some are the opposite

i. We know what’s being done properly1. If it needs to be replaced, they would know sense that do

everythingii. The efficiency’s are where the savings are

1. The power is still the sameiii. Customers want the one budget a month expenseiv. Have a diversified portfolio

1. Summer has A/C2. Fall has no A/C but Cooking goes up due to schooling

coming in3. Winter has heating

7. Trip feesa. Why an hour charge for 15 minutes of work?

i. Sometimes takes awhile to get thereb. Some don’t have charge at all

i. A higher labor charge is in account for this8. Tickets

a. Some have $4,000 in tickets and only pay $400i. In NYC, they have an agreement with NYC about ticket meters

9. Labor rates too high?a. Anybody having complaints?b. Listen to the ones who complain, that’s about it

i. Didn’t need two guysii. Didn’t fix the problem

c. Well if I go to the grocery store and buy a steak for $20 will you cook it and give it to me for that instead of your price of $45?

i. Problem fixedii. Only due to the ones that are close

d. Some lower theirs by $10 just to keep worki. Sometimes will not work

10. Anyone add GPS this year?a. Had an uproar with Unionb. Had set expectationsc. Managing the asset was how sold

i. Techs. rolled theirs eyes at the ideasii. Will notice within first 10 months

iii. This is a great time to add thesed. Some have an insurance adjustmente. Some GPS’s have a commercial routef. Can help with reporting stolen vehicles

i. Wouldn’t solve everything but at least have a sooner idea g. If they leave (Techs.) there was something beforehandh. Some have to punch in and punch out on phone.

i. Need to keep phone on.1. Many phones have free night and weekends2. This IS an incentive for THEM

i. This can tell client exactly how far they are away.i. My guy will be there in exactly 6 minutes.

j. Do all company trucksi. Don’t just do service

ii. Put one or your own vehicle will help the matter k. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

i. Where is __________?1. Oh they are at ___________.

l. If it’s a company vehicle, do them all. 11. ALI

a. A peer group on steroids12. Communication with Tech.

a. Very important13. Customer challenges

a. GCs are trying to take on more challengesi. Pre-purchasing of equipment

b. Who handles warranty issuesc. Some put warranties into bidd. Make sure to read the specs

i. i.e. Sometimes it says you need to do maintenance for an entire year

e. Put a ceiling into your proposali. This works sometimes

14. Has anyone doe any LEED projectsa. EB from EMCOR

i. Hard to estimate building for NC15. Has anyone been involved in Energy Audits?

a. In Midwest, LEED is not happeningi. Nothing is even going on

ii. LEED looks good on end of cardb. In NY, there are two projects.

i. Not sure if ever will be finishedc. More windows will make less lighting

i. Make higher cooling and heating with more windowsii. The bigger saver is in lighting

16. Anyone doing a Green PM?a. Anyone trying for more revenue?b. If you go to website, there are webinars that are available to download.c. Encourage everyone to go to STAR or GREEN STAR conference

17. Contract Growtha. Are you giving sales people a little more Leeway?b. Anything unique?

i. Adjust service plan.ii. Compensated for Retention

iii. Successful in retaining iv. Customer feedback

1. Email from Tech.a. The minute they are done

2. Have two I.T. Tech full time for service3. Customer can go online to view reports for themselves

v. Some companies have a “report card” on how they did1. Good job2. On time3. Etc.

18. What do they have that you want?

a. Keep calling them until something happensb. Differentiate yourselves from your competition c. Here’s what we can do and this is our “laundry” list that we can do for you

FSU Student: Jamie Ambeau

Unique Sales StrategiesBy: Jim Batolotta & Dave Bavisotto

1. Anyone experience growth this yeara. Technology route

i. Sharing of infoii. Client web interface

1. Can see what is going on 2. See equipment history 3. Post quotes to customer

a. Bothers customer to see all quotes b. They tend to sell them due to they don’t want to see

them in their profile4. A free option for the clients5. Data basics6. Costs roughly $1,000 a year 7. Aged based technology 8. “Perfect Were Solutions”

iii. Filed Techs have wireless internet 1. Can do quotes on job site

a. Call stores for pricing on equipment 2. Enables to train and invest the service techs into selling 3. Building a relationship 4. Odds are greater when they are at the site

a. Owners ask questions to them and they can answer2. Contract Problems

a. Come up with new ways to have lower pricesi. Made less maintenance

ii. Less filter changesiii. Not the best, but had to be done

b. Automatic renewals weren’t coming as easy as they once werec. Come up with a reduction in price but tell customer that we want a 3 year

extension on the contracti. After 2 years say we have helped you out, go back to what once

was.d. Do self renewal contracts e. In contracts, have it start and stop a certain day

i. Somewhere state that there is a 4% rise every year 3. Differentiate yourselves from one another

a. Building Information Modeling

i. Provide this information to the clientii. Matches everything

iii. Can click anywhere and the information of that unit will appear1. What it is, when it is serviced

iv. Can use in Existing Building and New Constructionb. Anyone upgrading your PMA to ESA (Energy Savings Agreement)?

i. Go to Air Advice on MSCA website (msca.org and go to webinars)1. Energy Service Agreement

a. Does an energy audit b. Can Energy Star Benchmark their buildingc. Has a three page handout which details everything

2. Its free to do and adds so much to the client3. Don’t wait for them

a. Talk to them, plant that seedc. Have the right people to back you up

i. The techs need to know what they are doing1. One said that they went into a building and the other

company said they can do this, they can do that. He then pointed out that they can’t fix this or that. With that, the other company lost their contract and we gained one.

ii. Make your techs stand out1. May it be MSCA STAR or GREEN STAR

a. Lobby to certified as soon as you can b. In proposal, you can say why it is so important c. Can have time cut by 2/3 and save money d. It shows on van that they are certified in something

i. Puts you over the edge 2. Have all techs have cameras

a. Works well in proposals3. Have them clean up after themselves

a. Slobs don’t stay employedb. Clean the roof off!

i. Pick up tanks, screws, belts, anything that’s not supposed to be there pick up and be neat about it.

4. One guy knew how to repair small engines, which led into fixing zamboni’s. This led the company into the ice rink and they now do everything for them.

5. Have them be well rounded in everything 4. Looking to grow

a. Buying companies that are struggling right now

i. Small medium range companies5. Warranties?

a. Provide a lifetime warranty on new compressori. Does have conditions attached

ii. Have to have PM agreementsiii. IF does fail, we supply compressor, they pay labor to fix it

1. Pay also the crane, random maintenance iv. Only do it on unit that we install

b. Provide a two year parts warranty instead of onei. Manufacturer throws this in at no additional charge

c. Some have 5 year part warranty from carrier on all parts on compressor i. With no extra charge

6. Do inspections now on fire dampersa. Some have calls on air compressors or generators as well.

7. Regulated objectsa. State requires back flow preventers

8. Sell possibly Plumbing Agreements a. Very profitableb. Sells possibly about $250,000 to almost $1,000,000 this year

9. E.P.A.C.T. a. Saves money

10. Solar energy ideas?11. Reverse Auction

a. Like EBay

Michael Chapman

Field Productivity

I. Margins: how productive/efficient each worker isa. Time and efficiency is a factor but productivity is essential (1 hr. vs. 3hrs.)b. Take your time and get the job done right.

II. Track Callbacksa. Make sure the job is done right the first time.

III. GPS with mileage/speed tracking and Zone Worka. GPS helps the technicians get to the job site quickly.b. GPS with mileage tracking can be used to compare the amount of miles to

the job site to the miles driven by the technician.c. GPS with speed tracking can be used to track how fast the technician is

driving to the job site.d. Zone work allows technicians work in an area close instead of driving to a

call 100 miles away for examplei. Technicians work in their assigned areas making work more

productive.IV. Get Feedback from Employees

a. Moraleb. Feedback from employees can be used to make alterations in the system to

help employees work more efficiently.V. Hire intelligently

a. Hire the people who will get the job done.b. A friend or family member may not always be the best worker.

VI. Keep Employees Informeda. Scheduling meetings every week or month helps keep technicians

engaged.b. Meetings help keep employees informed about what is going on.

VII. Cell Phonesa. Talking on the phone is acceptable when it applies to business.

i. Can help the technician find the answer to a mechanical questionb. Excessive talking to friends, family, or other coworkers is sometimes

counterproductive.VIII. Paperless systems(Databasics, COINS)

a. Information kept on programs such as Databasics or COINS is more efficient.

b. Technicians can enter the information into these programs from a computer in their truck.

Carlton Miller

New rules and new tools in HVACR First went around and introduced everyone where they were from and what

they do Take test to become certified to become worth more to your company Technician process

o 1st year – coil cleano 2nd year - inspectiono 3rd year – call on water leaks and miner problemso 4th year – journeymen work

Technicians need to stay learning. A lot of people were let go because they did not want to improve on new technologies.

The main theme was that learning/ attitude is what it comes down too. Great term “Be a student of the game” Hiring for technicians

o Good credito Good car record for insuranceo Back ground check

Carlton Miller

Field Productivity What effects productive?

o Personal phones calls and technology GPS- Get it. Makes things easier, faster, and quicker

o Vehicle tracking- tells speed, where they are at, and cuts down on abuse for personal uses.

Company’s methodso Guys come in a hour early every week and discuss the latest info, safety,

and hand in reportso Laptops

Drop them a lot Where can they store them because they are big A lot of money upfront and they get stolen easily

o Hand held GPS Can be used as a phone Can track equipment Can see last 10 service calls Online use Fills out time in and out

Some productivity methodso Work 40 hours a week they get 1 hour of paid leave timeo Bonuses at the end of the yearo Golf outing, painting, picnics and keeps work as a team

Lester Hallberg

Selling Energy Service.In the current market, there is a slow down in the construction of new buildings but there is the need for servicing the current market. Why now, what is the opportunity, why me, and how can we get started. Connect directly with the property owners of commercial building and show them what you can do for them today. Show them that you can save them money on their monthly operating cost of heating, cooling, lighting and air quality. This also has the potential to open up to a capital cost upgrade. Over the next few years the trend is going to show a slow growth in service contracts.

Lester Hallbert

Principals Focus -- Lonely at the TopThis gave business owners in the heating and cooling industry to have an open forum to discuss what ever they wanted to about their businesses with other business owners. One owner talked about a business that he sold and ended up buying it back from the buyer for 80% less because the business sales went down and most of the key people left and when he bought back the business he was able to choose the right people to come back into the company. Other business owners talked about the importance of staying healthy to keep the business going and looking for the right options for future expansion, future successors or possibly taking on other business owners.