In a classic Lennox dealer meeting video, the Lennox territory manager encourages Dealer Jack to provide training for his technicians.
"What if I train them and they leave?" exclaims Dealer Jack.
"What if you don't and they stay?" counters the TM.
As amazing as it seems, many small businesses hesitate to invest in training for their employees. They would rather retain ignorance than to risk losing competence. The irony is that by training, they do neither.
One of the most technically advanced residential air conditioning companies in the country is Air Conditioning by Jay in Scottsdale, Arizona. Bryce Johnson from A/C by Jay reports that a strong training program makes it easier to hire good technicians. Johnson says technicians want to learn and know that his company provides some of the best training for advanced diagnostics in the area. They seek out A/C by Jay, waiting for an opportunity.
Training helps attract and retain employees, but so does extra benefits and higher pay. For training [...]

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The meat market in Lewisville, Texas is a landmark. Not only does the meat market sell meat, it serves great lunches, including outstanding BBQ, homemade pies, etc. Every year, we hold a “Rib Off” at the Service Roundtable where we buy ribs from three different restaurants and conduct blind taste tests for the sauce and meat. The meat market wins every time it’s in the competition. Continue Reading »

One of the great things about ShuBee is all of the simple, yet successful products they provide to the industry that help you stand out and succeed. Here are ten simple, successful marketing tactics you apply in your company. Don’t let the simplicity fool you. Simplest can be best. Continue Reading »

My friend, Bubba decided to enter a bike race. Though I wasn’t entering, he asked me to ride along side and pace him. “I gotta beat the competition,” he said. “I gotta beat Junior, Scooter, and Delbert.” Bubba got off to a wobbly start. “I thought once you learned how to ride a bike, you were never supposed to forget,” he muttered.Finally, he got enough forward motion to get moving. He was working hard to try and get his speed up. “Why am I riding this bike,” he grumbled. “I could walk faster.” “Hang on Bubba,” I said. “This is like marketing and advertising. It’s always a little hard to get it going, but once you get some momentum, it will get easier. You’ll see.” Continue Reading »

Our Sheltie, Humphrey Bogart, likes to herd things and to protect the house. It's instinctive. Unfortunately for Humphrey, we don't keep sheep or cattle in our backyard and the squirrels and rabbits have learned to keep their distance. So what's a Sheltie to do? Chase aircraft! We live north of DFW Airport and can easily see planes flying over our house on final approach. Humphrey can see them too. He doesn't like them. Continue Reading »

Let’s face it. No one likes calling a service company. It’s a hassle. Usually, it involves repairing something, which means something broke down. Thus, the situation is negative and irritating before the first call is made. Complicating matters for in-home service is the need for the homeowner to wait around for the technician to arrive. It makes people feel helpless. Once the technician is on the scene, once the repair has been made, there’s a sense of relief. It’s over. And it probably was less painful than the homeowner feared. Continue Reading »



1. Charge a Guaranteed Price
 A guaranteed price is a flat rate price. This is the same as a “not to exceed” estimate. Numerous research studies show that consumers hate open invoices. Consumers do not have the expertise to judge whether a repair should take 30 minutes or three hours. This is why consumers try to pin field service personnel down to a hard number. They pester technicians to say how long a repair will take or how much it will end up costing. If the tech offers a number, that amount becomes “fixed” in the consumer’s mind. Whether intended or not, the tech just offered a flat rate price.

 Why not do what more than 90% of consumers want and offer flat rate pricing. Guarantee your prices.

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1. Completely turn off lights and equipment when leaving at night. Many computers and other electronics are not truly off, but in a standby mode that continues to leak power or vampire energy. 2. If possible, install skylights to take advantage of daylight and reduce lighting needs. 3. Install switch plate occupancy sensors. 4. If electricity is deregulated in your market, check to see if you could get a better rate from a different provider or could renegotiate your rates. 5. Tune-up your building’s heating and air conditioning system. You really can cut utility expense when your HVAC system is well maintained. Continue Reading »

We all know who the customer is, right? You know whom I’m talking about… the CUSTOMER. The CUSTOMER is the person we serve. The CUSTOMER gives the company money. 

 But there are other customers than the CUSTOMER. Everyone in a company serves someone else. Everyone has customers whether they ever talk to the CUSTOMER or not. 

The technician, for example, is the customer of the dispatcher. The technician is an internal customer. In order for the tech to do a good job serving the CUSTOMER, the dispatcher must do a good job serving him. If the dispatcher references the CUSTOMER’s records and notes a comment or two that will help the technician perform better, he’s serving his customer (the tech) better when he passes them along… 

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12. Offer a No-Breakdown Guarantee
 Steve Miles, at Jerry Kelly Air Conditioning in St Louis, MO raised service agreement prices $25 during a downturn. Worried about the potential for price resistance, Steve offered a "no-breakdown guarantee." Once a Jerry Kelly technician has performed a tune-up, the company would pay the repair costs for any breakdowns through the end of air conditioning season.

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