HVAC

A catchy jingle used to be the peak of marketing.

When you wanted to get your name out there as an HVAC business or HVAC technician, all you had to do was put together a clever rhyme, set it to some memorable music, and then wait for people to show up.

Things are a lot more complicated these days, in the age of the internet. People comparison shop, check lists, and — most importantly — read customer reviews. Which means everyone, including HVAC technicians and business owners, need to look for new ways to promote their services.

Enter: reputation marketing.

What Is Reputation Marketing?

Reputation marketing is born from a combination of brand marketing and reputation management.

• Brand marketing: the tactics behind creating and publicizing a strong brand — including logo, messaging, company values, customer experience — and building that brand’s value
• Reputation management: the effort you put into responding to and influencing how the public perceives your business, including minimizing negative reviews and resolving customer complaints

Reputation marketing involves taking aspects from both of those areas to build great word-of-mouth-style advertising and bring in new customers.

You use all of the assets of your brand and what people are saying about it as your primary focus for promoting and marketing your services.

Unlike reputation management, which is all about reactions — reacting to complaints, reacting to negative feedback, and so on — reputation marketing is active and focused on the positive.

It’s a matter of leveraging customer reviews and ratings, testimonials, social media chatter, community awards, local news pieces, etc.

These days, reputation management tends to bring up some bad connotations, like killing negative reviews, buying spots on recommendation lists, or purchasing 5-star ratings from review generating services.

But reputation marketing is more about tapping into that feeling of getting a recommendation from a trusted friend or family member. You want customers to pick you not because of a sleek ad design, but because they did their research and know: you’re the best.

How Does Reputation Marketing Affect HVAC Technicians?

If you’re an HVAC technician or studying to become an HVAC technician, it’s worth it to start thinking of reputation marketing now. Not only because you want to be competitive in reaching new customers and keeping your existing ones, but because things like reviews can make you or break you in the marketplace:

• According to Pew Research, 82% of U.S. adults will “at least sometimes read online customer reviews…including 40% who say they always or almost always do”
• Businesses or individuals with ratings between 4.0 and 4.5 stars earn up to 28% more in annual revenue
• 94% of consumers say a negative review convinced them to avoid a business

As a service industry, it’s important for HVAC technicians to build a positive relationship with clients and customers. Oftentimes, as an HVAC tech, you’re meeting people when they are extra frazzled and extra irritable. Maybe their air conditioning went out during a heat wave or their heater isn’t keeping up during a cold snap. It can make for a stressful situation, but it also means that a trained HVAC serviceperson turning up and telling them it’s gonna be okay is an absolute hero. And everyone loves a hero.

But that’s just the first part of reputation marketing. Good customer service, positive communication, solution-focused problem solving — that’s just smart branding in the HVAC field. How do you turn that into marketing?

What Are Some Easy Ways of Using Reputation Marketing for HVAC?

As someone either working in or looking to work in the HVAC field, how do you make reputation marketing work for you? Here are a few easy steps you can take:

• Put customer reviews on your site and encourage feedback — Your website is one of the most powerful tools in your online kit. In addition to listing your services and promoting your brand, it should also have a spot where you list reviews from current customers and make it easy for other clients to post their feedback as well.
• Claim your listings on review sites — Claiming listings on sites like Google and Yelp let you become a verified account, which makes you look more trustworthy, helps you in search engine results, and lets you respond to reviews.
• Recruit satisfied clients for testimonials and references — Those HVAC clients who are big fans of your work may also be a big boost in your marketing. See if they are willing to offer a testimonial that you can use in your advertising or even be a reference for inquiries.
• Monitor your brand reputation online and have a response plan — Quickly responding to negative reviews can actually help you turn it around and sometimes even upgrade that review. It shows you’re responsive, you’re connected, you’re concerned about customer experience, and that can make a big difference.
• Be active on social media and promote your positive reviews — Picking at least one social media platform — Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, even Tiktok — and actively engaging on there can be a big opportunity to meet new customers and boost positive developments like a new 5-star review, a community business award, a local event you’re going to be a part of, and so on.

Getting Started in HVAC

If you are interested in getting started in the heating, ventilation and air conditioning field, before the brand, before the customers, and before the reputation marketing comes education and training. The first step toward running your own HVAC business is becoming a journeyman HVAC technician, which you can do in as little as 24 weeks with training from Vocational Training Institute.

If you’re interested in finding out more about VTI’s HVAC technician training in Phoenix, AZ, contact us today to speak with one of our advisors.

HVAC is a service that continues to be in high demand, with the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicting a 4% growth in demand for HVAC technicians from 2019-2029. However, in spite of the growing demand for HVAC technicians and the surprisingly high average salary that they receive, a number of unfortunate myths about the field of HVAC still abound and wrongly discourage many people from pursuing a career in this promising field. To help clear up some of the misconceptions regarding a career in HVAC, we’ll take a look at the five most common myths about HVAC services.

Myth #1: HVAC Doesn’t Pay Well

While many assume that HVAC is a low-paying career for low-skill workers, this is a misconception that couldn’t be further from the reality of this rewarding career. According to Ideed.com. HVAC technicians earn an average salary of $47,363 a year, with technicians who have been on the job for ten years or longer earning an average salary of $64,157 a year. Suffice it to say that if you are looking for a well-paying job that doesn’t require a college degree then HVAC is certainly an excellent field to consider.

Myth #2: Only Men go into HVAC

While it is true that HVAC is a male-dominated industry, this is a fact that is quickly changing. As of 2017, a little over 2% of all HVAC technicians were women. This may not sound like much, but it’s a number that is more than double the number that it was in 2013 when only .8% of HVAC technicians were female. Regardless of your gender, HVAC is a field that offers exceptional opportunities – and with a growing emphasis on attracting women to the HVAC trade, the number of women who take advantage of all the opportunities that HVAC presents is sure to continue increasing.

Myth #3: It’s Difficult to Find Employment as an HVAC Technician

We’ve already discussed the fact that the Bureau of Labor Statistics has predicted a 4% growth in demand for HVAC technicians from 2019-2029, which dispels this myth right out of the gate given that this growth rate is on par with the overall job outlook. As long as people continue to enjoy heating and air-conditioning – a fact that doesn’t seem likely to change in our lifetime – HVAC services will continue to be in demand.

Myth #4: There is no Opportunity for Career Advancement in the HVAC Industry

Did you know that 16% of HVAC technicians go on to own their own service business? This possibility of going into business for yourself is one excellent opportunity for advancement that a career in HVAC offers, but it isn’t the only one. Working in HVAC can also open doors for a wide range of other career paths and create experience and connections that you will be able to leverage for the rest of your career.

Myth #5: It’s Difficult to Become an HVAC Technician

Becoming an HVAC technician does require you to earn your license by completing training and courses that, in totality, tend to take a little less than two years to finish. Thankfully, there is plenty of great options to choose from when it comes to finding an institution that provides HVAC training.

At the Vocational Training Institute, we are proud to provide hands-on training from some of the most experienced instructors in the HVAC field in order to help the next generation of HVAC technicians excel at their careers. If you would like to learn more about receiving the high-quality training you need to enjoy a rewarding career in HVAC, feel free to contact us at Vocational Training Institute today!

The HVAC industry is growing quickly, and technicians who know the ins and outs of these systems are in high demand. In Arizona, the average hourly rate for an HVAC tech is $25.21/hour and $5,875 per year in overtime.

This field is expected to continue to grow as technology to heat and cool improves. For someone looking to jump into a new career or make a career change, getting the skills you need to be an HVAC tech could be a great move.

What is an HVAC technician?

Heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration are all components of every home and workplace. When they are working properly, most people do not give them much thought. However, they can significantly decrease someone’s home or working environment if they break down or do not work efficiently.

The professionals who work on these systems are commonly known as HVAC technicians. They will work in a variety of settings—from homes to large factories to schools. They not only do repairs and address maintenance, but they are also vital experts to have when someone builds a new property.

As an HVAC tech, you can specialize in one or more types of indoor climate control systems. For example, you might want to work exclusively with air conditioners and furnaces, or you could focus on solar panels or commercial refrigeration. While each focus area has the same general goal, the information you need to install or work on those units is very different.

Why would you want to be an HVAC tech?

An HVAC technician’s job can be very complicated, but it can be rewarding as well. There are a few reasons that you might want to consider this type of career field.

1. It has a great job outlook.

Air conditioners, refrigerators, heating systems, and other HVAC-focused equipment are certainly not going away any time soon. It is very likely that Americans will always need someone who has the skill and knowledge to work on these systems. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that HVAC tech employment growth is expected to be 15% through at least 2026.

2. It has good compensation.

While the average compensation for HVAC techs in Arizona is just above $25/hour, some positions pay significantly higher as well. Those in the highest 10% of earners will see wages more along the lines of roughly $60,000 to $75,000 per year. Those numbers change depending on where you end up in the United States as well. Those who specialize in certain areas will often see a pay increase too.

3. You can work and live almost anywhere.

The skills that you learn as an HVAC technician will help you get a job in your field just about anywhere in the United States. If you specialize in a certain type of system, you may be a bit more limited, but not much.

4. You get to make a difference in people’s lives and businesses.

Both residents and businesses place a lot of emphasis on having a comfortable working and living environment. By providing services, you help people live healthier, more comfortable lives. You can also help the environment in learning energy-efficient systems and methods as well.

5. Training does not require a four-year college degree.

You do not need a bachelor’s degree to become a certified HVAC tech. You can complete the training you need in as little as four to ten weeks for an entry-level position. This type of training is not only far less time-consuming—it is also much more cost-effective.

6. It offers an opportunity to problem-solve and work with your hands.

Many people enjoy the work involved with being an HVAC tech. It requires some creativity and technical know-how. You solve problems by troubleshooting systems, which can be very rewarding for many workers.

How can I become an HVAC technician?

You can either attempt to jump into an apprenticeship as an HVAC tech, or you can go to a trade school like Vocational Training Institute. While apprenticeships can be very effective learning tools, they can be difficult to set up. Instead, many people choose to get training first and then transition into an apprenticeship.

Whatever path you choose, be sure that your learning experience has hands-on training that you can take advantage of. At VTI, for example, students go through practical learning workshops as they learn concepts in the classroom. Applying what you read and getting your hands dirty is one of the best ways to learn.

In Arizona, you must be certified to work on your own as an HVAC technician. To get your EPA Certification, you must pass a written exam.

Ready to Learn More?

If you think being an HVAC tech sounds like the right career option for you, contact us to set up a campus tour or get more information. You can email admissions@hvactechschool.com or give us a call to get in touch with our admissions department.