It’s important to understand the changes in the market facing our industry. If you made your living the last eight to 10 years selling high-efficiency equipment to help your clients escape high energy costs and as a way to separate yourself from your competition, you now face a major challenge.
Oil prices have plummeted, LP and natural gas are relatively affordable, and electricity rates are fairly stable. That makes your job a lot more difficult, especially if you sold your products based on return on investment. How do you continue to sell efficiency when the short memories of American’s have all but forgotten that oil was close to $4 per gallon just a couple of heating seasons ago? Do you go back to selling atmospheric oil boilers in the Northeast and 96 percent hot-air furnaces in the South? Do you opt for 13 SEER instead of 30? How long will these prices sustain themselves? There is a lot to think about. Chuck in the truck is always going to be out there selling cheap alternatives. So, how do you continue to sell high efficiency when energy costs are low? The answer: variable speed.