18 Quick Tips To Handle Busy Winters With Your Heating Business

Tip #1: Call your customer the day before to confirm the appointment

Communication is key in the trades. Sometimes, customers forget about an appointment or, even worse, call another company that could get the job done quicker. A great way to avoid turning up and finding out they’re not home is to give them a quick ring the day before to confirm the appointment. 

In winter, when your schedules are so packed and customers are left waiting longer than usual, having a no-show is especially painful and wastes precious time.

This tip was submitted anonymously. 

Tip #2: Avoid committing to large projects for a flexible schedule

If you have the schedule to accommodate them, breakdowns (specifically emergency callouts) are some of your most profitable jobs and greatly help your customers. The only problem is when you’ve got a fully booked-up schedule and end up working overtime to do them. 

During the busy months, prioritising smaller jobs leaves you with a more flexible schedule. Larger jobs can mean you have to miss out on more urgent ones, which can then hurt the amount of repeat business you get in the long run. 

This tip was submitted by Peter Blake from Pipedreams Heating and Plumbing Limited.

Tip #3: Make getting paid quick & easy

When things get busy, it’s crucial to make the administrative parts of your business as streamlined as possible. We’ve written in detail about the issue of late-paying customers in the trades, and one of the best ways to avoid it entirely is to offer a way to get paid on the spot.

Using open banking apps like Crezco (which can be integrated with Gas Engineer Software), you can provide customers with a QR code or link they can use to pay and avoid the annoying bank transfer process or having to write a cheque. This method also means much lower fees. 

This tip was submitted by Richard from Marshall Gas Ltd. 

Tip #4: Schedule jobs efficiently

A great way to squeeze some extra time out of your day is to organise your diary so that all your jobs are close together. This will help minimise time spent driving and maximise how long you actually get paid for. 

Before booking a job, see if you’re going to be in the area at a certain time. Or, if you work as part of a team, check where each engineer lives and what’s closest to them. 

This tip was submitted anonymously.

Tip #5: Save the last slot of each day for emergency breakdowns

If you finish early, you can also use the time to finish up some paperwork. 

This tip was submitted by Laura Eastham from Ignite Heating Services and Jason Finlay from JMF Heating and Plumbing Ltd.

Tip #7: Send out reminders a little earlier than usual

This tip was submitted by Laura Eastham from Ignite Heating Services.

Tip #8: Avoid doing work for insurance companies

This tip was submitted by Laura Eastham from Ignite Heating Services.

Tip #9: Keep your van well-stocked with spare parts

You never know when you need a specific spare part. Keep your van fully stocked with all the parts you can so you don’t need to rush to the merchants and return another day to finish the job. 

This tip was submitted by Rob from Plumbing Heating Drainage Services.

Tip #10: Hire a virtual admin assistant

You only need to pay for a few hours a week to make a noticeable difference. What’s great about hiring a virtual assistant (rather than a dedicated full or part-time one) is that you only pay for the time you need, whether that’s 2, 3 or 4 hours a week – or more.

This tip was submitted by Robin Strong from Optimised Heating.

Bonus tips:

#17: Set expectations with your customers

This first tip is all about communicating with your customers. Every business owner knows that happy customers mean a happy business, but customer satisfaction is closely related to their expectations. 

Read more: Customer Relationship Management: How To Show You Care

Letting customers know that you might have a longer-than-usual turnaround time for emergency visits, or an update to your ETA can go a long way in terms of keeping your customers happy. 

Generally, people are understanding of longer wait times or late arrivals so long as it’s communicated clearly.