So you’ve taken the plunge and decided to start your own business in the heating and cooling industry. Congratulations! While there are miles ahead between you and a medium-sized company, good business sense will carry you through to the end. In our latest podcast, Nolen and Jason explain how frugal spending, do-it-yourself willpower, and cautious investments will make it so much easier to successfully launch your startup.

Key Takeaways for HVAC Professionals

* Don’t invest in extra tools before you’ve developed a client base!* Keep your recurring expenses as low as possible in the beginning.* As much as possible, do the call handling and scheduling yourself.* Zealously protect your customer calls.* Don’t skimp on essentials: tax work, insurance, legal, and marketing.

How to Make a Clean Start

We’re all about common sense at HVAC Webmasters. Yet over the years, we’ve seen so many heating and cooling startups enthusiastically speed out of the gate without an ounce of it. The signs are obvious:

* Buying tools, trucks, and toys before securing steady leads* Overinvesting in staff without the necessary revenue* Handing over customer calls to an untrained, rude family member* Denying the need for proper tax work, insurance, and marketing

That last point is especially difficult to see, because we know just how much heartache and frustration HVAC techs endure because they didn’t bother to invest in support services. Frankly, we’re tired of seeing it happen. That’s why we want to provide a simple guide for getting started in your new HVAC business!

Tip #1: Stay Frugal

So many heating and cooling services end before they even begin. What’s the number one reason? Finances. Just as poor financial compatibility dooms a large percentage of marriages across the United States, dumb spending practices kills thousands of startups every year.

There are several areas HVAC startups struggle in, but let’s take a look at the top 3 ways you can give your finances a fighting chance!

EARN BEFORE YOU BUY

Unmerited optimism can sink a business faster than you can say “Where did our money go?” Many HVAC companies assume that homeowners will line up to use their services as soon as they incorporate, but that doesn’t happen. While it may feel tempting to buy extra tools at the start of your business, perform the following test first.

Ask yourself, “Can I continue working without these tools this month?”

Unless you absolutely cannot do your job without that fancy tool, hold off on buying it. That goes for that fancy new truck or service van too! Homeowners don’t care about your choice of vehicle (in most cases). As long as you dress neatly and keep your vehicle clean, clients will respect your skills enough to hire you in the future.

HIRE OUT OF NECESSITY

While it may be tempting to rent out an office space and feel it with spunky staff members, odds are your startup can function just fine without them. That may require you to occasionally pause during a service visit to take a call, but you’ll save tens of thousands of dollars by scheduling visits yourself.

When you hire someone, hire out of necessity. When you start getting more service requests than you can fulfill by yourself, hire another tech. When you’re too busy to provide quality phone service, hire a customer service professional and train them.