Multi-Million Dollar Business Strategies for HVAC and Plumbing Shops

You want to be the go-to plumbing or HVAC shop in your service area. You’re already doing well; business is steady and your trucks are on the road a ton. But if you’re being completely honest, things are a bit too easy right now, which means business has plateaued a bit, and that’s not OK with you. You want more: more leads, more calls, more techs, more trucks, more business, and more profit.

The problem is you’ve done everything you know how to do, and the needle’s not moving. You’re realizing that what got you here isn’t going to get you there .

So, how do HVAC and plumbing shops go from several thousand dollars a week to several thousand a day? How do you get from six figures to seven? Hard work, right? Yes. But also, smart work. Becoming a multi-million dollar plumbing or HVAC shop means getting smarter about four areas of business:

• targeting the right customers
• leads and referrals
• tracking and relationships
• customer service and reviews

While it may seem like scaling up your business requires expanding your business offerings, that’s not necessarily the case. In fact, niching to a particular market is often much more effective. Why? Because if you’re good at meeting the needs of a particular market, you’re going to get more of that particular market’s business. By contrast, if you’re only “meh” at meeting the needs of a whole lot of markets, you’re going to have a “meh” reputation across the board. And that doesn’t win more jobs.

So spend some time getting super clear on who you’re going after. Define their unique problem. Outline the specific ways you solve their problem. Use messaging on your website and other marketing collateral that speaks directly to that audience. Are your ideal customers more concerned with price? Or do they care more about quality? Are they looking for the least expensive solution to their problem, or do they want a solve that’s fast and clean–regardless of what it costs? Are they first-time homeowners with very little DIY skills—so you’ll be doing quick, simple repairs? Or are they actually pretty handy so you’ll be looking at more complex jobs that require more experienced techs?

There’s no right or wrong answer to this question. You get to define the kind of business you want to have. Understand what your unique selling proposition is, and clearly define who’ll benefit from it.

To get more customers, you have to get more leads, right? Let me be as clear as possible here: The fastest way to get more new leads for HVAC or plumbing shops is to invest in PPC ads that point to a search-optimized website that’s built to convert.

If you haven’t changed your website in six months, it’s not optimized, and you’re sliding down Google’s results page. If it’s not mobile-friendly, you’re losing money. If you just dropped a ton of money on a gorgeous website but you’re not running Google Ads to get people to it, you’re losing sales to your competitors. “If you build it, they will come” does not work . Set aside some money for Ads.

Now, if all you’re doing is Google Ads, that’s an incomplete strategy. That approach will get you more leads, but the conversion rate will still be relatively low. If you’re serious about becoming a multi-million dollar business, you’ll need to develop an incentivized referral network .

And here’s another opportunity for me to be perfectly clear: I’m not talking about asking your current homeowner customers to tell their neighbors about you. That’s not a bad idea, but it’s not going to have you vacationing in Tahiti anytime soon. Why? It’s finite . Your customers only have so many neighbors.

Instead, research similar-but-different service providers in your area, and offer to develop a mutually beneficial referral partnership. For example, if your HVAC business is install-only, partner up with a service-only company and send one another customers. If your plumbing company doesn’t do tankless water heaters, find a company that’s trying to grow that side of their business and develop a mutually beneficial agreement to swap some leads.

“Hey, Ryan. You said incentivized referral network.” So I did. Strongly consider adding a cash bonus for referrals. When one your referral partners sends you a lead, send them a check. When people are rewarded, they’ll repeat what earned them the reward.

Here are two other ways to get referrals:

• Get connected with a tight-knit group of businesses in your community who have likely access to your ideal customers—such as real estate agents. They want to be helpful to their clients, so if you can provide a solution to their problems, you’ll get those referrals.
• Get listed on equipment manufacturers’ websites. When someone’s AC quits, they may Google “AC repair in [your town].” However, super-savvy homeowners are going to read the label on their unit and Google that instead, looking for a qualified technician for their specific equipment. You want to be that shop. Sometimes, all it takes to get listed as a “provider” is a conversation with the manufacturer. Other times, it requires a bit of paperwork and some training—which will only improve your techs’ performance.

Becoming a multi-million dollar plumbing or HVAC shop requires making more money. But it also requires not wasting money. One way to do that is to track everything. If you’re spending money on a particular marketing channel, it’s good to know if that tactic is bringing you any business.

One way to track the effectiveness of your lead sources is to have a unique phone number and/or web URL connected to every piece of marketing collateral. Doing A/B testing on leave-behind sales sheets? Have a different phone number on each one and see which number rings more. Trying out a new email marketing campaign? Have it point to a different URL than your main site and track click-throughs. Check in on your Google Ads to see what messaging gets the most traction. Then put more money toward the more effective one.

It’s not rocket science. It is, however, a major time-suck. And that means you shouldn’t be doing it. You should hire someone to do it for you. Otherwise, it won’t get done and you’ll continue to risk tossing money to the wind.

Here’s another good reason to track all the things: It’ll help you cultivate lasting relationships with your current customers. What differentiates little shops from big shops is this: Little shops see jobs as jobs. Big shops see jobs as customers.

It’s way, WAY less expensive to keep a loyal customer than it is to get a new one. So invest some money and energy in a solid retention strategy:

• Send thank you notes after every service call. Include a gift card.
• Develop an email sequence you send to every customer after every service call.
• Develop a monthly enewsletter with helpful content. Even if your customers never read it, they’ll see your name in their in-box and remember you exist. Do not underestimate the power of top-of-mind awareness.
• Put a service sticker on equipment. That way your customers will remember whom to call if they have a problem, and the next homeowner will naturally reach out to you, too. This is important enough to incentivize your techs to use those stickers.

You know this already, but it’s worth repeating: If your techs do lousy work, or if they do great work with a surly attitude and don’t clean up their mess, you’ll never get bigger. You just won’t. Reputation is everything in the service business, and bad news spreads fast.

Fortunately, so does good news—in the form of reviews. I talk about this a lot in my book , so I’ll keep it short here.

People don’t care what you say about you. They care what other people say about you. In short, online reviews can make or break your business. Ask every customer for a review every time and make it easy for them to offer one. Read positive reviews in staff meetings to encourage your techs to continue doing five-star work.

In fact, give your techs a cash bonus for every good review they receive.

“What? Are you crazy, Ryan? Why should I reward them for just doing their job. They get a paycheck for that!”

Yes. And also? It’s important to incentivize what’s most important to your business. For the cost of a fancy cup of coffee, your techs will get addicted to creating great customer experiences and earning good reviews, which will have a nice impact on your bottom line. It’s worth the cost.

Also, respond to your reviews. Every time. Even the negative ones. And if you’re seeing a pattern of negative reviews, dig into that problem and fix it.

Finally, and I bet you can guess what I’m about to write: Systematize your review process. Otherwise, you’ll end up with three-month-old reviews on Google, and potential customers will think you’ve gone out of business. This work is important, but it’s way too in-the-weeds for you to manage on a day-to-day basis. Develop a system, hire someone to implement it, and watch your profits grow.

Becoming a multi-million dollar shop means handing off critical business tactics to strategic partners whose job it is to help you win in the marketplace. But most HVAC and plumbing contractors feel ripped off when they think about how much money they’ve spent trying to grow their business—and how little they have to show for it. At Levergy, we’ve developed a proven process to get you the leads, jobs, and revenue you deserve. Let’s have a conversation today!