When it comes to marketing green products to HVAC consumers, the biggest issue a contractor might run into is convincing a consumer that these high-efficiency green HVAC systems are worth that upfront monetary investment. Because, well, not all consumers are eco-conscious. Fortunately, there is a fix for this — it’s education. So, when contractors are specifically marketing green products (much like their other marketing strategies), they have to ensure they can clearly communicate and inform consumers about the types of green HVAC systems, their benefits, and the money they can save over time.
To learn more about the marketing strategies contractors can employ when trying to sell those green products, The ACHR NEWS caught up with Colleen Keyworth, director of sales and marketing at Online Access Inc.
ACHR NEWS: What are some of the common misconceptions consumers might have about green HVAC systems?
CK: Expensive. That isn’t necessarily a misconception, but consumers might not know about the savings they can get from these products over time.
ACHR NEWS: Have you seen any commonalities among the most eco-conscious HVAC buyers? (i.e., age, cities/rural, income, etc.)
CK: Most of them have a higher income if they are looking for [green products], because with most HVAC customers, usually the ones that are a little wealthier than others are a little bit older. And I can't even say “older” because age isn't always a factor. But anybody who maybe has a little more means than others, usually will do a little bit more research. They'll try to get something for their home that's a little bit more high-end, they'll look at options for that type of stuff, and they'll invest more into it. That's not your average customer. The other side of it is younger generations value more of the green technologies, and they'll actually factor that in when they're making a purchase, as opposed to your average HVAC customer. So, it's a little bit of a split.
ACHR NEWS: What digital platforms or advertising channels do you recommend HVAC contractors use for reaching environmentally conscious consumers?
CK: Facebook is kind of young and old, and you can do a lot with that, but it all depends on what you're doing with those channels. As you're going into social media channels like Facebook, Instagram, or Tiktok, part of that is going to be the education level, because if people are so afraid of the expense, you have to be able to show them specifically what the cost savings are in the long run — by being able to make a big investment upfront, what they can save year-over-year. Use things like testimonial videos or comparing energy bills or case study scenarios, or actually maybe installing it in one in your home and being able to do a study of what your energy bills are month-over-month and what it looks like, or talking about cost-friendly options, like what type of financing is available to make this investment. The other side of it is if there are any incentives, because there are a lot of government incentives, and you can be the person to help your customers navigate that. Very few customers are looking at that as an option, and you literally have to walk them through it. If you have rebates, or if you have incentive pricing, or anything that they can use to help lower the cost of a solar system or maybe a geothermal system — of course, there's a lot of ductless rebates going on for electrification — you have to walk them through it. People do have hesitancies on electrification. Here in Michigan, we have concerns about our power grid in some cases and having blackouts and being without a/c. We’re not exactly California, but it is one of those things that we have to take in.
ACHR NEWS: What type of content resonates most with environmentally conscious consumers?
CK: Testimonials, case studies, even if you want to break down how the system works. I always say to appeal to the highest denominator. If you can make content digestible, then your audience will eat it up. You don't have to just dump on them all at once. Take a small portion of it and give examples about the cost savings. … If you're looking at geothermal, those are usually high-end systems, and they're super expensive. But here in Michigan, a lot of people, especially out in the country with those big country homes, they really like geothermal because there's a lot of room to be able to do it. [Geothermal] is self-sustainable. They're very expensive to fix, but in the long run, they save a lot of money. It's a lot about the cost savings for anybody besides those who are environmentally conscious. I'd love to say that everybody cares, and I think to a point we do, but unfortunately, most people care more about their wallet, because it's the immediate need, not the long term.
ACHR NEWS: Should HVAC contractors utilize things like Google Ads to target eco-minded HVAC customers?
CK: If you want to advertise incentives and rebates, yes. We can talk about that on Google ads. You can use those as tags and titles, but you should really have very comprehensive landing pages that explain, lay out the savings, give a call to action, and actually have an entire funnel about how you're getting these customers — if ads are [bringing in more consumers who want to install green HVAC systems]. Definitely make sure you're walking them through the cost savings, the investment, and what their rebate options are.
ACHR NEWS: What role does education play in marketing green HVAC systems?
CK: Education plays a huge role in this. Everybody talks about how it needs to be happening, but you have an entire demographic of people who really aren't resonating with the messaging we are putting out. Try to make it more attainable to your average homeowner, rather than having some sort of agenda behind it. When you’re talking about cost-efficient savings, or why variable-speed motors are better than a regular one, or why using a ductless system offers them more versatility, talk about how it's going to hit them closer to home. A lot of it is education, and it is up to the contractor, but the contractor usually doesn't like doing that. I always recommend finding a younger person. The younger generation might be better able to paint some of those pictures. Most contractors really need to find somebody who can help them build content, because it's never going to be them. They can provide all the technical information, but that younger person can provide content and start making infographics, and start using things like Canva to create items with digestible content for consumers. Put them in your newsletters, putting them out on Facebook and other forms of social media, and making sure you have a web page dedicated to what the benefits are of these green systems. Educate your techs on how to talk about the benefits, so that when they are talking to consumers or customers, they're able to mention things with authority, rather than just telling them what the cheapest option is, being conscientious of what these green options mean and how they impact everybody.
