Whether warmer months are closing in or summer is in full swing, you may ask the question: Who has time for marketing?
You do! Even when you are juggling a full schedule of customers’ air conditioning needs.
We’re here to help you make the most of your marketing with easy HVAC email marketing and other tips to help you maximize the busy season.
In this blog, you’ll learn:
- Email marketing tips that are easy and effective to implement
- How to write engaging HVAC emails during the busy season
- More marketing tips to maximize your time and effort
Email marketing is a very important tool to engage with your HVAC customers and potential customers. If done correctly, it can generate new leads and encourage your current customers to not only stay with you, but recommend your business to others.
Why Should You Focus on HVAC Email Marketing?
Email Marketing Is Still the Best Bang for the Buck!
Is email marketing even worth it anymore? You bet it is. In fact email marketing’s return on investment (ROI) is $36 for every dollar spent. That’s higher than any other marketing channel.
This is why we recommend keeping your email marketing efforts going during your busiest months. If you can only pick a couple marketing channels to focus on during the summer, email should be one of them.
Keep HVAC Customers Engaged
When you take the time to develop an email campaign, you hope the recipient opens the email, reads it, and takes the action you want. This is called engagement.
Why is engagement important? When a customer or prospect opens or clicks your email, you’re reminding them that you’re there.
These reminders during busier months are especially crucial, as current and potential customers will be more likely to think of you first if they run into HVAC issues.
The industry standard open rate for HVAC emails averages about 23% with click through rates of around 3%. Keep this in mind as you ramp up email marketing efforts.
How can you improve engagement rates? Let’s look at some tried and true strategies.
HVAC Email Marketing Strategies
There are many elements that go into a good email, but no need to get overwhelmed! Here are the main areas to focus on when aiming to boost email engagement:
How To Write a Good Email
What exactly is a “good email?” In short, a good email is one that the recipient will open and read. Here are some tips to keep in mind as you develop your HVAC marketing emails:
- What is your goal for the email? Identify the goal and write an email that points to it.
- Keep the writing clear and concise. You have the reader’s attention. Get to the point quickly.
- Provide value to the reader. Answering customer questions, links to pertinent blogs, web pages and promos all accomplish this.
- Include a strong call to action (CTA). Examples of this may be to take advantage of a promo by calling in, or reading a blog on your website.
Spend Time on Subject Lines
This is your ticket in the door. Your chance to show ‘em what you got.
Even if people don’t open your email, they will see the subject line. If it’s not relevant to the reader, they will just move on. So how do you pique their interest? Here are a few tips:
- “Thank You” is the top performing subject phrase.
- Readers are 25% more likely to open a three word subject line versus one with seven words. Shorter is usually better, especially with many viewing emails on their phones.
- A/B test your subject lines. To test a subject line and email you write, send one email to 50% of your contact list and the other email to the other 50% to compare results. Which one had the most opens?
- Asking a question in your subject line may increase open rates. (Example: “Is Your Home Too Hot?”)
Set Your Alarm
When is the best day and time to send your email? There’s a lot of debate on this but the consensus is that Tuesday is the best day, followed by Thursday and Wednesday.
While this is a good rule of thumb, you should avoid sending marketing emails during or right before or after holidays. Your email is more likely to be missed when your recipients are prepping for or enjoying a day off.
Test your email time and days to measure when open and click rates are highest for your business, then use that as a benchmark for your campaigns.
Contests Are King
Running a contest and giving something away for free is your ticket to success. Who doesn’t like a freebie? Contest emails generate a nearly 50% open rate.
Your giveaway could be as simple as a $100 Home Depot gift card given to five random people that comment on your latest social post. Or a chance to win a free HVAC system tuneup if they write a review.
Contests and giveaways lead to more email engagement and excitement around your brand. Don’t forget to look into the legal terms and conditions for contests in your state, and include necessary terms in your email.
Don’t Over Email
Sending too many emails and bombarding potential customers can lead to the dreaded unsubscribe.
Try to keep your email outreach to about one email a week maximum. Make sure the emails you’re sending have substance and a call to action. The more value you bring to your customers, the better!
HVAC Email Example
Let’s look at a recent email template that your business can use during the busy season to reach out to customers. It includes all the necessary information and is short and to the point.
SUBJECT LINE
Is Your Home Too Hot?
EMAIL BODY TEXT
FIRST NAME,
Temperatures are rising and we know that your HVAC system is starting to work at maximum capacity!
Have you had an HVAC check-up recently? We want to make sure your system is keeping your house cool all summer long at the lowest cost possible!
Schedule your HVAC Service Check-up by (end of month date) and we will give you 20% off of your service fees! Call or email us today at XXX-XXX-XXXX.
Thanks,
[[business owner signature]
[business owner first and last name]
[business owner title]]
More than Email
While targeted email marketing can help generate leads, it’s only one weapon in your marketing arsenal. Let’s look at a few other helpful marketing tools to prioritize during busy months.
Social Media
Social media is an essential tool to drive business growth. Even if your HVAC business is a one-man show, you still need a social media presence for credibility!
Social media can attract visitors to your website and help build brand trust.
Facebook alone has over 1.85 billion active users per day and is a prime channel for marketing your HVAC business due to its primary demographic of users 25+ years old.
Social media can be intimidating if you aren’t familiar with all of the buzzwords, platforms, etc. But the good thing is you can start immediately and it’s not very hard.
If your business isn’t on Facebook yet, start here. You’ll be up and running in no time. LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram are also great platforms to help grow your business
For more information on how to level up your HVAC social media, check out our complete social media guide.
Online Reviews
Anyone interested in making a purchase looks at online reviews. You want happy customers to leave you reviews and you need to respond to positive and negative reviews in a timely fashion.
95% of consumers read reviews before purchasing a product or service. So, spending time on review sites such as Google, Yelp and Facebook is important for your business – especially during your busier months.
How can you get more reviews? Let’s look at a few ways:
- Collect reviews when you attend a trade show or event
- Follow up with happy customers to ask for a review
- Link your review site profiles on your website (but only if you have positive ratings!)
Get our full guide to asking for online reviews here.
Let’s Get Going with HVAC Marketing!
Now that we have reviewed a series of tips for HVAC email marketing and other helpful marketing channels, you will be better prepared to interact with your customers – even when you’re busy.
Use these tips to:
- Generate successful email marketing campaigns
- Continue to attract new leads, even during the busy season
- Implement other marketing channels to push your engagement with potential customers
See how FieldEdge can help with your marketing success! Book your FREE personalized demo today!
Related: 12 HVAC Marketing Ideas
