2 Guaranteed Ways to Boost your Residential Service Agreements

Residential service agreements are hugely valuable to your residential contracting business.  Plumbing, Air Conditioning and Electrical companies tend to suffer from low service agreements. And most business owners are actively looking for ways to boost their numbers.

Here are two easy ways to increase your low residential service agreements.

#1 – Simplify your Service Agreement

Service agreements can get complicated.   This is usually done in an attempt to build value.

Residential Service agreements for air conditioning companies were simple once.

Originally, they were designed to maintain a system, and keep it operating efficiently. Now they are so complicated.

The concept has exploded into a complex and diverse system of discounts, services, and “club” benefits.

My first suggestion to you is to “simplify your residential service agreement.”

Additional benefits are great, but only if they serve the purpose of the service agreement. Otherwise, your service agreement can take on a very “spam-like” look.

#2 – Train your Techs

Training your hvac techs and plumbers is an obvious solution to low service agreement numbers.  “Training” can also sound like a vague solution to your low service agreements. So, I’m going to create clarity with two simple concepts:

1. Communicate Maintenance as a Solution
2. De-value the Discount

How to Communicate Maintenance as a Solution

When your technician, electrician, plumber is presenting service agreements as a concept for the first time; it should be presented as maintenance. And this maintenance should be part of a greater solution to their current problem.

“Mrs. Smith, if you have had regular maintenance on your system, chances are good I wouldn’t be here today. At the very least, your repairs would be significantly less.”

 The homeowner should hear about the value of maintenance throughout the call.  Waiting to the end is waiting too long.

De-value the Discount

Have you ever been to Best Buy, and they offer you the extended warranty at the checkout?  How did that make you feel? More importantly, did you buy?

Maybe you did, maybe you didn’t. Either way I’m not saying they’re bad. What I am saying is that unless you see yourself needing the service agreement, you’re probably not of value it.

This is no different when it comes to the service agreement that you offer.

So when you’re offering solutions to your client, lay out your four options. In those options present the standard total and the discount total. When the homeowner ask you about the discount total, be prepared with your statement:

“Mrs. Smith, that total is for the people that have our service agreements. I’m happy to go over that with you in just a moment. There are some great benefits, and the most important one is the preventative service it will provide to your system.

While it’s true it also comes with a discount; that is the very last reason you should get a service agreement. You should get a service agreement because of its ability to prolong the life of your system, and reduce costly breakdowns.”

Then, the homeowner will listen to your service presentation.