Guide
How do I close more HVAC estimates?
Last updated By Ryan Watson, founder of Scout
Who this is for: HVAC owners, office managers and comfort advisors with estimates that go quiet.
Short answer
Give clear options in plain words, follow up every open estimate soon after the visit, and make the next step as easy as replying to a text.
Why do HVAC estimates go cold?
A quiet quote isn't always a no. The customer may be comparing prices, talking it over at home or simply forgot, and without a follow-up the decision gets made without you.
What makes an HVAC estimate easier to say yes to?
Too many choices, or one price with no options, can stall a decision. Clear good, better and best options in plain words, and a next step as simple as replying to a text, make a yes easier.
Leave the options in writing, so the person who wasn't home for the visit can see them too.
How do you know which follow-ups work?
A count of texts sent says nothing about booked work. Track which quotes turned into jobs, and how soon after the visit the first follow-up went out.
Ways to follow up an HVAC estimate
Text from your phone
- Good for
- Quick check-ins the customer can answer in one line
- Watch out for
- Easy to forget when the office is busy
Phone call
- Good for
- Bigger jobs with more questions
- Watch out for
- Calls are easy to miss, so follow a missed call with a short text
Email
- Good for
- Resending the estimate with the options in writing
- Watch out for
- Easy to overlook in a busy inbox
Reminders in your field service software
- Good for
- Making sure no open estimate is forgotten
- Watch out for
- Someone still has to do the follow-up
Scout
- Good for
- Finding estimates that went quiet and drafting a follow-up text you approve
- Watch out for
- Texts stop once the customer replies, books or pays
| Method | Good for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Text from your phone | Quick check-ins the customer can answer in one line | Easy to forget when the office is busy |
| Phone call | Bigger jobs with more questions | Calls are easy to miss, so follow a missed call with a short text |
| Resending the estimate with the options in writing | Easy to overlook in a busy inbox | |
| Reminders in your field service software | Making sure no open estimate is forgotten | Someone still has to do the follow-up |
| Scout | Finding estimates that went quiet and drafting a follow-up text you approve | Texts stop once the customer replies, books or pays |
General traits of each way of handling it. The Scout row restates what Scout does.
Where Scout fits
Scout works from the estimates in ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro or FieldEdge, so no open quote is left to someone's memory, and it reports the jobs booked after its follow-up.
