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In This Issue:
No Money? No Credit? No Problem.
You’ve seen this sign at used car lots and likely, as I have, blew the claim off as a sucker-punch to get the naive buyer on to the lot for the heavy-closing salesman to pounce on. Well, it turns out that the claim is just about 100% true! What most of us don’t know is that, until very recently, there has been a lender for almost any credit situation. Just came out of bankruptcy yesterday but have a job? No problem. Own a car, boat or house and want a new motorcycle? No problem. In the finance world it’s been an assessment of risk vs. reward that not just determines if a loan will be made but how much security is needed and what the interest rate will be.
Bad credit history? Okay, sure, there is a loan for you if, 1) you give us a lien on your house, 2) we get a co-signer who will guarantee payment if you default and, 3) you agree to 26% interest. No problem!
The used car people, time-share people, hot tub people all understood this and financing was, and still is, the backbone of their business. Here’s how it can help you even in today’s tough financing market.
- Sign up for and use your equipment manufacturer’s program. They have negotiated a good deal for you so take advantage of it. They will not take every deal you give them so then you need a backup.
- Go to your bank. If you use a local bank they may not have been caught up in all the financial mess the big banks got into and could be quite happy working with you on small loans.
- Go to the local branch of Citi Financial, Norwest, HFC/Beneficial and the others. Important to understand: each branch stands alone as a
decision-maker on the risk they will accept on any loan and each branch has many sources of money that they can tap into.
Example: Your customer is a homeowner who is employed but they have a lot of credit card debt. You won’t know that but their FICO score will be low enough that your equipment manufacturer’s program rejects them. You go to your local Citi rep and she says they don’t qualify for the best rate but for a higher rate she can get them the loan. You tell that to you customer and they are happy (!) even at the higher rate. Why are they happy? They know getting money is hard right now and you made it easy for them.
Sale made! Client earned.
Good selling,
Tom Piscitelli
The POWER of Personal Use
The Personal Use Program pays off in a big way for Bob Zahm, owner of Huntington Heating & Cooling in Huntington, Indiana. The program is a highly effective way to have your company get firsthand experience regarding the benefits of AttiCat plus it can help them as they sell to the customer. Bob chose to take advantage of the Personal Use Program and he is glad he did.
You see, Craig Baughman, a Service Tech for Huntington Heating & Cooling had been placed on injury reserve due to having back surgery, but that did not stop him from taking advantage of having his own attic/home installed with AttiCat insulation. Baughman, like many homeowners, struggled with “cold spots” and various temperature changes throughout his home. He was excited about more insulation being put in his attic to combat the “cold spots” while working to decrease his energy costs. Last April, Baughman had his home insulated as part of the Stage 4 Boot Camp. Since that time, the rising temperatures played a factor in Huntington Heating & Cooling being unable to sell an AttiCat job. However, because of Baughman’s firsthand experience and satisfaction, he was getting the word out with his very own personal account even though he was on injury reserve!
As we all know, when it rains, it pours and Bob Zahm reported three insulation sales in the last two weeks and, you guessed it, they came from none other than Craig Baughman. Service Techs play an integral part in the selling of AttiCat and with the Personal Use Program, what greater way to sell than to have a Service Tech or any other employee able to give clients firsthand testimonials. Another added benefit for the company is the practical experience your installers will get from doing Personal Use installations. Contractors all across the country are implementing personal use jobs for their employees during trying times and this program is a great way for you to invest yourself into your employees and your company.
If you would like to take part in this exciting opportunity for yourself or any of your employees, please contact Specialty Comfort to get more information. Your area consultant and/or trainer will offer to help do personal use jobs with your employees while he/she is in your area.
Taylor Siebert
Trainer/Consultant
Airing Out the Attic
HVAC companies are always on the look-out for new products they can introduce to their clients. Back in 2004 - 2007 during the new housing boom, I was able to package upgraded furnaces, 13 SEER air conditioners and solar attic ventilators into every new home under construction in three of my new home subdivisions. After I educated my salespeople, they loved the concept and believed that this HVAC package should be included in every inventory home. Because my salespeople believed in this product strongly, our company, at a reduced price, added these ventilators to my salespeople’s homes. They, in turn, recommended this product to their neighbors, relatives and friends. New home buyers who were building a home from a dirt start were also presented with this wonderful option. I, of course, have a solar attic ventilator on my own home and am always able to give a personal testimony as to how it works and the benefits of installing one.
When the new housing market took a severe down turn, I continued to sell solar attic ventilators. This time it was in addition to an add-on/ replacement job typically with a new air conditioner or heat pump. It made sense to “bundle” these two as companion products. Because a solar attic ventilator can reduce the indoor temperature of a home by at least five degrees, it helps to take the load off of the air conditioner use. The home stays cooler and the air conditioner runs less. Homeowners also like this product because it is green! It takes no electrical power to run, just the rays of the sun. As seasons passed, we discovered another benefit to the solar attic ventilator. Because it will run at a very low speed even in winter months, we found that it keeps snow and moisture out of attics. Now we were really on the bonus plan! We had a year round product, for little investment especially in tight financial times, that served the homeowner year round.
Solar attic ventilators are a wonderful companion product for AttiCat dealers. Not only can you insulate an attic, you can add a solar attic ventilator the very same day providing hot air evacuation in summer months and snow and moisture elimination in winter months.
At Specialty Comfort Enterprises, we are always looking at proven new products to bring to our dealers. We look forward to making recommendations to your company for many years to come. Maybe you should consider adding solar attic ventilators as part of your comfort package.
Linda Beck
Trainer/Consultant
Calculating the Savings: The New ROI Calculator
Specialty Comfort Enterprises is pleased to provide our partners with an exciting new tool to help sell AttiCat Insulation jobs. This tool is available immediately. It can be obtained directly from your AttiCat Consultant. All you need to start using it is a computer loaded with Microsoft Excel and just a bit of company information and pricing setup. The application is small enough to be emailed directly to you.
We take our responsibility very seriously in helping our partners to be successful in business, not just with AttiCat. The Proposal Generator is a comprehensive tool to assist Service Techs in presenting clients with multiple solutions to address comfort, energy and reliability issues. So you will notice that the Proposal Generator not only addresses development of a professional proposal for AttiCat, including a Savings Estimate Worksheet, but also incorporates additional option and accessory sales by service technicians.
Proposal Generator also includes an easy to generate, custom Repair vs. Replace Analysis to support the Service Tech in explaining why it may be beneficial for a client to replace a furnace and/or air conditioner instead of repairing it. This is a great tool to help the technician be more comfortable with this discussion. Using it will generate more leads for your comfort consultants and sell more replacement jobs!
We suggest that you start with one copy of Proposal Generator for your company and customize it with your company information, local weather and energy data and pricing information. Then copy or email this modified version to the other team members that will be using the program. Each time you need to change any data, such as pricing or energy data, follow the same process.
Proposal Generator has a built-in tutorial page to guide you through setting it up and using it with your clients. Please be sure to provide feedback on successes using this new tool and any suggestions or ideas that can improve its usefulness for all!
Mark Sims
Proposal Generator Designer
Wrapping Up
Check out this AttiCat truck wrap that Service America is using. Marketing on wheels!
  
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Popping the Question!
Want to increase your AttiCat® insulation sales? The method for increasing sales isn’t complicated. It’s all about “popping the question.” And just what question should you pop?
“Has anyone ever checked to see if your attic insulation is up to current Department of Energy standards?”
The likely answer to this question will be “no.” You may also hear, “I don’t even know what the DOE standards are.”
When your homeowner answers “no,” then you simply ask:
”While I’m here, would you like me to take a quick look and see what your insulation looks like?”
Before climbing into the attic, show your homeowner the DOE map and point out the level of insulation recommended for their area. Next, take your Xtend & Climb® Ladder and climb into the attic with your AttiCat® ruler and a stapler. Ask the homeowner if they would like to climb up the ladder and poke their head in the attic to see how their actual insulation level compares to DOE standards. The difference will be dramatic.
If your homeowner isn’t into climbing ladders then take a digital photo of the insulation and the ruler and show them the insulation they have compared to what they need. As the saying goes, “A picture is worth a thousand words.”
Now all you need to do is put together three choices of insulation enhancement for your homeowner and ask them which one would best meet their needs.
The key to everything, though, is asking the question. As Wayne Gretzky said, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Ask the question every time you are in a client’s home - ask - every time - and you WILL increase your sales. If you don’t believe it, just try it — and then tell us how things are going. We look forward to hearing from you ...
Steve Curtis
Editor
Dealer of the Month
Our AttiCat dealer of the month is Young’s Air Conditioning in Los Banos, CA.
According to Nevada Bretz, AttiCat Supervisor for Young’s A/C, they’ve been averaging three insulation jobs per week. Charles Young, along with Comfort Advisor Charles Corral, have been making most of the sales. The average size attic has 1400 sq. feet and they have been using around 18 bags per house — although they have an R-60 job coming up that calls for 58 bags! Wow! And they don’t just stick to houses — they have done a condo (had to put the machine on a balcony) and even a domed arena used for auctions.
Nevada says they use a two-man team and they try to schedule appointments as early in the morning as possible (it can get a little toasty in the California sun). They’re even starting some jobs as early as 6:00 AM. Although it is only taking about 2 hours to blow the insulation, they have a lot of prep work to do in order to do the job the right way. It takes almost a full day to do one home (depending on size and difficulty). Instead of using a truck for transport, they like using a trailer. The first thing they do as they unload the equipment is to put down a drop cloth under the machine — this makes for easier cleanup at the end of the day. They also use an E-Z Up Canopy and put the machine under it. This makes for a much cooler job for the one who is loading the insulation (might also help during light rain).
As far as tips to pass on, Nevada says he prefers to wear a respirator rather than the usual white painter’s masks. With the painter’s mask, his glasses fog up but the respirator doesn’t cause that problem. He also stresses the importance of staying hydrated. He discovered this the day he looked down and saw three hoses in his hand instead of one! Despite heat hallucinations, Nevada says, “We get excited when we know we have a job coming up!” Other advice he passed on includes 1) get the hardest parts done first (Raft-R-Mates & Rulers) 2) the more rulers the better in order to ensure the insulation is level 3) use walkie-talkies to communicate with your partner (e.g., one beep means start machine and two beeps means stop) 4) disposable coveralls come in handy.
On the sales side, Young’s has been having success for a couple of reasons. First, they are including the insulation offer with other add/on and replacement orders and repairs (The insulation offer can always be backed out if the homeowner doesn’t want it). About 65-70% of their insulation sales have happened this way. Second, Nevada says, “It’s almost a no-brainer when you show them how much insulation they have and how much the DOE says they SHOULD have.” You just have to offer it every time you’re in the home. Another interesting fact is that approximately 80% of their insulation jobs have included the installation of a solar attic fan. The insulation with the fan is a winning combo.
Congratulations to Young’s Air Conditioning for their outstanding use of the AttiCat system and for being our Dealer of the Month! Keep that insulation blowing — and Nevada, don’t forget to take those water breaks!
Steve Curtis
Trainer/Consultant
New Photo Galleries
 Oelerich HVAC Boot Camp
 Besco Air Boot Camp
 Comfort Temperature Systems Boot Camp
 Ranco Enterprises Boot Camp
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