Customer acquisition for UK heating and HVAC businesses
Customer acquisition for UK heating and HVAC businesses
Customer acquisition for UK heating and HVAC businesses
Getting more jobs doesn’t always mean more ad spend.
Getting more jobs doesn’t always mean more ad spend.
Getting more jobs doesn’t always mean more ad spend.
When you want more jobs, the first answer shouldn’t automatically be to spend more on ads. We strengthen the foundations and the customer journey from initial interest to installation, helping you capture more value from the demand already reaching your business.
When you want more jobs, the first answer shouldn’t automatically be to spend more on ads. We strengthen the foundations and the customer journey from initial interest to installation, helping you capture more value from the demand already reaching your business.
When you want more jobs, the first answer shouldn’t automatically be to spend more on ads. We strengthen the foundations and the customer journey from initial interest to installation, helping you capture more value from the demand already reaching your business.
WHERE EXISTING DEMAND CAN LEAK
WHERE EXISTING DEMAND CAN LEAK
Valuable opportunities can slip through the gaps.
Valuable opportunities can slip through the gaps.
Valuable opportunities can slip through the gaps.
Customers may find you through Google, referrals, repeat business, directories, advertising, or simply seeing your name on a van in the local area.
Customers may find you through Google, referrals, repeat business, directories, advertising, or simply seeing your name on a van in the local area.
Customers may find you through Google, referrals, repeat business, directories, advertising, or simply seeing your name on a van in the local area.
But visibility is only the beginning.
But visibility is only the beginning.
But visibility is only the beginning.
A potential customer still needs to:
A potential customer still needs to:
01
Understand what you offer and feel confident choosing you
02
Be able to reach you when they’re ready to enquire
03
Receive a timely response
04
Be followed up after a quote
This is where gaps can appear.
This is where gaps can appear.
01
Your offer and reputation may not come across clearly on the website.
Your offer and reputation may not come across clearly on the website.
02
A call may go unanswered while the team is out on jobs.
A call may go unanswered while the team is out on jobs.
03
An enquiry may sit in an inbox longer than intended.
An enquiry may sit in an inbox longer than intended.
04
A quote may never be followed up.
A quote may never be followed up.
Any of these can be enough for a potential customer to lose confidence in your business and choose another installer.
Any of these can be enough for a potential customer to lose confidence in your business and choose another installer.
Any of these can be enough for a potential customer to lose confidence in your business and choose another installer.
There can also be a measurement problem. You may know how many enquiries came in, but not which sources produced worthwhile installations. That makes it harder to know where your marketing budget is working and where it isn’t.
Spending more doesn’t fix these gaps. It can generate more enquiries while wasting more of your budget and losing more potential customers.
So, sometimes the answer isn’t more marketing spend. It’s fixing the gaps, improving the journey to installation and understanding which sources deserve further investment.
So, sometimes the answer isn’t more marketing spend. It’s fixing the gaps, improving the journey to installation and understanding which sources deserve further investment.
OUR APPROACH
OUR APPROACH
Foundation. Efficiency. Then scale.
Foundation. Efficiency. Then scale.
Foundation. Efficiency. Then scale.
More demand is most valuable when the business is ready to capture it.
More demand is most valuable when the business is ready to capture it.
More demand is most valuable when the business is ready to capture it.
That means strengthening the foundations first, improving how efficiently existing enquiries are handled next, and only then deciding whether it makes sense to spend more.
That means strengthening the foundations first, improving how efficiently existing enquiries are handled next, and only then deciding whether it makes sense to spend more.
This is the thinking behind our approach:
This is the thinking behind our approach:
01
02
03
01 Foundation
01 Foundation
01 Foundation
First, make your business easier to find, understand, trust and contact.
First, make your business easier to find, understand, trust and contact.
This can involve clearer positioning, a more credible online presence, stronger use of reviews and sensible tracking. Together, these fundamentals help someone who was not personally referred to you feel confident getting in touch.
This can involve clearer positioning, a more credible online presence, stronger use of reviews and sensible tracking. Together, these fundamentals help someone who was not personally referred to you feel confident getting in touch.
02 Efficiency
02 Efficiency
02 Efficiency
Next, examine what happens to the demand you already generate.
Next, examine what happens to the demand you already generate.
How quickly are enquiries acknowledged? Where are they recorded? What happens after a quote? Can you tell which sources produce commercially valuable work?
How quickly are enquiries acknowledged? Where are they recorded? What happens after a quote? Can you tell which sources produce commercially valuable work?
The aim is to reduce avoidable gaps and capture more value from the opportunities already entering your business.
The aim is to reduce avoidable gaps and capture more value from the opportunities already entering your business.
03 Scale
03 Scale
03 Scale
Once the foundations are stronger, the process is more efficient and the economics make sense, increasing demand becomes a more informed decision, with better visibility and fewer avoidable unknowns.
Once the foundations are stronger, the process is more efficient and the economics make sense, increasing demand becomes a more informed decision, with better visibility and fewer avoidable unknowns.
So future marketing spend enters a stronger system.
So future marketing spend enters a stronger system.
So future marketing spend enters a stronger system.
Not every business needs to begin at the same stage.
Not every business needs to begin at the same stage.
That is why we diagnose before recommending what happens next.
That is why we diagnose before recommending what happens next.
CUSTOMER JOURNEY
We look at the whole journey.
We look at the whole journey.
We look at the whole journey.
Generating an enquiry is only one stage. We examine what happens before and after it, considering what the potential customer is doing, what they need from your business and where valuable opportunities may be lost.
Generating an enquiry is only one stage. We examine what happens before and after it, considering what the potential customer is doing, what they need from your business and where valuable opportunities may be lost.
Generating an enquiry is only one stage. We examine what happens before and after it, considering what the potential customer is doing, what they need from your business and where valuable opportunities may be lost.
01 Search
01 Search
A potential customer realises they need help and starts searching for a local installer.
A potential customer realises they need help and starts searching for a local installer.
Can the right customers find you when they look?
Can the right customers find you when they look?
02 Consider
02 Consider
They compare the businesses that appear in front of them.
They compare the businesses that appear in front of them.
Does your website, reputation and offer give them a clear reason to consider you?
Does your website, reputation and offer give them a clear reason to consider you?
03 Contact
03 Contact
They shortlist their options and begin getting in touch.
They shortlist their options and begin getting in touch.
Is it easy to contact you in the way they prefer?
Is it easy to contact you in the way they prefer?
04 Respond
04 Respond
They wait to hear whether you can help and what happens next.
They wait to hear whether you can help and what happens next.
Do they receive a prompt acknowledgement and a timely response, even when your team is busy?
Do they receive a prompt acknowledgement and a timely response, even when your team is busy?
05 Quote
05 Quote
They receive quotes and decide who they trust with the work.
They receive quotes and decide who they trust with the work.
Is your quote clear, and do you follow up consistently if they need more information or time to decide?
Is your quote clear, and do you follow up consistently if they need more information or time to decide?
06 Choose
06 Choose
They decide which installer gets the job.
They decide which installer gets the job.
Do you know which enquiries were won, lost or are still waiting for a decision?
Do you know which enquiries were won, lost or are still waiting for a decision?
Measurement closes the loop
Measurement closes the loop
Measurement closes the loop
Can you trace worthwhile installations back to the sources that produced them and see what deserves further investment?
Can you trace worthwhile installations back to the sources that produced them and see what deserves further investment?
Can you trace worthwhile installations back to the sources that produced them and see what deserves further investment?
ECONOMIC ILLUSTRATION
Small improvements can matter.
Small improvements can matter.
Small improvements can matter.
Imagine a heating company generates 40 enquiries in a month.
Imagine a heating company generates 40 enquiries in a month.
Imagine a heating company generates 40 enquiries in a month.
At a 20% enquiry-to-installation rate:
At a 20% enquiry-to-installation rate:
40 enquiries → 8 installations
40 enquiries → 8 installations
If nine became installations instead:
If nine became installations instead:
40 enquiries → 9 installations
40 enquiries → 9 installations
That is a change from 20% to 22.5%.
That is a change from 20% to 22.5%.
Not a dramatic transformation. Just one additional installation each month.
Not a dramatic transformation. Just one additional installation each month.
Not a dramatic transformation. Just one additional installation each month.
But if each additional installation were worth £2,000 to £4,000, that would represent £6,000 to £12,000 in additional revenue over the quarter, without spending more on ads to generate additional enquiries.
But if each additional installation were worth £2,000 to £4,000, that would represent £6,000 to £12,000 in additional revenue over the quarter, without spending more on ads to generate additional enquiries.
But if each additional installation were worth £2,000 to £4,000, that would represent £6,000 to £12,000 in additional revenue over the quarter, without spending more on ads to generate additional enquiries.
This is an illustration — not a projection, forecast, or promise.
This is an illustration — not a projection, forecast, or promise.
The point is simpler:
The point is simpler:
When each installation is worth thousands of pounds, small improvements can make a meaningful difference.
When each installation is worth thousands of pounds, small improvements can make a meaningful difference.
When each installation is worth thousands of pounds, small improvements can make a meaningful difference.
They can also improve the economics of future acquisition. If you later increase marketing spend, that additional demand enters a stronger system.
They can also improve the economics of future acquisition. If you later increase marketing spend, that additional demand enters a stronger system.
They can also improve the economics of future acquisition. If you later increase marketing spend, that additional demand enters a stronger system.
THE SPRINTS
Two Sprints. Two different starting points.
Two Sprints. Two different starting points.
Two Sprints. Two different starting points.
We work with good heating and HVAC businesses at two distinct stages.
We work with good heating and HVAC businesses at two distinct stages.
We work with good heating and HVAC businesses at two distinct stages.
MARKETING FOUNDATION SPRINT
Marketing Foundation Sprint
Marketing Foundation Sprint
Marketing Foundation Sprint
Build the foundations for deliberate growth.
Build the foundations for deliberate growth.
Build the foundations for deliberate growth.
Whether you’ve built your business mainly through reputation and referrals, or you’re starting out with the experience and resources to build things properly from the beginning, the principle is the same:
Whether you’ve built your business mainly through reputation and referrals, or you’re starting out with the experience and resources to build things properly from the beginning, the principle is the same:
Before spending heavily to generate demand, put the foundations in place to make better use of it.
Before spending heavily to generate demand, put the foundations in place to make better use of it.
For an established business, the quality of the marketing may not have caught up with the quality of the work. The business may be well regarded by the people who know it, but much less convincing to somebody who has not been personally referred.
For an established business, the quality of the marketing may not have caught up with the quality of the work. The business may be well regarded by the people who know it, but much less convincing to somebody who has not been personally referred.
For an emerging business, the workmanship, experience and resources may already be there, but the marketing foundations still need to be built. Putting them in place early creates a more deliberate route to growth instead of waiting for referrals and disconnected marketing activity to shape the business by accident.
For an emerging business, the workmanship, experience and resources may already be there, but the marketing foundations still need to be built. Putting them in place early creates a more deliberate route to growth instead of waiting for referrals and disconnected marketing activity to shape the business by accident.
Without strong foundations, a potential customer may still find:
Without strong foundations, a potential customer may still find:
Generic or unclear messaging
An underdeveloped website
Limited visible proof or inconsistent reviews
A weak or incomplete Google presence
Little enquiry or source tracking
No clear reason to choose you over another local installer
The Marketing Foundation Sprint helps make your business easier to:
The Marketing Foundation Sprint helps make your business easier to:
Find → Understand → Trust → Contact → Hire
Find → Understand → Trust → Contact → Hire
Find → Understand → Trust → Contact → Hire
Depending on what we find, the work may include:
Depending on what we find, the work may include:
Marketing foundation diagnostic
Priority-service positioning
Offer and messaging improvements
Priority website improvements
Google Business Profile improvements
Review-generation process
Stronger presentation of trust and reputation
Basic enquiry and source tracking
Simple acquisition economics
90-day growth plan
Clear handover
Best suited to: Good owner-led heating and HVAC businesses with sound trade competence, commercially valuable work and the resources to grow deliberately. That may be an established business built mainly through reputation and referrals, or an emerging business led by somebody with the experience, financial stability and practical readiness to build properly from the beginning.
Best suited to: Good owner-led heating and HVAC businesses with sound trade competence, commercially valuable work and the resources to grow deliberately. That may be an established business built mainly through reputation and referrals, or an emerging business led by somebody with the experience, financial stability and practical readiness to build properly from the beginning.
Complete Sprint with Enquiry Management System: £1,195 one-off + £129 per month EMS subscription
Complete Sprint with Enquiry Management System: £1,195 one-off + £129 per month EMS subscription
Complete Sprint with Enquiry Management System: £1,195 one-off + £129 per month EMS subscription
If your existing enquiry-management process already works well, or we don’t believe you need the system, we remove it and adjust the investment accordingly.
If your existing enquiry-management process already works well, or we don’t believe you need the system, we remove it and adjust the investment accordingly.
Sprint without Enquiry Management System: £795 one-off
Sprint without Enquiry Management System: £795 one-off
Sprint without Enquiry Management System: £795 one-off
ENQUIRY SPRINT
Enquiry Conversion Sprint
Enquiry Conversion Sprint
Enquiry Conversion Sprint
You’re already generating enquiries. How many become worthwhile installations?
You’re already generating enquiries. How many become worthwhile installations?
You’re already generating enquiries. How many become worthwhile installations?
This Sprint is for established heating and HVAC businesses already attracting customer demand through Google, referrals, repeat business, advertising, SEO or directories such as Checkatrade.
This Sprint is for established heating and HVAC businesses already attracting customer demand through Google, referrals, repeat business, advertising, SEO or directories such as Checkatrade.
The problem may not be how many enquiries you generate. It may be how consistently they are responded to, followed up and converted into worthwhile work.
The problem may not be how many enquiries you generate. It may be how consistently they are responded to, followed up and converted into worthwhile work.
You may also lack a clear view of which sources produce installations and how profitable that work is, making it difficult to know what deserves further investment.
You may also lack a clear view of which sources produce installations and how profitable that work is, making it difficult to know what deserves further investment.
The Enquiry Conversion Sprint examines the full journey from initial discovery to installation and measurement, then focuses on the areas that need attention.
The Enquiry Conversion Sprint examines the full journey from initial discovery to installation and measurement, then focuses on the areas that need attention.
Depending on what we find, the work may include:
Depending on what we find, the work may include:
Acquisition and conversion diagnostic
Offer and positioning improvements
Priority website improvements
Stronger presentation of trust and reputation
Enquiry organisation
Missed-call and enquiry acknowledgement
Quote follow-up processes
Source and outcome tracking
Acquisition economics
90-day improvement plan
Commercial handover
Best suited to: Established heating and HVAC businesses receiving a meaningful flow of enquiries that want to reduce avoidable gaps, understand which sources produce worthwhile work, or strengthen the process before increasing acquisition spend.
Best suited to: Established heating and HVAC businesses receiving a meaningful flow of enquiries that want to reduce avoidable gaps, understand which sources produce worthwhile work, or strengthen the process before increasing acquisition spend.
Pilot investment: £795 one-off
Pilot investment: £795 one-off
Pilot investment: £795 one-off
An Enquiry Management System can be added where appropriate. Any additional setup cost will be explained clearly before work begins.
An Enquiry Management System can be added where appropriate. Any additional setup cost will be explained clearly before work begins.
Enquiry Management System subscription: £129 per month
Enquiry Management System subscription: £129 per month
If your existing enquiry-management process already works well, we leave it alone.
If your existing enquiry-management process already works well, we leave it alone.
DIAGNOSTIC DIFFERENCE
Diagnose before prescribing.
Diagnose before prescribing.
Diagnose before prescribing.
A Sprint gives us a clear set of areas to examine, not a reason to change everything.
A Sprint gives us a clear set of areas to examine, not a reason to change everything.
We identify what deserves attention, what can wait and what already works well.
We identify what deserves attention, what can wait and what already works well.
If a service or system isn’t needed, it won’t form part of our recommendation.
The work is shaped by what we find.
The work is shaped by what we find.
Not the other way round.
Not the other way round.
Not the other way round.
ABOUT
Commercial thinking before marketing activity.
Commercial thinking before marketing activity.
Commercial thinking before marketing activity.
The Builtwell Agency was created to help good heating and HVAC businesses make more commercially sensible customer-acquisition decisions, with clear priorities and practical improvements shaped around how the business actually works.
The Builtwell Agency was created to help good heating and HVAC businesses make more commercially sensible customer-acquisition decisions, with clear priorities and practical improvements shaped around how the business actually works.
No 60-page marketing strategy destined to live forever in Google Drive. Just clear thinking, useful implementation and a plan the business can actually use.
No 60-page marketing strategy destined to live forever in Google Drive. Just clear thinking, useful implementation and a plan the business can actually use.
No 60-page marketing strategy destined to live forever in Google Drive. Just clear thinking, useful implementation and a plan the business can actually use.
PROCESS
A focused Sprint. A practical plan.
A focused Sprint. A practical plan.
A focused Sprint. A practical plan.
01.
01.
Diagnose
Diagnose
We examine how your business attracts and handles customers, which types of work matter commercially and where attention may be needed.
We examine how your business attracts and handles customers, which types of work matter commercially and where attention may be needed.
02.
02.
Prioritise
Prioritise
We separate important issues from cosmetic ones, then agree what should be addressed now, what can wait and what already works well.
We separate important issues from cosmetic ones, then agree what should be addressed now, what can wait and what already works well.
03.
03.
Implement
Implement
We complete the agreed priority improvements within the scope of the Sprint.
We complete the agreed priority improvements within the scope of the Sprint.
04.
04.
Measure
Measure
Where appropriate, we put practical tracking in place to show where enquiries come from and which become worthwhile work.
Where appropriate, we put practical tracking in place to show where enquiries come from and which become worthwhile work.
05.
05.
Plan
Plan
We finish with a focused 90-day plan and a clear handover, so you know what was changed, what to monitor and what to do next.
We finish with a focused 90-day plan and a clear handover, so you know what was changed, what to monitor and what to do next.
FIT
Built for good owner-led businesses that are ready to grow deliberately.
Built for good owner-led businesses that are ready to grow deliberately.
Built for good owner-led businesses that are ready to grow deliberately.
We may be a good fit if:
We are unlikely to be the right fit if:
You run, or are properly equipped to launch, a UK heating or HVAC business
You need an immediate influx of work to solve a short-term cash-flow problem
You have sound trade competence and care about the quality of the work and customer experience
The business is not yet ready to deliver the work it wants to attract
You have an established reputation or the experience, resources and credible plan to build one
You do not have capacity, or a credible plan to create it, for additional work
You provide commercially valuable work and have capacity, or a realistic capacity plan, to take on more of it
You only want more enquiries and are unwilling to examine the foundations or what happens after they arrive
The business is financially stable enough to invest without relying on an immediate influx of work
You want constant marketing activity rather than focused work on the priorities that matter
You want stronger marketing foundations or a better way to handle and measure demand
You value focused, practical improvements and are willing to examine the numbers honestly
We may be a good fit if:
We may be a good fit if:
You run, or are properly equipped to launch, a UK heating or HVAC business
You have sound trade competence and care about the quality of the work and customer experience
You have an established reputation or the experience, resources and credible plan to build one
You provide commercially valuable work and have capacity, or a realistic capacity plan, to take on more of it
The business is financially stable enough to invest without relying on an immediate influx of work
You want stronger marketing foundations or a better way to handle and measure demand
You value focused, practical improvements and are willing to examine the numbers honestly
We are unlikely to be the right fit if:
We are unlikely to be the right fit if:
You need an immediate influx of work to solve a short-term cash-flow problem
The business is not yet ready to deliver the work it wants to attract
You do not have capacity, or a credible plan to create it, for additional work
You only want more enquiries and are unwilling to examine the foundations or what happens after they arrive
You want constant marketing activity rather than focused work on the priorities that matter
We don’t expect a perfect business or a long trading history.
We don’t expect a perfect business or a long trading history.
There simply needs to be a sound underlying business, or the experience, resources and readiness to build one properly.
There simply needs to be a sound underlying business, or the experience, resources and readiness to build one properly.
FAQs
Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions
Not within the initial Sprints.
The Sprints strengthen the marketing foundations and improve how demand is captured, handled and measured.
If the business is ready to increase demand afterwards, paid acquisition may become a sensible next step. We do not assume that more enquiries are always the first answer.
The Marketing Foundation Sprint is for good owner-led businesses whose marketing foundations need to be built or strengthened. That may be an established business grown mainly through reputation and referrals, or an emerging business with the experience and resources to build properly from the beginning.
The Enquiry Conversion Sprint is for established businesses already generating meaningful demand that want to improve what happens between initial interest and installation.
If the distinction is not obvious, that is what the initial conversation is for.
That depends on the Sprint and what we find.
We begin with a defined range of areas to examine, then prioritise the work most relevant to your business.
Before work begins, the agreed scope will clearly explain what we will implement, what we will recommend and what does not need changing.
Not necessarily.
The Enquiry Management System forms part of the complete Sprint. It is designed for businesses where enquiries are scattered across calls, emails, forms and WhatsApp, or where follow-up depends heavily on memory.
But we diagnose first. If your existing process already handles enquiries effectively, we remove the system from the Sprint and adjust the investment accordingly.
If the system remains part of our recommendation, the £129 monthly subscription and what it covers will be explained clearly before work begins.
If you don’t need it, we’ll tell you.
No.
We improve controllable parts of the customer-acquisition system, but we do not guarantee enquiries, conversion improvements, installations, revenue, profit or advertising performance.
Any commercial scenarios we use are illustrations, not forecasts or promises.
A Sprint gives the work a clear objective, scope and end point.
It allows us to diagnose the priorities, implement the agreed improvements and hand everything over without requiring an open-ended retainer from the outset.
You receive a clear handover and a focused 90-day plan.
Depending on what the business needs, the next step may be managing the improvements internally, addressing further priorities or increasing demand when the foundations and economics support it.
BEFORE YOU SCALE
Before spending heavily to generate demand, let’s understand the foundations it will rely on.
Before spending heavily to generate demand, let’s understand the foundations it will rely on.
Before spending heavily to generate demand, let’s understand the foundations it will rely on.
We’ll discuss how customers find, choose and contact your business, what happens after they enquire and where there may be opportunities to improve.
We’ll discuss how customers find, choose and contact your business, what happens after they enquire and where there may be opportunities to improve.
If one of the Sprints is a sensible fit, we’ll explain which one and why. If neither is, we’ll say so.
A practical discussion about your business, its priorities and what should happen next.
A practical discussion about your business, its priorities and what should happen next.