It does not matter what line of work you may have come from, from where you might have gained your experience, but it is a virtual guarantee that somebody in your organization cares about the difference between features and benefits. If they didn’t, you probably wouldn’t be bringing down a paycheck.

Everyone expects the price of HCFC refrigerants to be going up in the near future. Why else would industrious entrepreneurs in Miami attempt to hoard a little bit extra for some of their closest friends?

Mr. Pete Williams e-mailed The NEWS recently to complain about an article in our Oct. 12 issue. I often call such fans of the magazine. The conversation with Williams spurred a few ideas, which are now shared with you.

The Sunshine State saw approximately 500 members of the Mechanical Service Contractors of America (MSCA) descend upon the Hyatt Coconut Point Resort for the association’s 24th Annual Educational Conference. Owners and managers came to discuss the construction and building service and maintenance industry.

Steve Yurek of AHRI received an interesting introduction from Tom Roberts of HARDI as Yurek was about to defend a somewhat unpopular recent AHRI action regarding regional energy-efficiency standards.

In the middle of a balmy September, 14 engineers and contractors sat in the boardroom comfort of the Greenheck Learning Center - in the parking lot outside the offices of Air Control Products Inc., a manufacturer rep firm in Broadview Heights, Ohio.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Energy Star benchmarking program is making energy audits much more attractive, less time consuming, and what is even more important - an effective selling tool. If an HVAC contractor wanted to get into the energy audit business, the EPA Website might be a good place to start.

Having just returned from two outstanding conferences, I rediscovered something from my ancient school days: sit in the front row if you want to stay engaged and learn something.

Inside sources would not spill their guts about an Oct. 13 agreement regarding energy-efficiency standards, even though I promised not to share it with any other magazines.

The bottom line in selling always seems to come down to - well, to the bottom line. The routes salespeople choose to get there are as varied as the creative expenditures on their expense reports. Here are a few lessons learned about identifying and managing salespeople.