| Greg Langenderfer is our new Service Manager and is responsible for managing our service department as well as generating sales for the service department.
Before he came to Air-Care, Greg worked in sales here in Las Vegas and has been in Vegas for several years. He was born and raised in Northwest Ohio and graduated from Bowling Green University with a major in Business Communications and a Minor in Construction Technology. When he is not managing the service department here at Air-Care, Greg enjoys spending his free time playing golf. |
Archive for January, 2011
Spotlight on Greg Langenderfer
Wednesday, January 26th, 2011Always be the professional
Wednesday, January 26th, 2011| by Wayne Tracy |
 Every aspect of your business needs to speak quality and professionalism at all times. Your customers and potential customers are always “Sizing you up”. It starts with how they’re treated on the phone when they call you, the appearance of your vehicles as they walk or drive by it, or even the appearance of your technician they may see at the local coffee shop. Regardless of how they are introduced to your company – you only get one chance at a first impression.
It doesn’t matter how old your company vehicles are, they can still be cleaned on a regular basis. Not only on the outside, but they must also be kept clean on the inside. I’ve seen customers actually looking in the windows of our service vans. Not only must it look good for the first job of the day, but for each job. It’s very simple to do this and will only take a few minutes to reload the van neatly after each job is finished. Duct cleaning can sometimes be dirty, nasty work and it can be difficult to stay clean after crawling in attics or basement crawl spaces. But, you still have to be presentable to each and every customer (or potential customer) you meet during the day. Dusting yourself off during the day will help. Using a vacuum and upholstery brush only takes a minute to get loose debris off your clothing. My father was a plumber his whole life and he always carried a spare set of clothing in this service truck and would stop between jobs to change if necessary. This may sound extreme, but think about it – it only takes a few minutes for a quick change up on your way to the next job. At the very least carry a spare shirt. Be sure that anyone who answers the phone for your company always answers in a polite & friendly voice. We all have bad days, but if we’re going to communicate with customers on the phone we have to put that behind us and treat the customer politely and enthusiastically every time we answer a call. Make sure that the person taking calls from your customers is well educated in the services and prices you offer. When a customer calls, they expect the person to whom they are transferred to be an expert and answer all of their questions. If they should ask a question that you cannot answer, get the answer and get back to them promptly. Chances are that when you’re talking to a customer they are taking notes, so you also need to make notes of prices and circumstances you have talked to your customer about. I have a notebook at my desk so I can make notes about the specifics I talk to a customer about in a call very easily. That way, when they call back I can simply refer to these notes so I know exactly what I discussed and what prices I quoted the customer. Just remember the best advertising you can invest in is a happy customer. Referrals are a lifeline of your business and you need to have anyone that comes in contact with your company saying great things about you to his friends and family. |
How to properly care for your electrostatic air filter
Wednesday, January 26th, 2011| by Melanie Sands |
 Here is some of what we have heard from the consumer:
“We were told the filters only need to be cleaned every 6 months” “We were told these filters do not need cleaning or upkeep” Both of these statements are untrue and should not be told to the customer. Failing to clean the filter will increase the resistance and possibly cause damage to system components. As the seller of our air filter, you should be aware of how to maintain them and take the time to inform the consumer of this information. Here are a few easy steps for cleaning of the filter which should be done about every 4-6 weeks:
Following these steps will make sure the filter is kept in good working order. To help get this information out to the consumer we include an insert with all our filters with pictures and instructions. We also have information on how to clean electrostatic air filters at our website on Air-Care.com. Additionally, customers can register their air filter at http://filterwarranty.com; After registering, they will be sent an email every 30 days reminding them to clean their air filter. You will find that when you take a few minutes to educate your customer, it will promote a better relationship; and we all know that a happy customer means potentially more business. |
Selling and Performing Quality Duct Cleaning
Wednesday, January 26th, 2011| by Mary Dziak |
 Each month we have training classes here at our facility. We not only train how to do duct cleaning, we also have a segment that outlines how to sell and price duct cleaning.
Air-Care has been cleaning air ducts since the late 1980′s. We were among the first duct cleaners here in Las Vegas and that is when we started manufacturing air duct cleaning equipment. As we learned this trade, we changed our equipment to fit the needs in the field. We manufactured our equipment for ease of use and with every change made it more efficient. There have been stories in the national news lately about “scam” duct cleaners. These words are not ones we like related to our industry. There are ways to promote duct cleaning as a valuable service to the consumer. Unfortunately these “scam” or “bait and switch” ads just hurt our industry and make consumers skeptical of all of us. Air-Care teaches and strongly believes that the only way to do duct cleaning correctly, is you have to clean everything that the indoor air touches. That means cleaning all the supply and return ducts, the air handler (furnace) and fogging the system. This is really “Air System Cleaning”. With the “bait and switch” ads that are out there, they advertise for primarily “duct cleaning” service although they don’t state that. This “duct cleaning is just cleaning the air ducts themselves not “Air System Cleaning”. This is what puts you ahead of your competitors. The ads that you run should state “Air System Cleaning”. You really can’t put a dollar amount in your advertising because you wouldn’t be able to compete against the “$69″ whole house ads. A good way to advertise is “Free No Obligation” inspection. This gets you in the door so that you can educate your customer of the differences in “duct cleaning” and “Air System Cleaning”. You can also offer a “free filter” or “free dryer duct service” instead of showing a price. If you are hired to do a Air System Cleaning, then the first thing you do is clean the air handler. That should take 45 minutes to 1 hour to perform. After that you clean all supply and return ducts and than fog the system with a disinfectant and deodorizer. This should take 1 ½ to 2 hours to perform. Total on the job time should be around 2 ½ to 3 hours. NADCA states that duct cleaning costs about $450 – $1000 nationally for Air System Cleaning. These are legitimate numbers, you don’t have to make up stories about mold or other problems that don’t exist to get the customer to want Air System Cleaning. The worst story I have heard from others around the country is that there have been “so-called” duct cleaners come into a home, hook up a negative air machine and without going around to each duct, say that the ducts were cleaned. I don’t care how powerful of a negative air machine you have, if you do not disturb the debris in a duct system, it is not coming out. Put yourself above the “bait and switch” competitors by advertising and doing the job with quality in mind. |
Exciting Things Ahead
Wednesday, January 26th, 2011| by Richard Papaleo, President |
 I hope all of you had a great holiday season and are ready for a great year. This is the time of year we all make resolutions and try to do better with a whole new calendar in front of us.
I made some promises that I plan to keep and one of them is to grow our business with some new and creative products which will also help you grow your business as well. In addition to new products we will be making some major product improvements that will give use the leading edge in our industry and greatly improve our equipment performance and quality. Our staff meets once a week to review our game plan and keep it on course. You will be seeing some changes in our training materials and be invited to some special training programs via web-based presentations. This will be an exciting time were we will be able to share new and important information about the air duct cleaning process, duct leakage testing and marketing methods that really work. The great part of this is there will be a live Q&A so that everyone can benefit. So keep your eyes and ears open for the up coming announcements of times and dates. Thanks for being part of our team and sharing your experience with us.
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