Fix HVAC Business Issues by Answering These 5 Questions

Operating and growing an HVAC business is tough work. The industry is lucrative with projections of 319.9 Billion by 2030. It’s also very competitive with over 100,00 HVAC companies vying for customers’ heating and cooling needs. Are you doing everything you can to address any problems your business may be struggling with? Do you need to fix HVAC business issues?

Setting up your business to be profitable and growing is imperative to compete with all the other businesses in your local area. Today we’ll look at 5 questions that may give you pause, and give you guidance on how to answer.

Have you determined what type of HVAC business you want?
Have you performed a SWOT analysis?
Do you have a business plan in place?
Are you understaffed, overstaffed or just right?
How profitable is your business?

Are you structured the right way or are there changes you need to make to remain competitive? Let’s dive in:

Question 1: Have you determined what type of HVAC business you want to be?

Determining your goals depends a lot on how you’d like to evolve as a business. Are you satisfied with a small profitable business with just a few busy techs, or do you want to grow your business into 50 trucks and multiple locations?

Once you figure out the desired scope of your business, you can come up with your short- and long-term goals. Then you can start looking at similar local businesses to emulate.

Is there a competitor that has grown to the scale you’d like to reach? If so, what did they do to get there?

What processes could you improve upon that could help you grow faster? Perhaps your dispatching board and process needs an upgrade. Or you may need better software to run your business more effectively so you can focus more on growth.

Question 2: Have you performed a SWOT analysis?

SWOT stands for: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Many businesses use this to help identify what a business is doing right and what it needs to improve upon. It also recognizes opportunities and threats.

Improve operations or tackle big decision a company is facing with a SWOT analysis. This fact-based technique uses a four-box table to list a series of questions or facts relevant to each of the four factors mentioned above.

Why implement a SWOT analysis? It makes complex problems manageable. Use this strategy to fix HVAC business issues and look at outside factors as well as internal.

Question 3: Do you have a business plan in place?

Many small businesses come out of the gate without developing a business plan. This lack of direction can lead to you needing to fix HVAC business operations down the line.

A business plan is the blueprint to your business structure. Developing one is your next step after determining how you want your business to grow. This is where you can pull in SWOT findings and ideas into the business plan!

According to HubSpot, a business plan is defined as “A documented strategy for a business that highlights its goals and its plans for achieving them. It outlines a company’s go-to-market plan, financial projections, market research, business purpose, and mission statement.”

Update this document regularly to gauge your company’s progress. The purpose of having and using a business plan is to make sure your business is on the right track to success. Benefits include:

Strategy. Your identity is defined by your target market, along with the services you have to match their needs. Adjust your strategy as needed.
Clarity. You will have a “big-picture” look at the overall business allowing you to connect your strategies with tactics to achieve them.
Accountability. With a plan in place, expectations are set and you can track progress. You can review your business periodically to see expectations and results.
KPIs. Key Performance Indicators are the tangible numbers you want your business to hit this year.

Question 4: Are you understaffed, overstaffed or just right?

Aside from the Goldilocks reference, staffing is very important in an HVAC business. Do you have a dedicated office manager to answer the phones, dispatch techs, etc.? Do you need more than one?

How about your HVAC techs? Are they working a ton of OT and struggling to get to the next job? Are they highly trained and have the tools needed to excel at their job? Do you need to hire more people, and more importantly, do you have the means to pay them?

Getting your staffing needs under control can help fix HVAC business issues and make sure you are set up for success. For example, low moral or sloppy work might be caused by overworked and burnt out technicians.

Be sure to check in with employees monthly or quarterly to assess workload. After all, happy employees lead to satisfied customers and repeat business!

On the flip side, it’s important that HVAC employees have enough work. Nobody wants to be bored at work!

If you have staff who have extra time, your revenue may be suffering. This is where it’s important to train staff on sales techniques and ramp up your marketing so the new work can fill your team’s time!

Question 5: How profitable is your business?

Money isn’t everything, but an HVAC business needs to be consistently profitable to be sustainable. And you don’t want to barely make payroll. If your business is struggling, there are ways to fix HVAC business pricing struggles.

Start with your pricing model. If profits are not where they need to be, this can cause a chain reaction that sometimes leads to closing the doors. If profits are low, HVAC businesses cut costs and end up with overworked technicians and shoddy workmanship…which leads to lost business and even less profit. Make sure your services are profitable using The Ultimate HVAC Pricing Guide for Business Owners.
See what your competitors are charging. Never be the lowest. This just shows you’re willing to be the Cheap Charlie in your area and your brand will suffer as a result. Therefore, price your services competitively.
Focus on recurring revenue with service agreements. FieldEdge can help with this and automate your service agreements program!

Of course your business should always check with your accountant and CPA before making any pricing changes to your business.

See how the best HVAC software can boost your HVAC business. Book a demo of FieldEdge for free today!

Move Forward To Fix HVAC Business Pitfalls!

Use these 5 questions and answers to implement strategies to improve your HVAC business. Utilizing these tips to build a more profitable, growing business. In this article we covered the following questions:

Have you determined what type of HVAC business you want?
Have you performed a SWOT analysis?
Do you have a business plan in place?
Are you understaffed, overstaffed or just right?
How profitable is your business?