< Previouscustomer’s home. PERFORMANCE OVER FUNCTION The function of most HVAC systems is of- ten viewed as how equipment operates. Data for this comes from tests manufacturers do in labs. This data usually does not include the impact of ductwork and the building envelope on airflow. That is where performance comes in. A heat- ing system is made of the equipment you buy, in- stall, and service from manufacturers and dis- tributors, as well as the duct system that delivers conditioned air to your customers’ living spaces. Performance centers around airflow because it is the lifeblood of the HVAC system. Airflow can be negatively impacted if ductwork is shoddy, leaky, or poorly designed. Performance by this definition means tak- ing proper total static pressure measurements, ensuring air filters can do their job without being too restrictive, ensuring properly sized supply ducts deliver proper airflow to each room, and ensuring you meet required fan airflow conditions. Performance can’t just happen. It requires three things: training, a process, and follow-up. WHAT’S THIS GOT TO DO WITH SALES? Without a process, you create chaos regard- ing everything in your company, including sales. A lot of contractors wonder who benefits from high-performance contracting. That answer is also threefold. From a sales standpoint, perfor- mance creates a win for your customers, employ- ees, AND your company. From the customer’s standpoint, testing and measuring performance can help them get the value they paid for. Don’t you agree they deserve B efore exploring High-Performance HVAC™ sales, we need to define the difference between “function” and “high performance.” From a function standpoint, a customer’s HVAC system turns on, and most of the time, the average system operates at 57% efficiency or less. How do we know this? Groups like National Comfort Institute (NCI) have been testing, mea- suring, and studying HVAC systems across the United States AND Canada for the past 30 years. NCI has gathered and analyzed those results, and the sad truth is that more than half of all sys- tems are under-performing, robbing customers of the comfort and energy efficiency they expect and have paid for. Typically, these systems DO function – meaning they heat and cool homes. But they do NOT func- tion properly and can often negatively impact the safety, health, comfort, and efficiency of a Anatomy of A High-Performance Sales Process By Dawn Mroczek SALES OCTOBER 2024 11HVACTODAY.COMabout getting them involved in the testing process. Engaging with cus- tomers on this level, showing them proof of what is causing their HVAC systems not to perform as intended, nearly closes all our sales. GV’S SALES LEADS: HOW DO WE GET THEM? At our company, we see three types of sales leads: z Traditional Replacement Lead zService-Generated Call Turnovers zHomeowners Seeking Solutions. Traditional replacement leads come from our marketing programs. We focus on how our high-perfor- mance approach differentiates us from other contractors in our marketplace. While on calls, we document what we do; in marketing, we document what cus- tomers tell us when we ask how we did. And perhaps most importantly, we measure our mar- keting results. As NCI’s motto states, “If You Don’t Measure, You’re Just Guessing.” When we follow up on a tradition- al replacement lead, we are not looking at the equipment but also the overall heating/cooling duct system. We per- form a full Performance Test on the system; static pressure, temperatures at the equipment, measurements of duct system, blower speed, fittings, etc. Then we proceed to evaluate the duct system; supply registers, return grilles, temperatures at the supply registers and return grilles, sizing of the ductwork, counting the supplies/ returns in the home, and performing a full room-by-room Manual J to ver- ify the sizing of the heating/cooling equipment. We inform the client that this pro- cess takes about 2-3 hours depending on the extent of the diagnosis. The performance of the existing system a safer, healthier, more comfortable home and building? Part of your sales process is to show how this approach can help customers reduce utility costs and provide more value for their dollar. That value is in the form of lon- ger-lasting equipment and fewer equipment breakdowns. In my experience, high-performance sales benefits employees by helping you create better career paths, gener- ate better income, and provide job sta- bility for them. Selling duct renovations and air up- grades is year-round work and can con- tribute to personal growth and value. CUSTOMER EDUCATION SHOULD BE THE FOCUS I view high-performance system renovation work not as something I sell but as something the custom- er invests in. We can teach customers about their homes using our training and the tools and instruments to test and measure. Airflow testing and diagnostics is the right thing to do. Talking to cus- tomers is also part of any high-per- formance sales process. That is how we discover their pain points. Once we know their pain, we can help cus- tomers buy the best solutions for what THEY want and need. By the way, educating customers is all about communication. It’s also 12 OCTOBER 2024HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYSALES an interview. Then it’s time to test. We interpret airflow using our TrueFlow grid and try to get our customers in- volved while we are testing. This in- volvement is part of our customer ed- ucation process. The goal is to discover the issues, provide options for solutions, and never pressure them. Then, we have our service-gener- ated interview. Here, the tech talks with the customer and begins testing fairly quickly. The tech brings in all the necessary tools – airflow hoods, instruments, test port installation kits, etc. We train the techs to include the client and to educate them. They record everything they find visually and through testing, then offer the customer options. Again, they never try to push the customer. And finally, when homeown- ers are seeking solutions, we of- fer them a paid diagnostic. The techs initially bring in all their tools and problems onsite. The phone interview with these homeowners usually includes ques- tions like: zHow long the customer has lived in the home zHow they found us – referral, an ad, social media, etc. z The location of their furnace in the home. Depending on this location, we can determine whether our team will need a ladder or crawl-space gear zWhich rooms in their house are too hot or too cold zWe also ask if they’ve had repairs done by other contractors. During this phone call, we typical- ly explain that our evaluation can take two to three hours. THE SALES CALL We have three interview processes when on the job. The first is what I call the traditional interview. When our comfort specialist arrives at the customer’s home, we always start with ranges from 55%-65% based on the data we collect and input into Com- fortMaxx™. When it comes to our marketing leads, we rely on Service Titan to track where our leads are coming from, and the revenue generated per campaign. With Service Titan, we are able to see what campaigns are working. From looking at the data, our #1 revenue pro- ducer is our existing clients, #2 are cus- tomer referrals, and #3 are service re- ferrals. All of our leads are from our internal marketing; we do not do direct mailing, billboards, or radio. Service-generated leads are generated directly from testing and measuring. At GV’s, we perform stat- ic pressure tests on every call. We also spend time with the customers, talking to them to find out where they have issues – hot or cold rooms, draft issues, dust or dirt appearing from no- where, odors, etc. Then, our service techs share what they learned, and we set up a follow-up with a comfort specialist to come in and do a deeper dive into problem spots. By the way, we document every- thing, including all our test results. Documentation comes from the NCI AirMaxx™ app used with our TEC TrueFlow ® grids and other tools and instruments. Homeowners who want solu- tions to long-standing problems will call us unsolicited. These calls are usu- ally detailed conversations where our customer service representatives will ask lots of questions, offer testing ser- vices, and set up appointments. Our process includes document- ing these calls to ensure we capture all customer information and use it to help the techs step through the OCTOBER 2024 13HVACTODAY.COMSALES can see their options and how much each one costs. THE HAND-OFF Once the customer decides what they want to do, then the job gets or- ganized. The comfort specialists get together with the installation team and walk them through the entire job. Depending on the scope of the job, that walk-through may require an in-office meeting and/or a job site visit. Then, we order all the equipment and materials based on the project schedule and deliver them to our warehouse in the assigned installer’s bay lane. On the scheduled day, the install- ers perform airflow measurements on the existing system before the work begins. Finally, they do the renovation/in- stallation. There is a daily review so our team always knows where the job stands. When done, the installer per- forms a test out so we can prove that we accomplished what we promised. This process helps our team at GV’s not only differentiate ourselves from competitors but also enables us to pro- vide a unique service that solves cus- tomer comfort and energy issues, then prove that what we did worked. And that is the anatomy of high-perfor- mance sales at our company. focus their efforts. However, they are also trained to use their eyes – to look for things that can be telltale signs of other issues. The tech has to be aware of the sur- roundings, be mindful of the custom- er’s issues, and know how to interpret the test results. Once done, we can produce a proposal that provides op- tions to help customers make the right purchase decision for themselves. THE PROPOSALS Our proposals include the following information: zIdentify each problem discovered zSet the status of the problem as to whether it has been addressed or not zAny remarks, which include test re- sults and any actions they took then and there, are also included. We number each problem. We also include images corresponding to each number so the customer can see what the tech describes. Additionally, we include images of our ComfortMaxx™ Air reports that detail our findings and explain pro- posed solutions. Each solution is de- tailed and priced out so the customer interview the client. They will then in- troduce the client to the flow hood and begin testing, often asking the cus- tomer to help. Again, this is part of our custom- er education process. Once they fin- ish testing, the techs can offer home- owners options and never push them to buy anything. TECHNICIAN INTERVIEW QUESTIONS Once on the job site, our techs are trained to ask questions to help them better understand the customer’s pain points. These include: zIf you put the thermostat anywhere in your home, where would you put it? z Who in your home suffers from allergies? zHow long has the problem been happening? zHas anything changed? z How long have you lived in your home? zOver that time, what repairs to your HVAC system have been done? Based on the customers’ answers, technicians know better where to Dawn Mroczek Presented at the High- Performance HVAC Summit 2024 This article is based on a presentation given by Dawn Mroczek at Nation- al Comfort Institute’s 2024 High-Performance HVAC Summit in Asheville, NC. This session is titled, “The Anatomy of a High-Performance Sales Call,” and covers how the sales team at GV’s Heating incorporates system performance testing into their selling approach. If you didn’t attend this year’s Summit, this article should give you the key highlights of what Dawn shared with those who did attend. Be sure to mark your calendars for the 2025 Summit, from September 9-12, 2025 in Austin, TX. HVAC SUMMIT 2024 HIGH-PERFORMANCE Dawn Mroczek is a comfort specialist at GV’s Heating & Cooling in Buffalo Grove, IL. In 2007, she moved into the sales position. She is certified in Commercial Air Bal- ancing and Duct System Optimization. She is also the 2020 recipient of NCI’s High-Per- formance Sales Excellence Award. You can reach out to her with questions at ncilink. com/ContactMe. 14 OCTOBER 2024HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYOCTOBER 2024 15HVACTODAY.COM16 OCTOBER 2024HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYboth who work closely with my company. Mycotoxins are toxic compounds produced by certain types of mold, and they can have severe health implications. This discovery was a game-changer for us, as we now have technology that can measure them, allowing us to diagnose and address mychotoxin issues more effectively. CASE STUDY 1: THE MALE CLIENT One of our most challenging projects involved a male client who bought a house built in 1969. Shortly after moving in, he and his family began experiencing severe health issues. Despite many tests, doctors couldn’t identify the problem. It wasn’t until doctors finally offered a mycotoxin poisoning diagnosis that the client un- derstood the gravity of the situation. He and his fami- ly had to move out of their new home and live with his parents for nearly a year and a half. The environmental- ist called us and our mold remediation con- tractor in, and – from my point of view – I learned there was so much more going on than just your run-of-the-mill vola- tile organic compounds off-gassing from furniture, bad air infiltration, and bad ductwork that leaked. The client’s house had a nasty crawl space with mold. We even found mold inside the poorly maintained HVAC equipment. Step one was to clean up the crawlspace and encapsulate it. This process involved scrubbing A s someone deeply involved in the HVAC industry, I’ve always been pas- sionate about ensuring that my cus- tomers’ homes are comfortable and healthy. Over the past 14 years, I’ve worked close- ly with a mold remediation company, tackling tough indoor air quality (IAQ) challenges. This collaboration opened my eyes to the com- plexities of IAQ like never before and helped me better understand the critical role that proper HVAC systems play in maintaining a healthy in- door environment. BUILDING PROFESSIONAL RELATIONSHIPS I began rethinking the idea of IAQ during a Business Network International (BNI) group event after meeting a mold remediation ex- pert there. We found much in common, in- cluding blue-collar backgrounds, and we hit it off. Over the years, our professional rela- tionship has grown stronger, allowing us to tackle increasing- ly complex IAQ issues together. This partnership has been instrumental in help- ing Copeland Home Services address prob- lems that are usually beyond traditional HVAC solutions. DISCOVERING MYCOTOXINS In the past two years, I’ve been introduced to the term “mycotoxins” by an environmentalist as wells my mold remediation specialist friend, Thinking About Indoor Air Quality from A New Perspective By Nathan Copeland CUSTOMER SERVICE OCTOBER 2024 17HVACTODAY.COMa far lower static drop and maintain the same filter life up to three years! CASE STUDY 2: THE FEMALE CLIENT The second case involved a female client whose home, built in 1987, also had a contaminated crawl space. We followed a similar process of encapsu- lation and installing a dehumidifier. For the ductwork, we opted for Koolduct trunk lines with anti micro- bial flex runs. We aimed to reduce contaminant particulate levels to un- der 25% of outdoor air, which we suc- cessfully achieved using a laser parti- cle counter for confirmation. For this project, we also used the IQ Air PerfectPro high-efficiency MERV 16 filter system, which provided ex- cellent results. We’ve used these fil- ters for nearly 15 years because they proved highly effective in maintaining indoor air quality without relying on electronic purification products. THE IMPORTANCE OF PROPER DUCT SIZING AND FILTRATION In both projects, we discovered how important it was to size the ducts properly. The truth is that a well-sized and sealed duct system that uses high-quality filters can significantly reduce particulate matter in the air, eliminating the need for expensive electronic purification products. By testing airflow and measuring particulate contamination before and after our work, we demonstrated the effectiveness of our solutions to both homeowners. FRESH AIR MAKEUP SYSTEMS In addition to ductwork and filtra- tion, we provided fresh air makeup systems using the Aprilaire E100V, a 100-pint removal dehumidification system that ventilates the space with dry air. This system pre-filters the air to catch larger particulates and further filters it through the Dust Free 16 or IQAir systems. Mechanically controlled fresh air makeup is ideal for solving IAQ prob- lems, as it prevents reliance on ran- dom infiltration through walls, win- dows, and doors. RESULTS AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION Both clients could move back into their homes after we completed our the space, removing mold from floor joists, and installing a reinforced plastic barrier. The mold remediation company installed a properly sized dehumidifier to maintain a clean environment. We inspected the ductwork and found it undersized and contaminated with dust, mold, and other microbial growth. We took pictures to show the homeowner the extent of the problem. He decided to replace the entire sys- tem based on our recommendations. We explained to him that simply cleaning the ducts wouldn’t solve the underlying issues due to improper siz- ing and compromised insulation. By starting fresh, we could ensure that the new system performs optimally and provides clean air. For this project, we used the Rec- torSeal ® Dust Free 16 high-effi- ciency MERV 16 filter system, which provided excellent results. This was our first time using these filters, which proved highly effective in maintaining indoor air quality without relying on electronic purification products. With the larger filter surface than the IQAir PerfectPro, in my opinion, you can achieve greater filtration with 18 OCTOBER 2024HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYCUSTOMER SERVICE photos alone were enough to show him why he was sick. To him, mak- ing the $60,000 investment was com- pletely worthwhile. For the female client, her project also included the premium Kingspan Koolduct System, which features an antimicrobial phenolic foam trunk line with anti microbial flex duct. This system was more expensive but pro- vided superior performance and peace of mind. CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES Not all homeowners can afford extensive IAQ solutions. Those who can’t qualify for financing may have to move out and disclose the issues. This situation is far from ideal. However, for those who do have the means, we can solve their problems and prove the effectiveness of our work. On average, we handle four to five major IAQ projects like these per year. Each project requires a different mindset and approach, considering both the HVAC side and the broader environmental factors. Working closely with an environ- mentalist and mold remediator be- came a game-changer in our case. Together, our measurement results reports provided the homeowners with a comprehensive view of their home’s issues while helping us make sure our solutions are based on objec- tive measurements. COMPANY GROWTH AND FUTURE PLANS Copeland Home Services has un- dergone significant changes since its inception in 1981. We are on track to reach $21 million in the next five years load calculation coupled with room-by- room CFM requirements, ensuring our designs meet the highest standards. Our training in duct sizing and air- flow and the use of advanced tools al- low us to achieve true Btu delivery. The before-and-after testing results are not based on opinions but on ob- jective, third-party data. I love this sci- entific approach; it sets us apart and ensures our solutions are effective. SELLING IAQ SOLUTIONS Selling IAQ solutions can be chal- lenging, especially when the urgency isn’t high. Both projects had a high ur- gency due to the severe impact on each client’s day-to-day life. Preventative measures can be a harder sell because it’s difficult for homeowners to justify the cost unless they’ve experienced the problems firsthand. By clearly communicating with customers and showing them pho- tos of what we find, we can help them understand the extent of the issues and prepare them for the necessary work. In the case of our male client, the work. The male client, who had been severely affected by mycotoxin poi- soning, experienced significant im- provements in his health. The be- fore-and-after results were amazing. There is a lot of noise about using plug-and-play electronic products to solve IAQ for customers. Instead, we found that by focusing on high-quality filtration and con- trolled fresh air makeup, we can solve many problems. Tight homes, whether new or reno- vated, often suffer from zero fresh air intake, leading to unhealthy indoor environments, especially when new furniture and other sources of VOCs are introduced. THE ROLE OF PERFORMANCE TESTING AND VERIFICATION The team here at Copeland strong- ly believes in the High-Performance HVAC™ approach of measuring and testing systems. Combined with properly sized HVAC equipment and ductwork, our team provides custom- ers with systems that achieve high performance and circulate clean air throughout their homes. Recently, we started using tools like measureQuick software to test and measure airflow, static pressure, and system performance on every call. This data-driven approach allows us to produce customer-friendly reports to help homeowners understand the issues in their homes and make in- formed decisions. In these two case studies, we didn’t use measureQuick, but we are mov- ing towards third-party verification using tools like ConduitTech’s LI- DAR technology. This technology provides accurate Example of the microbial and other growth inside ducts. OCTOBER 2024 19HVACTODAY.COMNext >