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With how much time the average American spends connected to the internet, it shouldn’t come as any surprise that’s one of the first places they turn to for guidance when something goes wrong with their HVAC system.

A recent study conducted by the research unit of BNP Media, Clear Seas Research, in conjunction with The ACHR NEWS, found that a whopping 91% of respondents rate online reviews as an important factor for them when choosing an HVAC contractor — with 26% saying online reviews are “extremely important,” 35% “very important,” 30% “important,” and just 8% reporting they are not very important and 1% stating they’re not at all important.

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REVIEW RELEVANCE: The numbers aren’t even close – the overwhelming majority of homeowners find online reviews important. (Courtesy of myCLEARopinion Insights Hub)

The survey, which gleaned responses from 400 homeowners, saw nearly identical to answers given last year to the same question, which was no surprise to several marketing experts contacted by ACHR NEWS.

Kenneth Burke, vice president of Marketing at Text Request, said this data lines up well with what he’s seen over the last several years across industries.

“Reviews matter to most buyers, even if it's just a quick pass to make sure they won't have a bad experience with you,” Burke said.

Chris Hunter, co-owner of Go Time Success Group, agreed with that sentiment.

“In today’s market, consumer trust is earned online. A contractor’s reputation isn’t just built on word-of-mouth anymore — it’s shaped by the digital footprints they leave across review platforms,” Hunter said. “In 2024, if you’re not managing your online presence, you’re missing out on the first impression you never get to make in-person.”

With dollars needing to be stretched further, Chris Lollini, chief reputation engineer with Reputation Igniter, said consumers are making a more concentrated effort to seek out information before making a high-dollar decision, which can often be the case with HVAC work.

“It's not a surprise that 91% of homeowners find reviews important,” Lollini said. “With the rising cost of everything, people are doing more research and reading more reviews before spending their money, which is losing its purchasing power due to inflation.”

As for where consumers are seeking out this information, there is one resource that stands out.

Google is Still King

When a similar survey was conducted last year, it found that Google was the undisputed king of review platforms.

This year, not much has changed — with 56% of respondents saying they use Google to seek out reviews of contractors.

“Google wins by default as the best place to get reviews and to be seen,” Burke said. “Consumers will typically look on other platforms like Yelp or Facebook or Angi if that's where they happen to search anyway, or if they're specifically looking for critical reviews. Yelp is notorious for critical reviews.”

Lollini said with the sheer mass of reviews that can be found on Google, it’s an obvious choice for consumers.

“It's no surprise that Google is the top review site for homeowners to seek reviews on, with billions of reviews compared to Yelp's tens of millions,” Lollini said.

As for the results, 56% of homeowners said they would likely seek out a review on Google, compared to 51% on a contractor’s website, 43% on Yelp, 36% on Facebook, 32% on Angi, 9% on Houzz, 5% Thumbtack, 5% “other,” and 8% saying they would not likely seek out reviews.

The survey also found a few other interesting bits of data in this subcategory — Google business was the least likely choice among homes with only one floor, and Yelp was most likely favored in the West and most likely among homes that were three stories or more.

The Contractor Website

While the survey found that most contractors feature reviews from previous customers on their websites, that number is slightly down year-over-year, with 59% reporting they feature reviews compared to last year’s 61%.

Burke said that 59% figure also wasn’t too surprising of a finding.

“It's a fairly standard marketing move these days, but many contractors (especially smaller ones) do very little digital marketing while relying more on word-of-mouth and personal networks,” Burke said.

Lollini said putting this information at the forefront for potential customers on contractor websites is a good way to establish consumer confidence.

“Glad to see that most contractors now showcase reviews on their websites,” Lollini said. “Displaying third-party reviews, like those from Google, builds trust far more than testimonials. Google also prioritizes links to their reviews and Google Business Profiles, boosting a contractor's local ranking. Adding these is a no-brainer for any contractor.”

But contractors with between 1-10 employees were not only the least likely group to host reviews on their website, but also the least likely to answer reviews on third-party sites, which Hunter said was a little troubling.

“It’s concerning to see that smaller contractors are less likely to showcase or respond to online reviews. This is a missed opportunity,” Hunter said. “In a field where trust and reliability are key, leveraging customer testimonials and engaging online can be a game changer for small businesses looking to stand out.”

Active Engagement

Among the contractors surveyed, 45% reported they do answer reviews on third-party sites, with 43% saying they don’t, and 13% saying they “don’t know.”

The survey also found there to be a bit of a disparity between contractors from different regions, with those in the Northeast ranking as the least likely to respond to reviews.

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THE PEOPLE WANT ANSWERS: According to the experts, potential customers want to see contractors responding to online reviews, but a staggering 43% say they don’t do it. (Courtesy of myCLEARopinion Insights Hub)

“The regional discrepancies highlighted in this study should be a wake-up call,” Hunter said. “Contractors in regions like the Northeast, where engagement is lower, need to recognize that their competitors are already ahead in areas where online presence is more robust. It’s time to close that gap before it widens further.”

As for those who choose not to answer at all, Lollini said that’s a business decision he just doesn’t understand.

“Shocking that 43% of contractors don't respond to reviews still, even though 88% of people prefer businesses that respond to all reviews,” Lollini said. “In a competitive market, responding to reviews is crucial, especially with AI available to help.”

Given how important online reviews can be to a contractor’s bottom line, Burke said they need to recognize this as an opportunity to stand out from the competition.

“People will commonly look for contractors when they have a problem they need to fix ASAP (like the a/c goes out in the middle of a heat wave). Your business can win that deal by having more good reviews across multiple platforms than your competitors,” Burke said. “Earn more reviews on Google and you'll rank higher in search results. Also, get reviews on other common platforms like Facebook and Angi, and you'll stand out where competitors aren't. This way, when consumers are making quick decisions about who to trust, you'll win more deals.”