help advertise

Furnaceexpress

im just starting up my own redsidental heating and cooling company Furnace Express and i was looking for some help on good ways to get my name out and start a good client base i kno this takes time but need some how to start thanks

how does the name sound Furnace Express would like some pros opinions

LeadSmart

Where are you located? My company offers a pay per call marketing program for HVAC guys. With us, you only pay per call and nothing else!

Let me know if you want to hear more about our program.

My email is matthew @ gofoo.net

DarrenSlaughter

It is going to depend on what cash reserves you have set aside for marketing (general rule is that startups-3 yrs allocate 15% to marketing) as to what you do with it.

The trick is, you want to market to buyers. So you DON'T want newspaper, TV or radio, that builds brand awareness.

Not sure where you are, but for HVAC, the YP is still a solid option. The trick to the books are you need to be at the front of the heading for it to matter. The downside is they require 12 month commitments. The upside is, they normally offer you terms right away, so there is no out of pocket.

Direct mail can turn shoppers into buyers with the right offer.

Get yourself on Google Places right away with solid content, pictures and video if you have them.

You could also market online either with Adwords or MSN or Yahoo. Done right, the traffic can be specific to your area and only target people out of the shopping phase and ready to buy. Your site is going to have a lot to do with your conversion ratio, so make sure your site is ready to "sell".

Hope some of this helps, again, not knowing your market or your budget it tough to detail it out more.

__________________
DarrenSlaughter dot Com
A Marketing Blog for Contractors

nyheat

You should optimize your site for you local keywords in Google. However that can take about half a year (depending on various factors, including competition). Meanwhile you can do Google Adwords. Depending on the area, you can get clicks for $1 or less.

JosefMiller

The trick to the books are you need to be at the front of the heading for it to matter. The downside is they require 12 month commitments.

balrog92

Have you considered using companies who actually offer marketing solutions and sponsorshipo ideas.

People like getmemedia.com can help you get your companies name out there.

FloridaHVAC

Start right now on the online... That is where it is all going! Don't look at it as being too far off for results... Building a great site full of content is easy and can be contracted for cheap... PM me if you need a referral for web guys... I do direct mail inhouse and it works great... Build your own list of property managers... You need to give them a reason to use you but if you think about it you mail one letter and can get more than one service call of change out from that one letter... Google adwords will get you results the fastest but you need the website and an adwords campaign... Again I have been through a ton of guys who claim they are great and they end up just stealing from you because you don't know what you are doing... Learn as much about adwords as possible!!!

PMS

The first question should ask is what's my MWR. Most Wanted Response.

Once you name your Co. You will be spending the rest of it's life (your company) promoting that ID to the public.

1. Does the name create a professional image?
2. Is this name easy to remember?
3. Can people easily recall and refer you via your name?

Stop and think about the MWR.

Practical Marketing Solutions

alongston

Network with other local contractors. If you do a good job while paired up with them, they will help get your name out into the community.

__________________
HVAC Denver

FloridaHVAC

Some of the advice above is good. You do need to list in local online directories and most of them are free... There are literally thousands of them out there. Direct mail and door hangers also work but there rate of return is low. Sometimes between 2 and 3 percent. You really need to invest in a good website. There are a lot of Web S.E.O. companies out there, as I have used most of them. Most will claim to be experts in HVAC but really they just tell you what you want to hear to get your money. Money that you spend on a good website and S.E.O. will come back to you ten fold. I have a HVAC S.E.O. firm (lthey were the tenth firm I tried) that I use here in Florida and they are great and cheap! They will totally work with your budget. Send me a PM if you are interested and I will give you their information.

Bobelectric

Do they have a Mr. Furnace, yet?

siddle

Howz your business going? Are you getting leads that are converting into business? Would like to know more to help you out, if at all you need it.

__________________
Absolute Steel— Steel building and carport kits with nationwide jobsite delivery. Easy DIY—America’s easiest to install building system. Watch the video & see for yourself.

refermadness

Furnaceexpress does not include Air conditioning. Not good if you want to repair ac

HVACMan

I would have to agree with the above post. The name doesn't mention anything about cooling.

I would definitely work online to bolster your image. We have seen the most success with our website and getting people to the information on it. Small start-ups can move to a prominent name in the city with a great web presence.

I would also recommend vehicle graphics. It sounds silly, but we get the most response off of people seeing our trucks. It is a great form of branding. The full vehicle wraps are pretty pricey, but can also make you stand out on the street.

__________________
AC Repair Greenwood | Air Conditioner Repair Indianapolis

haleymcadams1

The name sounded very professional. Anyway, I search over Google with the keyword "Furnace Express" and found a website www.furnaceexpress.ca. Is this your website?

__________________
Contractors Continuing Education (CE)
Petro Chemical CE
Electrician Online Courses

ACfromAtoZ

Everything is online these days. Building a strong online presence is really important. If you don't have the know-how to make a successful website, I strongly recommend hiring someone to make a website for you. This may mean money out of your pocket at first, but having a professional looking website is really going to benefit your business and make it easier for potential clients to get in touch with you.

__________________
NJ HVAC Company | AC Service NJ

haleymcadams1

True. If it's within your budget have someone make a website then optimize it for top 3 Search Engines with keywords you prefer or make them a proposal for what keyword better to use.

__________________
Contractors Continuing Education (CE)
Petro Chemical CE
Electrician Online Courses

crestairandheat

Looks like you've gotten some really good advice...I like the one about the MWR. As a small business startup, the key is to look for the low hanging fruit, or the easy way to get customers Today or tomorrow. If you can accomplish that, then the day after tomorrow will take care of itself and so on.

What my company did our first year in business when we were in your exact shoes, is we hired a friend of ours who does seo and web sites, and he built us sites on different domains - each domain was a city name and a service we offer (http://www.Frisco-AirConditioning.net for example), we put 5 of these domains out there and within 2 weeks we were getting free phone calls from the search engines in Dallas - one of the most competitive AC markets in the world.

Once we had some business rolling in, we started doing adwords and whole bunch of other marketing like direct mail and some tv...but my point is, without that initial capital coming in from those local microsites, we never would have gotten to the point where we could do those things.

Good luck, hope that helps.

__________________
Dallas Air Conditioning | Dallas AC Repair | Dallas Air Conditioner Repair

xair20874

For best results, start investing in Google Adwords while you build up your website.

Over time, SEO is going to be your best bet. You're going to want to build a well written, detailed page for every individual service, then put up resources like FAQs pages, a blog and maybe a glossary or something. Basically the trick with SEO is to make your website stand out as an authority in the industry - this will give you major ups from Google and help you rank.

This takes a long time, so use Adwords in the meantime to drive instant traffic. It can get costly, but if your goal is to get customers you're going to have to start by buying some!

__________________
Gaithersburg HVAC | Air Conditioners Gaithersburg