< Previous10 APRIL 2019HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYASHRAE Accepting Applications for HVAC Designer CertificationThe American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) announced a few weeks ago that applications for the new Certified HVAC Designer (CHD) certification are now open. Worldwide computer-based testing opens on June 3, 2019.From the ASHRAE perspective, this certification validates competency of the HVAC Designer, working under the responsible charge of an engineer, to do the following:Design HVAC systems to meet build-ing/project requirements, including load calculations, equipment selection and sizing, mechanical equipment room design, duct and piping design, and lay-out for the development of HVAC plans for permit and construction.The exam follows a 2018 industrywide job analysis study with data that was gathered from more than 1,200 respon-dents from over 60 countries. The CHD application is currently open with a prac-tice exam launching May 1.“The certification committee suspect-ed an HVAC Designer certification would serve the needs of members, but the ‘In-dustry Needs’ survey data emphasized a need and demand,” said Mark Fly, P.E., chair of the exam subcommittee. You can learn more and apply at the following website: ncilink.com/CHD. You can also download the CHD Can-didate Guidebook here: ncilink.com/CHDGuide.on the Board of the Michigan contract-ing association, and has served on sever-al state and national code councils. “He has contributed to the success of ACCA’s standards and codes programs by lending his expertise to the devel-opment of multiple ACCA initiatives, in-cluding the Quality Installation program, ACCA Manual LLH – Low Load Homes, and countless other efforts.”HIGH-PERFORMANCE NEWSJohn Sedine receives ACCA’s Distinguished Service Award.APRIL 2019 11HVACTODAY.COMHIGH-PERFORMANCE PRODUCTSYOUR FAMILY’S COMFORT CONSUMER SALES BROCHUREThis brochure was designed to be used as a roadmap for your residential customer to follow along with you on the sales call. The ideal time to bring this out is during the initial interview, as it helps guide you through the interview process and gets the customer thinking about their real needs. This pro-cess posi-tions you in a very pro-fessional manner and initiates the type of customer education that is key to Performance-Based Selling.These brochures highlight the four steps a Performance-Based Contract-ing™ business takes to develop the best solutions to customer comfort issues: zConversation About Customer Needs zThe Process for Measuring the Home zWhat is System performance? zRating System Efficiency zReview Recommendations z Doing the Work and Performance Measurements.For more information on these bro-chures and how to order them, contact National Comfort Institute, Inc. Custom-er care at 800-633-7058.FIELDPIECE SDMN5 DUAL PORT MANOMETERDo your salespeople show homeown-ers what their before and after static pressure reading are and explain what they mean in terms of their system effi-ciently delivering comfort? They should. And the Fieldpiece SDMN5 is perfect for doing just that.This instrument is a portable, rugged, dual-port manometer designed especial-ly for use in the field. It measures static pressure, as well as gas pressure and pres-sure differential. It includes a zero adjust button on the face of the meter, a rugged rubber boot, and a magnet on the back for hanging the meter during testing.The SDMN5 evolved as a result of test-ing pressures in the field for 20 years. Its range and resolution allow you to take static pressure measurements across a blower and get the pressure dif-ferential with the push of a button to check drafts. Whether you’re holding the ergonom-ic standalone shape in your hand, or hanging the SDMN5 on the unit with the magnetic hanger to fill out a work order, the SDMN5 makes field measurements easier and faster, with less fatigue than the other guys.For more information, visit the NCI Product store at NCILink.com/SDMN5 or call Customer Care at 800-633-7058.PRIORITY CARDSAn NCI-exclusive, these handy cards are an efficient way to learn about your customers’ comfort concerns. Use these while having a conversation with a cur-rent or poten-tial customer. These bright and easy-to- understand cards will help you target key issues quickly. The issues are Comfort, Effi-ciency, Health, and Safety. Each packet includes four priority cards and access to PDF instructions for how to use them.Go to ncilink.com/PriorityCds for more information or to order.THE NEW FLAT RATEThis All-In-One pricing software is for HVAC, Plumbing, and Electrical service and installation contractors. Each trade contains over 300 menus to choose from, saving you time in the field.It has pre-built menus, allowing cus-tomers to choose from options. In fact, you can offer five price options on every service call.Track key performance indicators by tech, by customer, and produce daily tickets as well as weekly options reports. Works with most service and dispatch programs.For more information or a demonstraf-tion, visit theNewFlatRate.com website or call 706-259-8892.Focus On Sales12 APRIL 2019HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYAnd so, Jackson Systems began the evolution into product distribution.THE EVOLUTION CONTINUESFor a manufacturer to get into the distribution business is always a slip-pery slope. Jackson Systems CEO Tom Jackson says they wanted to avoid con-fusion and decided to set the distribu-tion business up as a separate entity.“We don’t claim to manufacture products like we once did,” he explains. Jackson, a degreed engineer who spent several years as a territory manager with a large wholesaler in Indiana be-fore partnering with his fa-ther in 1997, says, “We start-ed another entity called ‘iO HVAC Controls.’ That en-tity is the manufacturer now. Jackson Systems is the dis-tribution company and we buy our zon-ing products from iO HVAC Controls.”Talk about evolution.Jackson says he decided to fol-low the traditional market approach where HVAC contractors buy prod-ucts from a distributor.“When we were just a manufactur-er everyone said ‘Jackson sells direct,’ and that was true. But now that we have separate manufacturing and distributing entities, our zoning products go out through normal channels.”He adds that Jackson Systems is pretty agnostic when it comes to zoning. “Yes, we can provide you the iO HVAC Controls products, but we can also provide you Honeywell or Aprilaire or whoever else you want. We are a specialty distributor that fo-cuses on controls, indoor air quality, and the smart home marketplace. This is a pretty big change in how we go to market.”Like any other HVAC manufacturer, iO HVAC Controls has its own sales team. Jackson says they call on whole-salers to carry the iO product line. But they also call on contractors to get the pull through business. “On the other hand,” he says, “Jack-son is a traditional distribution outlet. We buy the products from other manufacturers, ware-house those products in In-dianapolis, for now, and then ship them out to con-tractor customers on the same day.” To accommodate all the inventory they now carry, Jackson Systems has Two years ago, before the launch of High-Perfor-mance HVAC Today magazine (ncilink.com/HToday), I wrote a spotlight arti-cle on Jackson Systems, LLC – an HVAC zoning-system manufactur-er based in Indianapolis, IN for the NCI member-only newsletter (If you are a member, log into the site: ncil-ink.com/2017JacksonSys). In that article, I highlighted how the HVAC Industry itself was running through the veins of Ron Jackson, founder of the company and, by vir-tue of being his son and growing up in the business, through Tom Jackson’s as well.Back in the earliest days, the com-pany focused on developing contrac-tor-friendly zoning controls that were easy to install, troubleshoot, and re-pair, and they sold them mostly in In-diana and the Midwest.Great stuff, but as the saying goes, change is inevitable. Zoning con-trols led to a thermostat private la-beling program, which also led to the company’s representing other major thermostat manufacturers, including Honeywell, Aprilaire, White Rodgers, Ecobee, and Nest.PARTNER SPOTLIGHTBy Mike WeilJackson Systems, LLC: Making Evolutionary Changes“LIFE IS A SERIES OF NATURAL AND SPONTANEOUS CHANGES. DON’T RESIST THEM; THAT ONLY CREATES SORROW. LET REALITY BE REALITY. LET THINGS FLOW NATURALLY FORWARD IN WHATEVER WAY THEY LIKE.” – LAO TZUAPRIL 2019 13HVACTODAY.COMtified so that if a contractor needs CEU credits, they can go online, watch the videos, and take a test that NATE re-quires to verify that it happened.”Training is a serious part of the services Jackson Systems provides, though according to Tom Jackson, they do approach it a little differently by delivering most of the content via the web. “This approach works for us and our customers,” he adds. “And I think it ties in nicely with our support of the technical training provided by Na-tional Comfort Institute (NCI). What NCI is doing with their training is just outstanding.”THE NCI CONNECTIONIn a world that always undergoes change – sometimes economically or politically, training is key, according to Jackson, to staying on top of the best ways to solve customer comfort issues and make it easier to stand out from the competition.Tom Jackson will tell you that since its beginnings, his company has had a strong focus on the HVAC contract-ing community. He says they like being partners with groups that work hard to promote the HVAC industry and who focus on the technical side.“In that light, what NCI does is truly incredible,” Jackson continues. “NCI’s technical expertise has always been of interest to us. I really admire how that organization is leading the way by looking at HVAC systems as more than just equipment. I also think the entire concept behind measuring and diagnosing is the key to this industry’s future.”He explains that his company has been interested in NCI almost from the beginning. In fact, Jackson says understanding static pressure and temperature, and having the right tools to measure and manage air-flow through duct systems, is just so powerful when it comes to creating a comfortable customer. “And I feel that we are all working toward that same goal,” he adds.Which is why Jackson Systems be-came a vendor partner with NCI. And with NCI’s move away from a tra-ditional rebate program and to the Training Incentive Partnership Pro-gram (TIPP), he feels even more strongly about the connection.“With our renewed focus on train-ing, I cannot think of a better use of the partner program than to see a percent of our sales go to helping our custom-ers pay towards their training,” he says.“This helps to make them stronger contractors. Which in turn, contributes to building a great reputation in their community. This leads them to earn more business, which in turn means more business for us. It is a cycle of doubled the size of their headquar-ters building and has another ware-house down the street. That location is mostly for the company’s Filter Fetch program. Filter Fetch is a web-based app that enables contractors to sell filters without having to physically invento-ry them. Filters are then delivered di-rectly to the homeowner from the In-dianapolis warehouse. This is Jackson Systems’ answer to competition from big-box retail outlets like Lowes and Home Depot.FOCUS ON TRAININGAs a distributor, there is increased opportunity for Jackson Systems to get involved in helping their contrac-tor customers get better at delivering high-quality service and installations. Tom Jackson has always been a huge believer in training. He says, “Today we deliver it differ-ently because we are a single-location distributor. We will bring other manu-facturers to our facility in Indianapo-lis. We’ll then invite local contractors to attend. We provide food and hands-on interactivity with the presenters. “But then we live-stream the train-ing so others can watch it in real time. We stream it all over the web using our own commercial studio that is right in our building. Finally, we re-cord the training so it can be watched on demand.“Our complete training schedule is on our website,” he continues. “We try to make sure our training is NATE cer-Company CEO Tom Jackson (left) is pictured here with his mother Bette, and father (and founder) Ron.14 APRIL 2019HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYHVAC contracting business.“I’m talking about not only connect-ed thermostats,” Jackson says, “which most people are pretty comfortable with, but also things like indoor air quality monitors, whole house water valves, cameras, doorbells, and alarm systems. Right now we are buying and selling a lot of these products.“For example, Honeywell has a line of security cameras. Nest has a line as well. We became the first HVAC dis-tributor for Ring – the video doorbell will fit directly into the boot – which he says is a dramatic departure from how other systems are installed.By the way, Tom’s father, Ron, is still active in the business. He recently cel-ebrated his 80th birthday and is still involved in product development and technical support. He is also involved in the new construction projects the company is doing around the building.On the distribution side, Tom says they are making huge efforts to inte-grate smart home technology into the life thing. The investment in what NCI is doing is absolutely the right thing to do. We couldn’t be happier.”NEW INTRODUCTIONSOn the manufacturing side of the business, iO HVAC Controls is in de-velopment mode and will be introduc-ing new products to the marketplace. It has been working on a new four-zone panel design that has the ability to eliminate the bypass damper, which is one of the biggest issues when do-ing zoning. Jackson says they’ve seen success with what they call Electronic Static Pressure (ESP). This is what re-places the bypass damper.Furthermore, the company is hop-ing to roll out its own WiFi thermostat as well as a new ‘retro-damper’ that PARTNER SPOTLIGHTZP3-HCMS-ESP Group with PS and Dampers.APRIL 2019 15HVACTODAY.COMvant attitude, helping others first. Part of the method for doing that is to first seek help for yourself, and you do that, according to Jackson, by joining a group of like-minded professionals. “Whether that group is NCI, ACCA, or any other contractor-focused orga-nization, there just is too much to gain and nothing to lose.”Albert Einstein once said, “The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.” It is because of how Jackson Sys-tems and iO HVAC Controls ap-proaches the marketplace and focuses on servant leadership that we shine our April Partner Spotlight on them. Congratulations to Tom and the entire team! as or a doorbell with their mechanical system and/or duct upgrade.”DEFINING SUCCESSFor Tom Jackson, feedback from customers is how he knows if they are doing their job, and that is how he de-fines success. “If I am at a trade show and a contractor tells me how much they appreciate how awesome we are at answering the phone, getting the product shipped out, and that we have the technical expertise they need, that is a huge win. “I believe in serving others so they, in turn, can serve others. Then it is a double win. That is how I measure success.”In the end, he says that business success is really dependent on a ser-now owned by Amazon. We are on a mission to find even more products,” he says.So stand by, HVAC World! Jackson Systems may soon be offering con-nective wall switches to integrate ev-erything throughout a home. This will create a smart home infrastructure allowing consumers to control it all from their smartphones. And he says they are on the hunt for much more.“We know that HVAC contractors have lots on their plates. It is already a difficult profession to be in because it requires so much knowledge, but we think there is some nice incremen-tal business to be had with some de-cent margins, especially since the con-tractors are already in the home. Why not ask if their customer wants camer-16 APRIL 2019HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYon a February morning?” Customers often hear from their HVAC con-tractors that nothing can be done, so they just learn to ignore problems like uneven tempera-tures, high utility bills, noisy systems, drafts, dusty or stuffy rooms. Our job is to uncover these issues and explain that we now have the knowledge and tools to diagnose and solve them. It’s usually a good idea to focus on the one or two most critical concerns rather than overwhelm customers with too much. A high quality comfort survey can help keep the interview on track and hone in on the customer’s hot buttons. Remember, if they have no “pain” associated with their comfort system, it’s hard to make a case for improvements. Your goal is to uncover that pain and offer ways to alleviate it. The interview also draws attention away from the “box” to further differentiate you from your competition.STEP 2: EVALUATE THE SYSTEMThis step is critical in the educational selling approach. Whenever possible, be sure to involve your customer as you move through the house evaluating their system. For example, if you are measuring airflow at registers in an uncomfort-able room, hand the customer the flow hood and In part eight of this series we examined the importance of customizing your sales call based on how the lead was generated. Now let’s take a look at each of the six basic steps of the High-Performance sales process, keeping in mind how the lead was generated. We’ll also compare High-Performance selling to the typical selling process in our industry.STEP 1: CUSTOMER INTERVIEWThis step is a lot like what happens on a quali-ty sales call. It involves establishing rapport with your customer and learning about their expecta-tions and needs. But that’s where the similarities to a typical sales call stop.The Performance-Based interview delves deep-er into getting a real picture of what customers like and don’t like about their comfort system. It involves you asking probing questions to help un-cover often forgotten comfort issues they’ve just learned to live with. Questions should be as open-ended as possible. For example, instead of asking which rooms are too hot or too cold, be specific. Better questions could be, “Which room is the hottest on a sum-mer afternoon?,” or “Which room is the coldest Six Steps of High-Performance SellingBy Dominick GuarinoSALES The ABCs of High-Performance HVAC Contracting: PART 9Catch up on all the installments of this series:Part 1: What is High-Performance HVAC and Why Do It? ncilink.com/ABCs-1Part 2: Is It the Right Fit for Your Company? ncilink.com/ABCs-2Part 3: Five Steps for Becoming A Performance-Based Contractor. ncilink.com/ABCs-3Part 4: Five More Steps to Becoming a Performance-Based Contractor. ncilink.com/ABCs-4Part 5: Your Investment in Performance. ncilink.com/ABCs-5Part 6: The Five Keys to Quality Training. ncilink.com/ABCs-6Part 7: The Right Tools for the Job. ncilink.com/ABCs-7Part 8: High-Performance Selling: Prepare for the Call. ncilink.com/ABCs-8APRIL 2019 17HVACTODAY.COMair flow measurements, taking room temperature readings, checking in-sulation with an infrared thermome-ter, and performing a simple snapshot System Efficiency Rating. Performing this test will depend on whether you’re checking in cooling or heating mode, and whether the current equipment is still working. STEP 3: REVIEW AND PRIORITIZE FINDINGS BASED ON THEIR NEEDSOne of the benefits of measuring live system performance is you can imme-diately share your findings with your customer to help them understand what’s going on with their system.This step reinforces how your com-pany is different from competitors who just quote high efficiency equipment swap outs and don’t address existing problems. This is a good time to explain how a high SEER box doesn’t guaran-tee energy savings or comfort. In fact, the customer may see no savings at all and be less comfortable if they don’t address the “rest of the system.”At this point you can offer to put to-gether some different options that ad-dress the issues that are important to them. When done properly, this step will be a key factor in the customer’s decision to give you the job.Be careful not to leave behind too much detail about your solution. Some people can’t resist the temptation to “shop” your findings and solutions out to other contractors. What you should leave them with is a solid education about their system and what’s work-ing well and what is not.If they are getting multiple quotes, the customer will likely know more about the system than your competi-tion. The danger of leaving your test data and detailed solution is a com-petitor may know enough to make it look like he’ll do the same things you recommended.This is a good time to explain to the customer that not giving the compe-ask them to help take readings while you write them down. This level of involvement is part of the process of getting them hooked on your company as the best choice.It’s important to measure key stat-ic pressures, even if they were already measured by your technician when the lead was generated from a service or maintenance call. This gives you the opportunity to explain how these readings are the “blood pressure” of their system. If the system is in the attic or crawl, it might be best to take pictures with your smart phone so you can share visu-als of the readings as well as ductwork and insulation issues. Depending on the situation, other steps in the process can include more 18 APRIL 2019HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYSALESant orange X on them, and temporarily install one to get the cooling back on so your prospect doesn’t jump on the first competitor who can schedule an equip-ment swap out right away. The garish paint job motivates the customer to make a decision because they’ll want to get the unit out of their yard as soon as possible. Showing you care enough to get them running again without expecting anything will en-dear you to a customer in a very sig-nificant way. As you prepare the proposal, be sure to address what is most important to the customer, not just what you think they need. There are some exceptions to this. For example if the home has a unit that is already grossly oversized and the customer wants an even big-ger one, you’ll need to make an ethical decision to not give in, but rather do your best to educate them about all the dangers of over-sizing. In extreme cas-es you may decide to walk away rath-er than do a job that will come back to bite you, or that you know is absolute-ly the wrong thing to do.The beauty of the educational buy-ing process is you have the opportuni-ty to make the customer a lot smarter about their system. They’ll often know more about their system than your competitors are capable of finding out. What a great position to be in!It’s always best to offer at least three options – four is even better. more than four can be overwhelming. In Performance-Based Selling the “Best, Better, Good,” approach takes on a whole new meaning. It’s not just about which equipment to buy, but the var-ious levels of system improvements you can include, coupled with the ben-efits of each option.or tie the customer up for an extra hour while you work on their solutions.I personally have had great success with both the one-call and two-call sales processes. On a one-call pro-posal, it’s important to leave your-self a little room for things you may have missed. When it comes to a two-call proposal, if you’ve done a thor-ough job teaching the customer on the first call and completely differentiated yourself, the customer is usually will-ing to wait for your proposal. If the air conditioning is down and it’s 100F outside, you may want to quote a solution in steps. You can, for example, offer a basic “Air Upgrade” to make sure the new equipment oper-ates within the manufacturer specifica-tions, along with additional upgrades that can be done in milder weather.If the customer needs emergency cooling while you work on a more com-prehensive solution, keep some old working condensing units at the shop. Paint them bright orange or paint a gi-tition your information is a great way for them to evaluate that company’s competence. What other criteria do they have to do this with – Price? They said they do great work. Who’s going to tell a customer they do lousy work? STEP 4: PREPARE THE PROPOSALThere are basically two schools of thought about sales calls in our in-dustry. One camp believes that every-thing should be done in one visit. This is typically done with a check-the-box proposal form.The second camp believes that once you’ve collected all the information it’s important to go back to the office, think through and customize the solu-tions, and present a formal proposal on a second visit.I’ve seen both approaches work well, so it’s difficult to recommend one over the other. In a home with serious air distribution issues, further evalua-tion and design might be necessary. In these cases it’s not a good idea to rush it APRIL 2019 19HVACTODAY.COMtem, and inspect to make sure the job was done as promised. Make sure you provide documenta-tion of the final test results. This is the final proof that you did what you said you were going to do.You can generate great referrals during this final visit. Once you’ve asked if they feel you’ve done every-thing you promised, and they let you know you exceeded their expectations, it’s time to ask for referrals. Even if their friends and relatives don’t need a replacement system right away, ask if they would be willing to refer your company for service and maintenance. These are terrific leads that can lead to replacement and ren-ovation work down the road.These folks will likely spend time in your customer’s house and experience the comfort your new system is pro-viding. The bottom line is if you ask for a referral, there’s a good chance you’ll get some.Remember that High-Performance selling is a mindset and part of a com-pany culture. While it’s important to help your customers buy efficient re-placement equipment that can give them peace of mind, it’s equally im-portant to address the whole HVAC system so it matches the quality of the equipment you are installing. In Part 10 of this series we’ll look at ways to generate leads from service and maintenance visits with little or no competition. customer really wants it. These are ok for the rare customers who already have the money in hand, but like the idea of a 12-month interest free loan. Unfortunately most customers don’t have this luxury. If they can’t afford the big cash outlay today, it’s likely in 12 months they will be in the same boat, and are forced into a high inter-est refinance to make ends meet.Once the customer has decided which options to go with, it’s time to explain the process of what will hap-pen next. You can go over next steps, how long it will take, what provisions need to be made for security, pets, children, etc.This is also a good time to talk about the perhaps small, but significant de-tails that are important to the custom-er. These details include thermostat placement, new registers, condens-ing unit placement (if these are being moved or added) and so forth. STEP 6: FOLLOW THROUGHThe typical installation will include new equipment, a duct renovation, added returns, etc. Once the work is completed, tested out, and document-ed, be sure to go back for a final visit. This visit allows you to answer ques-tions, teach them about their new sys-Be sure to frequently refer to your test reports and load calculations through-out your proposal. This establishes how different your company is, and the attention to detail you’re including. For example, the lowest first cost or “Good” option should point out which issues will be addressed and which ones can-not be solved at that level.According to consumer research, when given three options, most cus-tomers tend to pick the middle one. With that in mind try to make that the one that will give the customer the most bang for their buck. Remem-ber, the key to success in High- Perfor-mance Contracting is doing the right thing – always! STEP 5: PRESENT THE PROPOSALIf you’ve done everything correct-ly, there’s a high probability the cus-tomer has already made the decision to go with you. The presentation of the proposal should be more of a formality and a step to determine which option best fits their needs and budget. As you present each option, be sure to refer back to the test results as your basis for each solution. You shouldn’t need to apply typical “closing” tech-niques at this point. If you’ve won the customer over, they will talk about the work as if the job is yours, and all you’re doing at this point is working out the details.One valuable tool for helping the customer make the right choices is financing. Good long-term financ-ing with a reasonable interest rate can make replacing their equipment and upgrading their air distribution sys-tem affordable. Try to stay away from financing like 12-months-same-as-cash unless the Dominick Guarino is publisher of High- Performance HVAC Today magazine and CEO of National Comfort Institute, Inc. He can be reached at domg@ncihvac.comNext >