The survey, of 400 homeowners and 104 contractors, was conducted by Clear Seas Research, a division of BNP Media, the parent company of The ACHR NEWS. The survey also included questions on pricing, factors that go into HVAC purchasing decisions, where homeowners tend to look for HVAC service companies, and other issues surrounding contractor-customer relationships.

Posting online reviews is a must, they agreed.

The ‘Gold Standard’

“They are the gold standard,” said Chris Hunter, principal industry advisor at ServiceTitan, which provides software, including customer relationship management (CRM) software, for field-service businesses. “They are today’s word-of-mouth marketing.”

“Online reviews are critical in the residential HVAC contracting business,” said Ben LeDonni, president of BNP Engage, a digital marketing firm that works with business-to-business companies. “At the heart of every transaction is the basic human desire to buy from someone we know, like, and trust. Online reviews are the digital equivalent of this age-old truth.”

A recent ServiceTitan study, Hunter said, found that service contractors say that 71% of their jobs come from word-of-mouth recommendations. “With online reviews being a big piece of this, I’d say that’s extremely important, to make sure one is executing on a strategy to get and showcase the reviews,” he said.

But how to prompt customers to write reviews, how to put them in the best light, and what to do with the not-so-positive ones? We asked the experts to dive into those issues.

Make it Easy

Alicia Johnston, coaching manager at Nexstar Network, a training and coaching organization for home service businesses, recommend using a review-gathering and -management company that can provide the customer with an electronic link to a review platform. Hunter and LeDonni also said easy customer access to a review platform is a must.

Contractors are building a relationship from the moment a customer service representative answers the phone, and Johnston said that asking for a review should be an integral and routine part of that relationship.

“With review-generation companies like pulseM and ReviewBuzz, following up with customers to obtain reviews has become seamless using various communication mediums like email, electronic invoices, and SMS messaging,” she said.

She added: “While customers largely don’t mind leaving reviews, it is still the responsibility of the contractor to ask and streamline the experience. Most do this through a follow-up email, phone call, or text message with a link right to the review site of their choice.”

The request should be made just after service is completed, the process should be made as easy as possible, and the technician or contractor should explain to the customer how much reviews mean to the business and thank him or her for writing one, LeDonni said.

The Best Policy

Encouraging customer honesty fosters trust, he said.

“Make it clear that you value their honesty and that all feedback, positive or negative, is welcome. This not only increases the number of reviews but also the trustworthiness of your reviews,” LeDonni said.

“While a negative review isn’t ideal to receive, it does help build authenticity for a company to show that sometimes the mark is missed,” Johnston said. “Consumers appreciate that transparency and become more suspicious if they don’t see at least a few reviews under three stars.”

But, Johnston, Hunter, and LeDonni said, a negative review gives the contractor the opportunity to address the issue, in a professional manner, and try to make it right — in public.

“The way we responded to negative ones is just as important as getting the positive ones,” said Hunter, who founded, and later sold, a home services firm. “Because we know customers go to the few negative ones and see what happened and how the contractor responded.”

That said, every effort should be taken to avoid getting a negative review, experts said.

“Having the technician ask if they (customers) are completely satisfied or if they have served them well is extremely important first step,” Hunter said. “This allows for the homeowner to communicate, if they aren’t completely satisfied, to the tech, so he can do something to solve it.”

King Google

Google is the undisputed king of review platforms. A 2023 consumer survey, Johnston said, found that 87% of consumers used Google to evaluate local businesses. Google has high credibility, she said, and reviews can help improve a company’s Google star ranking.

But there are other review platforms, such as on the Better Business Bureau site, Yelp, and Angi, and Johnston said it’s important to have listings on those as well, in order to increase visbility and accessibility.

The most positive reviews on a third-party platform can often be curated for use on a contractor’s site.

Reviews on all platforms should be responded to, and those that violate the platform’s guidelines or appear to be phony should be reported, Johnston said.

“Contractors can make the most of reviews on platforms like Google, even if they’re not all positive, by actively managing their online reputation,” Hunter said. “This includes regularly monitoring reviews, responding professionally to both positive and negative feedback, and using the insights from these reviews to improve their services.”

The Genuine Item?

LeDonni said there’s some “understandable” but largely unwarranted public skepticism about reviews because of the possibility of fabrications. “Reviews have a huge impact on customer decisions,” he said.

“While there are instances of inauthentic reviews, the majority are genuine, and consumers are becoming very savvy at recognizing the difference,” he added. “Moreover, platforms are actively refining their methods to weed out the false ones, ensuring that the integrity of online reviews remains intact.”

But should a contractor provide a platform, on his or her company site, for leaving reviews? The experts are divided on that question.

LeDonni says no.

“Instead, I’d use the social media and directory sites like Google, Facebook, NextDoor (or whatever is heavily used in your location) to gather the review,” he said. “They provide the authenticity and you can usually copy the review from there or screenshot it to put on your website.”

Johnston and Hunter take another view.

“A combination of both firsthand reviews and third-party reviews on a website can help to increase consumer trust and build a company’s overall online presence,” Johnston said.