When installing, maintaining, or repairing HVAC equipment, it’s important to do the best job possible. However, the quality of your work does not begin and end at the time of a service call. Just as important as performing quality work is following up with your clientele after the job is finished. So why is it so important to follow up? Here are a few things you need to know about this necessary but often neglected step.

1. Following up with your clients means you are more likely to turn them from one-time clients into repeat customers. HVAC service is a difficult, sometimes costly, and important job. In other words, it’s a job that clients are going to take seriously. When you follow up with your clients, they are going to see you as someone they can trust and someone who stands behind their work and the promises they make. And when that happens, the clients are increasingly likely to become clients for years to come. And as you know, HVAC service is not a one-and-done industry. Annual maintenance, emergency repairs, and occasional upgrades are all part of the life cycle of an HVAC system. If you want to be the one performing the repeat jobs for your clients, you need to follow up.

2. While it can sometimes be hard to hear, following up with clients will help you find out where your business might be falling short. Whether you are the best HVAC company in town or you recently started your own business and need to establish a customer base, there are always going to be ways you can improve. By following up with clients you have the opportunity to learn the ways you can improve. For example, if you send out a satisfaction survey or pamphlet after your maintenance call, customers will be able to provide feedback regarding your work. If you prefer having a technician or supervisor call or visit the customer, they can ask the same questions and hear everything in person. Regardless of how you approach it, following up will help you find and fix any potential issues in the quality of service you provide.

3. Following up with customers will help you train new employees quicker than if you had to tell them everything themselves. If you send new employees into the field with experienced workers, they will get first-hand experience mastering their trade. And if they are part of the customer follow up (especially if it’s in the form of a satisfaction survey or assessment), they are going to learn what they did right and what they could have improved on. And no matter how great of a teacher you or your experienced employees might be, new employees will always learn more from customers themselves.

4. Want to save time, energy, and money? If so, follow up with your clients after every service visit. The larger the job you perform, the greater the chances that something will need to be adjusted or tweaked in the coming weeks. If you schedule mandatory follow-up appointments you will have a stress-free and dedicated time in which you can perform those adjustments as opposed to waiting until the customer calls to complain about the work.

While the reasons why you should follow up are vast and varied, it all comes down to earning and keeping more customers as well as better customer satisfaction.

About The Author: Gary Presti has been the president of AirMaster Heating and Air, Inc. for almost 23 years. He is known for his leadership and ability to motivate his team. He has an in-depth knowledge of the HVAC industry and of business, sales, operations, facilities, project, and account management.